READER TIPS

ONCE AND FOR ALL

After installing a brass oil lamp in my cabin, I soon discovered that it was one more thing that required constant polishing to keep looking new and shiny. I therefore got a can of clear hightemperature paint from an autosupply store, polished the lamp for the final time and put two light coats of clear on it. I never had to polish it again.

SELF CONTAINMENT

Before I bring any steel cans aboard they all get two layers of duct tape around the base, with half the width of the tape folded under. The cans may still corrode but the duct tape contains the rust and prevents annoying ring stains on the boat. — Mark Kappler, Boston, MA