Stainless steel scrubbies and dish soap. I was afraid to use them for fear of ruining the shiny finish. ButDishwasher the Glass enamel is impervious to scratching from the SST scrubbie. I have never managed to scratch it, but not for lack of leaning into it and scrubbing hard. Take 'em over to the sink. Lay a tea towel down and go to town on them. Toss the cast iron grates in the Dish washer. I was afraid they'd rust but they don't. Be careful handling them, they Break; the castings are real garbage. I broke my first set & had to replace 'em.

Here is what it looks like now after painting it Palladian Blue (thanks, sueb20, for the correct spelling): This is a spare cabinet door I have that is a dark alder (which is quite similar to cherry): I do like this much better. This shade still has a tinge of red in it. I'm wondering if I should aim for this type of finish or something without the red undertones? Also, if I were to layer a brownish/black gel stain (like a walnut or java) would it work better to reduce the red/orange of the existing stain? Other possibility could be a mahogany, but since the existing stain has quite a bit of red/orange, perhaps that'd be too much? I'm not going to sand away the entire stain there now, just enough to get off the poly layer. The cultured granite doesn't photograph too well, but it has little greyish/black flecks in it. Usually I find a java stain too dark for my taste, but I'm curious how it would look next to the cultured granite. I don't think it works too well with the existing finish--it's too orange and shiny for me, as the same time, is it fairly good shape and I don't want to ruin it. Next task, though, is to clean the grout in the floor tile and reseal before DH and DS return so the bathroom can be used again.

There are some inaccurate comments here. Dirt and damage are NOT ordinary wear and tear (which would be something like a smudge behind the sofa on the wall). Your tenant is required to deliver the premises back to you in the same condition in which they were delivered, absent "ordinary wear and tear". Again Dirt and Damage are NOT ordinary wear and tear. Hire a cleaner, have the cleaner put the place in appropriate rent-ready condition, and deduct the cost from the security deposit. Also deduct the cost of any repairs necessary. In some states you cannot deduct the cost of your own time. I don't clean after tenants anymore. That burden is on them. I gave them a white-glove clean property, and they will pay to deliver one back to me, if they fail to do so. You are required to make a written accounting of the security deposit within your state limits - most are 30 days. Some are 45 days. Be sure you do this, as the tenant can recover treble damages from you in some states if you fail to do so. You can most definitely disallow smokers and pet owners in your property. They are not protected classes. Charge every dime it take to put the premises back in order and never allow smokers and pet owners, unless you don't mind extra damage. If you do allow pet owners, maybe one older dog won't do that much damage. I have allowed 2 different 8 year old dogs that were long-term pets with good references over the years. No puppies EVER. No replacement dogs. No smoking ever.

Just Say No to candle sconces. My painter told me that his several customers who burn candles have put his son through college. Read these articles, and have your husband read these articles. For light, put a pretty ceramic lamp on the dresser. For decor, hang some colorful framed art to brighten the dark furniture. http://chimneykeepers.com/resources-2/that-mysterious-soot-might-be-from-candles/ http://www.air-purifier-power.com/candle-soot-damage.html https://rainbowintl.com/blog/black-soot-deposition-the-sinister-side-of-scented-candles