Q: The border tiles in my master bath shower look horrible! The tiles are dark brown, but the color is slowly coming off, probably because of chemicals in cleaning solutions. The tiles are not flat and smooth like the surrounding tiles. Is there any way to paint them?

A: Painting is probably your only option, short of replacing the tile.

Although it’s possible to use standard paint to coat tile if you first scuff it up with sandpaper and apply an epoxy primer, manufacturers generally warn not to do this where the tiles will be frequently subjected to water, such as on walls around a bathtub or shower.

To coat tiles on shower walls, you need specialty paint. One example that’s widely available is Rust-Oleum Tub & Tile paint. This two-part acrylic epoxy comes in white and two off-white colors, Biscuit and Almond. It costs $23 on Amazon.com and is also carried by many home centers and paint stores. The packaging warns against using it on surfaces exposed to “constant high humidity/water immersion such as swimming pools, hot tubs, ponds or saunas.” So, assuming your shower isn’t in constant use, the paint should stick.

Alternatives include Homax Tub & Sink Brush-On One-Part Epoxy ($27 on amazon.com) and Klass Kote (klasskote.com) epoxy paints, which have the advantage of coming in numerous colors, including brown. You can order these from the company websites. You’d need to buy the A and B Klass Kote components separately, starting at $16 each in the half-pint containers, the smallest size sold. If the surface, once prepped, isn’t as smooth as you want the final finish to look, you’d also need the two-part primer, because you can sand the primer (once dry) to create a smoother base. The company also recommends buying its Epoxy Reducer No. 500 ($9 for half-pint, klasskote.com), which can be used as a cleaner once the prep is done as well as to thin the paint and to clean up spills.

Follow package directions carefully; they differ by product. All of the paints, though, stick better to a surface that is scuffed up rather than slick. The instructions often say to scuff with sandpaper, but the texture of your trim tiles probably makes sanding impractical. Instead, use a wire brush or an abrasive cleanser and a heavy-duty scrub pad, the type that’s often green and is designed for pots rather than nonstick surfaces. Rinse thoroughly and allow the surface to dry. Mix and apply the paint as the manufacturer recommends, being careful not to smear it onto grout lines. A brush about three-fourths of an inch or one inch wide would probably work best, but also have a small artist brush available for dabbing paint into recesses and whisking away drips.

Rust-Oleum warns that small bubbles may appear as its Tub & Tile paint is brushed on. If you use this product, don’t keep brushing in an attempt to eliminate them. Too much brushing will keep a smooth coat from forming and isn’t needed anyway, as the bubbles will go away on their own.

Once the project is done, wait the recommended time – probably several days – to use the shower. And switch to a cleaning regimen that avoids harsh chemicals. Using a towel to dry off the shower walls after each shower or series of showers is one way to prevent mildew and buildup of soap scum. A squeegee also works, but not on textured tile.

Q: I have a leather-top Baker coffee table from the 1950s. In recent years, the leather has been badly stained by water. As a result, the top is pretty unsightly. Is there an economical way to remove the stains and restore the leather, or to replace the top?

A: Leather inserts on coffee tables and other furniture of that vintage were coated with lacquer to protect against stains. So, depending on the extent of the damage, there are three basic solutions: Touch up the lacquer; strip the coating, clean and recondition the leather, and apply a new clear, protective finish; or install a new leather top.

Bill Shotwell, senior restorer at Restorations Unlimited in Sterling, Va., (virginiafurniturerefinishing. com), offers the full range of options, with prices ranging from $200 to $400 for a touch-up and cleaning to $400 to $600 for a replacement. If he installs new leather, he can add 23-karat gold tooling around the perimeter, which he rolls on with a heated, embossed brass wheel, for $2.50 a linear inch.

Besides professional treatment, there are other options. Try rubbing on shoe polish, then buffing with a soft cloth. If that doesn’t work, you might want to strip what remains of the lacquer and refinish the leather. Stripper recipes and other tips are available by searching the Knowledge Base at WoodWeb (woodweb.com) for “refinishing an old leather table top.”

Or you could even replace the leather yourself. Use a wide putty knife to scrape away the old leather. It often helps to dampen the surface with warm water. When the surface is clean, fill any gaps with wood filler and sand smooth. Any texture differences will show up in the new leather.

Several companies sell replacement leather tops via the internet. James Lane in Jupiter, Fla., who does business at antiquerestorers.com/leather.htm, stands out because he offers free adhesive spreaders and free practice leather with all orders and has links to how-to videos. His replacement leather starts at $40 per square foot, with a $90 minimum. You may never have guessed his recommendation for the glue: wallpaper adhesive.

Q: Our Corian countertop developed a crack, I believe, after the stove that abuts it was moved. We have a very large countertop and it is really out of the question to replace it, because it is in good condition otherwise. Is there any way to repair or at least disguise the crack – which is, at its widest, about a sixteenth of an inch across?

A: A cracked countertop made of solid-surface material such as Corian can be repaired to look virtually good as new by cutting a matching scrap piece into narrow strips and gluing them into a smooth channel that straddles the crack.

Winkhel Sahagun, owner of the Countertop Guru in Sterling, Va., (gurutops. com), said that finding matching material for the patch isn’t as difficult as it might seem. Installers often give homeowners cutting board-size pieces made from sections that were cut out for a sink or stove top. When a homeowner doesn’t have that, Sahagun said he often finds something that works stashed in his shop or the shops of several friends who install countertops. “We share when we need a piece,” he said. Or if the style is still current, he orders samples or larger pieces as needed. As a last resort, he sometimes scavenges a section of backsplash from a side wall and the homeowner just paints there instead.

Sahagun uses a router to cut a smooth channel along the crack, making it about half an inch wide and an eighth to a quarter inch deep. If he has access to the back of the counter, he glues reinforcing pieces underneath. Then he cuts strips of the scrap material to fit in the channel and stuffs them into the gap along with a special glue made by DuPont, the maker of Corian. If the room temperature is about 70 degrees, the glue dries in about an hour. Then he levels the surface with 80-grit sandpaper and goes through six progressively finer grits – 100, 150, 180, 220, 280 and, finally, 320 – to create a smooth matte finish that usually matches the surrounding countertop. If the countertop is shinier, he continues sanding with four even finer levels of a different abrasive, winding up with 1,000-grit. “When I’m done, it will look like the original piece,” Sahagun said.

He estimated that repairing a curved crack like the one in the picture you sent would cost $300 to $400 and take about three hours or less.

Tom Jones, a technician who works at FixIt Countertop in Hanover, Md. (fixitcountertop.com), also said that repairing a crack in Corian requires cutting out a smooth groove and gluing in matching material, then sanding it smooth. He estimated the cost at $450 to $600.

Some handy homeowners tackle these repairs themselves. Besides using a router to cut the groove, it’s also possible to use a small rotary cutter, such as the ones made by Dremel. This cuts a narrower channel, which you could stuff with slivers of matching countertop material and suitable glue. The website solidsurface.com sells adhesives matched to many Corian colors, as well as in a clear formula, for $42 to $48 a tube.

If you don’t have matching countertop material but do have a current style, you can get up to six free sample pieces by visiting the DuPont website.

Q: I had a roof leak, which I fixed by having a new roof put on. Even though the ceiling below the leak didn’t suffer a lot of damage, a shadow shows up on it. It seems to look wet, but the paint is not peeling. The shadow seems to come and go. What is it and how do I get rid of it?

A: If you’re not sure whether the ceiling is actually damp, it’s possible that it’s simply stained in a way that’s more noticeable when the light hits in a certain way. Test with a moisture meter. Lowe’s, for example, sells General Tools & Instruments’ Digital Moisture Meter for $30. When the ceiling looks wet, compare the reading you get there with one from a ceiling you know to be dry. Or press a sheet of paper to the troubled area and check whether the paper darkens, a sign of moisture.

If there is moisture, ask the roofer to come back and check the flashing on all exhaust pipes, skylights, chimneys or other things that extend through the roof. If the roofer refuses and you’re not up to crawling around in the attic, call a home inspector. (Then, insist that the roofer come back if a leak is found; if necessary, you can check the roofer’s license and file a complaint.) Be aware that water leaking at a flashing doesn’t always drip directly down. It can travel along a rafter or the underside of the roof for some distance first.

The attic inspection should also include checking the insulation directly over the stained area of the ceiling. If the insulation is waterlogged, it obviously needs to be replaced. If it’s black, whether dry or moist at the time, that’s a sign that an air gap in the ceiling, perhaps around a light fixture or over cabinets where the space above wasn’t boxed in, is letting warm indoor air leak into the cold attic. Or there could be a vapor barrier improperly installed. Warm air holds more moisture than cold air, so as this air cools in the attic, moisture condenses and allows mildew to grow, making the insulation black. Enough moisture could even be condensing to cause the ceiling to become damp, especially when the indoor air is especially humid. The moisture could also be activating stains that are water-soluble.

If there are air gaps, plug them with caulk or other materials, depending on how big they are, then see if the dampness returns.

Once you are sure you have solved any moisture issues, press on the drywall or plaster to make sure it still feels solid and tightly fastened to the ceiling joists. If it’s spongy, you will need to cut out the damaged area and patch. (Cut along the middle of the ceiling joists so you can fasten the patch to solid wood above.)

If the ceiling is still okay, paint it with a stain-blocking primer. Oil-based primers used to be the only reliable way of blocking water-soluble stains, but today there are water-based primers that do the job, such as Kilz Max, $34 a gallon at Home Depot. (Regular primer won’t do, because water-soluble stains can seep through.) When the primer dries, repaint the ceiling.

Q: Part of the ceiling drywall in my finished basement has water damage, right below the duct that delivers air to the upper two floors. I don’t know the cause but suspect condensation because the problem is primarily in the summer. When the problem cropped up two years ago, I thought it was a one-time issue. I cut off the damaged drywall and had plumbers and heating and air conditioning folks look at the problem. The plumbers ruled out a plumbing problem and the HVAC techs were of little help. Last August, while I was abroad, I had installers put on a new roof with more vents and an attic fan triggered by high temperatures or humidity. Now that I’m home, I see new damage. I don’t know whether it occurred before or after the new roof. Will this fix the problem or do I need to cut away lots of drywall to get at the ducts and do some repair on them?

A: Your new roof and its better ventilation might lower the humidity in your house enough to fix the problem, but it’s more likely that you will also need to insulate the ducts in your basement ceiling. The condensation is undoubtedly caused by allowing relatively warm, humid air to contact the cold surface of ductwork carrying cool air. It’s just like the sweating that forms on the outside of a glass of ice water on a humid summer day.

An insulation contractor or even a home handyman should be able to help you if you don’t want to tackle the job yourself. You will need to cut into the ceiling drywall, but only directly under the ducts. If you do it carefully, it might be possible to reinstall the pieces you cut out, minimizing the amount of taping, sanding and even repainting that you need to do. If you hire a handyman, ask them to do the patching as well as the initial work; it’s a good way to encourage a tidy, waste-minimizing job.

Home centers carry a variety of products designed for insulating ducts. Options at Home Depot include fiberglass Duct Wrap, $36.95 for a roll 2-feet-wide by 30-feet-long, and Frost King Self-Adhesive Foil and Foam Duct Insulation, $18.77 for a roll 1-foot-wide by 15-feet-long.

Make sure the ducts are dry before you press the insulation into place, and be careful to cover the entire duct surface. You might want to wait to reinstall the drywall until you’ve been through a few hot and humid summer days. With the air conditioner running, check for drips or other dampness – a sign that you left a gap in the insulation or that you need to add a second layer.

Q: I have three engraved brass tables that require a lot of effort to polish, and then they tarnish after a few weeks. I have used a kit that restores brass and protects it, but it did not last long. I have heard that spraying it with lacquer will protect the brass, but I am not sure what product to use and do not want to do something that will cause more problems. Can you help?

A: You’re right: Spraying with lacquer is the way to keep brass from tarnishing so quickly. Mohawk’s Lacquer for Brass, formerly marketed as Behlen Lacquer for Brass, is designed especially for this use, as the name implies. A 13-ounce spray can costs $12 at the Woodworkers Club of Rockville, Md. (woodcraft.com).

Phillip Pritchard, technical service representative for Mohawk Finishing Products (mohawk-finishing.com), said this is a traditional nitrocellulose lacquer formulated with a resin that sticks especially well to brass, as well as ingredients that help keep brass from tarnishing. “You won’t get those two features in standard lacquer,” he said. “Standard lacquer will flake off, while ours does not. Standard lacquer may lie there and seem okay, but you can take your fingernail and it will shear right off.”

However, he added that the product isn’t marketed as an industrial-quality finish and that the company doesn’t guarantee that it will stop tarnish forever. Hardware manufacturers that offer long-term guarantees against tarnishing use a baked-on lacquer finish, which is more durable. “But in an air-dry product, our lacquer is as good as it gets,” Pritchard said.

If your tables do eventually tarnish after you spray them with lacquer, there’s an easy, if smelly and messy, remedy: Use a chemical stripper labeled as effective against lacquer to take off the finish, polish off the tarnish and re-spray.

Lacquer for Brass is a solvent-based product, so be sure to read and follow the safety precautions on the label. Work outside, if possible. To ensure an even finish, clear the nozzle by spraying for a second or two on scrap paper before you begin to spray your tables. And keep the can aimed at the same angle as you move your body back and forth to pass over the surface; don’t just tilt the can in different directions.

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