Alright, so I own a laptop with a case built from plastic that gradually discolours over a period of time - Cleaning it has done nothing whatsoever. Other products which have been a victim of this are my PC case and my old phone. In the case of these two, I've actually been told that they're permanently discoloured.
Three weeks ago, my ear became impenetrably blocked. I visited a pharmacist and I've since been treating it with Olbas oil (it's made a huge difference).
Where do these two stories tie in? Answer: Yesterday I spilled the oil on the faux-silver part of my laptop - the "permanently" discoloured part. I didn't notice, and proceeded to wipe it all over the local area with my wrist. When it caught my attention later, an oily, greasy residue had set into the plastic, discolouring it further. In fact, it looked pretty ****ed ugly. I set about wetting my shirt and scrubbing at it until I got it off.
Surprisingly, once I'd finished scraping the last bits off with my fingernails and some cleaning wipes, I noticed that it was a LOT lighter than the surrounding plastic - it had returned to its original colour. I immediately tried this on a discoloured PC case and it worked - The dingy grey immediately returned to a near-white colour.
So, solution: Someone here should pour Olbas oil on a part of their SNES and see if it works. You can pick it up at any pharmacy; it's a fairly common strong decongestant. And if anyone knows a chemical method of dissolving the residue, don't be afraid to share.
I know two compound that are more readily available and probably cheaper. Their bleach and dishwashing liqiud. First unplug it, then scrub it with the dishwashing liquid then let it dry.This should get normal dirt off of it. Next, get a white towel or about three or four paper towels, put the bleach on it, then let it soak for a little bit. After that scrub it down and let it dry.This method work great on white plastic like the kind used in Dreamcast.
I'm pretty sure people have already tried bleach on the SNES and haven't had it work at all. :-/ Although later models looked identical, the material used was different - Although it did discolour, it could be scrubbed off with bleach. Didn't happen with older models.
I got a dreamcast with fire damage. It turned partially yellow. Think that oil will work? Most SNES's I've seen with color damage are yellow in the same way.
Yeah I have seen that kinds of discolouration. But I have never heard of Olbas Oil... interesting. I'll actually try this out if I go to one and get that oil.
Is the residue hard to take off? Because I don't excactly have the best cleaning tools.
I like my discoloured SNES. I find so much character and charm in its discolouration. It's been with me for 13 years, never having undergone a repair, part replacement, or modification of any sort, and its rugged exterior appearance is just a testament to how much it has stood up to internally. The original controller that came with it also looks horribly mangled, but still works like new. Amazing piece of equipment.