Tips for Polishing Brass

Brass objects have a unique charm. Right from the wall clocks to the huge sculptures, brass is a widely used metal. Brass antiques are popularly used in home and office decor. Not to forget the brass vessels, the water stored in which is known to have many health benefits. Brass is actually a generic term used for many of the copper-zinc alloys. Each alloy has a different combination of properties, be it ductility, hardness, color, strength, antimicrobial, electrical and thermal conductivity or corrosion-resistance. Well, when it comes to cleaning brass, be it large vessels or small door knobs, many people make mistakes and end up damaging this beautiful metal. Definitely, brass objects need to be cleaned to get rid of dirt collected and maintain their shine. If you are wondering how to polish brass, how to clean brass or how to make it shiny, then here are answers to all your questions. Read on...

Tips to Consider and Follow

Check the Object Before Beginning
Well, before we go ahead, how to identify whether it is a brass object is important task. This is because many object just have a brass coating and the actual material is steel or iron. So let's check out. Just take the object and get a magnet, you can use one of the magnets on your fridge. Now place the magnet on the object, if it sticks the object is just brass coated, if it doesn't stick, it's a brass object. Follow the next steps accordingly.

Polish and Clean Brass-coated Objects
Just fill your sink with lukewarm water and add a few drops of liquid detergent. Place the object in the sink for some time. Now rub it thoroughly using a soft cloth. Clean with damp cloth and finish by buffing it with dry soft cloth. For lacquered brass or brass plated object you can just dip a soft cloth in this mixture and use it clean your object thoroughly.

You might sometimes want to remove the coating of lacquered object and polish it. How to remove lacquer brass is a question that one might wonder about, because it often cracks and wears off. This leads to exposure of brass to air leading to oxidization which further causes formations of stains. Boiling brass objects is an easy way to get off the lacquer. Remember that you need to boil it for a really long duration, until all the lacquer comes off.

Polish and Clean Brass Objects
First way is to use isopropyl (rubbing alcohol) for cleaning brass. Apply it using a scrubbing sponge and rub thoroughly. Once you finish rubbing it completely, just clean using damp soft cloth. Take a yellow treated wash cloth and wipe the object thoroughly with it. Finish by buffing it using a soft cotton cloth to have a shiny piece.

Homemade Cleaner to Try
Take juice of half lemon, add table salt or baking soda to this juice to make a paste. Apply it over the brass object properly. Take a soft bristle toothbrush if the object is small and start rubbing it to get rid of the tarnish. Once this is done, wash off the object with cold water and wipe it with a soft cloth. Now, give it a protective coat is not at all difficult with the use of olive oil. Just take a few drops of olive oil on a soft cloth, apply it on the object and buff it gently.

Using a homemade solution made of white vinegar and salts is also a good idea. Using lemon oil instead of olive oil is another technique. Just follow the same procedure as we did in case of olive oil. Shiny and new looking object is right there.

With the above mentioned cleaning methods and brass polishing tips you can have a classy pieces of brass beautifying your house. You can also opt for other ingredients like yogurt or lime juice which are effective cleaners. So maintaining the classy look of brass objects is an easy task. All the best!