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Thursday, December 23, 2010

Make do: Homemade brass cleaner



May be wicked of me, but I decided to put some bells on the grandkids' Christmas packages. (Decided to give them their gifts early, so they won't get lost in the shuffle of the next two days.) Not sure what time to expect them this morn, so I was in a hurry to clean a couple of bells I've had on hand forever. Quick surf of the Net located a recipe, which I downsized to suit the task at hand. Approximated the ingredients and coated the bells with the mixture. Left the coated bells to sit for 10 minutes before rinsing and buffing. Worked fine. The little bells on the right are much improved, as compared with larger, much tarnished bell on the left.
   Anyway, ho, ho, hope your Christmas is polishing up fine too! Jingle bells, JINGLE BELLS!
Homemade Brass Cleaner
Ingredients:
1/2 c flour
1/2 c salt
1/2 c powdered detergent
3/4 c white vinegar
Mix all of the dry ingredients in a bowl. Stir in the liquid ingredients. Mix well.
Transfer the cleaning mixture to a glass jar. Close the jar tightly and label it.
To use the cleaner, shake a small amount onto a cloth and rub it into the surface of the copper, brass, or bronze object. Use a toothbrush for hard-to-reach areas. Rinse with water and rub dry with a clean cloth.
Recipe source: http://chemistry.about.com/cs/howtos/ht/brasscleaner.htm

5 comments:

Unknown said...

Best ever brass cleaner I`d used was KETCHUP! Honest, it works a treat. Cover the item in a layer of ketchup and leave for 1 hour before rinsing, drying and buffing with a cloth that`s been lightly sprayed with olive oil. This will make your brass shine and protects it from oxydisation for a while.

Dmarie said...

hey, I'll try that with the one I didn't bother to clean yesterday. Like the idea of only one ingredient. Thx, Sarina!!

Unknown said...

Let me know how it turned out, please.

Dmarie said...

will do!!

Practical Parsimony said...

Hmmm, I missed about three of your posts. I love those bells. Are they old? Now, I wish I had gotten one of those bells! Like Sarian said, catsup is what I have heard works, but I have never tried it.

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