How To Clean And Care For Your Custom Bronze Plaque

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There are a number of reasons why you may have a bronze plaque. Bronze plaques can be used outside of your door to let people know where resides inside. Bronze plaques can be given as an award for winning a sports event or being a valued employee. Or bronze plaques can be used to memorialize an event or a deceased individual. If you have ordered a custom bronze plaque for any reason, you will want to learn how to clean and care for the plaque to help ensure it lasts and looks its best for the decades to come. Here is what you need to know about cleaning and caring for your custom bronze plaque. 

Cleaning the Plaque

It is important that you routinely clean a custom bronze plaque. This helps to remove dirt, dust and other residue from it. It also helps to remove discoloration caused by oil in the fingers or hands that have touched the plaque. Follow these steps to clean your plaque. 

1. Wipe away dirt and dust with a soft cloth. Do not use anything abrasive, use as a brush, as it can scratch this soft metal. 
2. Mix one cup of vinegar with one tablespoon of salt. Slowly stir in about one cup of flour, until the mixture has a paste-like consistency. 
3. Dip a soft, clean cloth in the paste. Lightly rub the paste into your custom bronze plaque, covering the entire plaque in the paste. 
4. Allow the mixture to sit on the plaque for about 15 minutes, or until it is fully dried. 
5. Dampen a soft cloth with room temperature distilled water and wipe away the paste. Continue wiping until all of the paste is removed. 
6. Dry the plaque with another soft cloth to prevent water spotting. 

Restoring Shine to the Plaque

After cleaning your custom bronze plaque, you may notice that it no longer has the shine and luster that it once has. Bronze naturally patinas over time, or slightly changes color. This is normal and is expected. However, if your bronze no longer has any shine or luster, you will want to follow these steps to restore it. 

• Thoroughly clean the custom bronze plaque using the steps above. 
• Dip a soft cloth into a metal paste wax. Ensure you are using a paste wax formulated for metals, not woods. 
• Rub a thin, even layer of the paste wax over the entire bronze plaque. 
• Allow the wax to sit for 30 minutes. 
• Use a soft cloth to buff away the paste wax. Continue the process of waxing and buffing until the plaque shines. 

Learning how to properly care for your custom bronze plaque will help it look its best and maintain its natural color. This can help to ensure your plaque lasts as long as it is designed to. Contact a company, like All Star Bronze, for more help.

22 October 2017