Welcome to my blog. Let me introduce myself. My name is Benjamin. I am married to an amazing woman, Pam, and we have two daughters, Sammy and Justine. I am a visual artist who has occasionally worked with stained glass. That has given me an appreciation for other types of glass, and in this blog, I plan to write about buying glass, owning it, cleaning it repairing it and more. If you have any questions about glass, I invite you to explore this blog, and I thank you for reading. If you enjoy my posts, I invite you to share them. enjoy.
Good Ideas and Great Tips for Glass
3 Handling Techniques to Help You Keep Your Valuable Glass Items in Top Shape
Morgane Arnaud
Glass items in the home are very delicate, and their durability is affected by many different factors. Careful handling at all times is necessary if you're going to maintain them in spick-and-span condition. The fragility of glass items depends on the composition of the glass itself, but it's always better to handle all glass items in the home as though they were extremely fragile.
1. Maintenance
Do not clean valuable antique/historic glassware in the dishwasher because the high temperature and water pressure as well as harsh detergents could attack the surface, making it permanently milky or cloudy. Use a soft, lint-free cloth for periodic dusting, but leave any major cleaning work to a professional for antiques you can't afford to ruin. Other valuable glass pieces can be wiped down regularly with lukewarm, distilled water and clean, soft cloth.
If there are metal mounts, ensure that water doesn't get into the crevices where it could trigger corrosion. If mounts are made of silver, they may be lacquered and using solvents would tarnish them. The same applies to mounts attached using plaster or adhesive.
2. Repair
Glass is quite unforgiving once broken; transparent glass will show breakage/cracking and any subsequent repair attempts. Densely decorated, opaque or coloured pieces may show less if repaired professionally. Have your valuable pieces repaired by a certified glass repair professional only to reduce risk of further damage. Don't throw out badly broken pieces just yet; find out if they can be repaired with optically transparent adhesive so that the cracks add to the character of the piece.
For small repair projects in the house, you should select the right glue for the job – not all glass is created equally. Epoxy glue should be used for china, UV glass glue for decorative glass or stained glass, silicone glass glue for aquariums or any other glass pieces that should be watertight and PVA glue for ceramics. Carefully follow manufacturers' instructions on safety and drying times for best results.
3. Thorough cleaning
As mentioned earlier, take your extremely valuable glassware to a professional – talk to a museum attendant about how they clean their glassware if you don't know where to start. Before cleaning, remove any jewellery that could scratch the glass surface, wear nitrile gloves and place the glass items on a padded surface. Watch out for any problem signs: cracks or repaired portions, metal mounts, adhesives, decorations etc.
If in good condition, place in a plastic bowl (metal surfaces are dangerous in case glass slips from your hand) with lukewarm water (glass is sensitive to sudden temperature changes and could crack). If your water is hard, use distilled water to which a drop of mild detergent has been added.
Carefully clean each object separately, using a cotton wool for the surface and a soft, plastic bottle brush for hard-to-reach portions. Rinse with a second bowl of lukewarm (distilled) water and use a paper towel to blot dry. Leave upside down on the padded surface to dry completely before replacing it to its position.
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