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Restoring chemical affected brass fittings
Q. Hi people, can someone help me, I just used a paint stripper on my window handles and discovered they were brass underneath. unfortunately the chemicals have reacted with the brass and after trying to clean with Brasso they now look a copper colour. can I fix this? any help appreciated
Kristine Drummondhomeowner - Sydney, NSW, Australia
2005
A. You have de-zincified the brass; that is, you have dissolved the zinc from the brass to leave copper. Hopefully, however, you will not have gone too deeply into the brass, so you may be able to recover the situation by continuously polishing the copper until you get back to the brass. If you have gone too deeply and the article is valuable, you may consider getting a restorer to build up the de-zincified area by electrodepositing more brass. Do NOT even consider doing this yourself! - it is a potentially hazardous process.
Trevor Crichton
R&D practical scientist
Chesham, Bucks, UK
A. Try rubbing them with fine 00 steel wool [on eBay or Amazon] until the brass color is restored, then polish with Brasso [on eBay or Amazon], wash and dry, and coat with clear spray lacquer. Caution: lots of rubbing required.
Jeffrey Holmes, CEF
Spartanburg, South Carolina
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