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Q&As since 1989


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Cleaning and Preservative Products

I was wanting to know what product would clean bronze, brass and the material used to clean and preserve cemetery headstones. What procedure you have found does the best in cleaning then in preserving. thanks

Jim Collman
- Miami, Florida, USA
2001

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Cleaning brass and bronze can be done with a good brass cleaner, usually available in a hardware store. If there is too much oxidation on the part, you are going to have to buff it to get the shine back. To preserve it, you need to chemically clean it with a decent lacquer thinner [on eBay or Amazon], and then coat it with a quality lacquer. The stone part of the head stone could possibly be cleaned with the thinner, but you'd have to try a test area, to see if it would stain or not. Click on our link if you need more info and good luck.

Jake Koch
G. J. Nikolas &Co.,Inc.

Bellwood, Illinois

2001

About thirty years ago my family put a copper plaque on our parents grave stone. It of course has been subjected to all kinds of weather and has taken on a very dull blueish look. I have been trying to clean it with little success. I tried lemon juice and salt, copper cleaner, brass cleaner(small amount), and a coke. Parts of the plaque have responded and look like copper should but much of it looks mostly worse than before and I'm lost at what I can do. The copper cleaner probably did the most good but then it seemed to collect around the raised letters and won't budge.Is there anything to be done and should it clean up would it be good to then put lacquer on the plaque?

Peggy Irwin
- Athens, Ohio, United States
2004