Cleaning Brass Sconces
It’s always so satisfying to check off time-consuming cleaning chores.
Recently, my housekeepers, Carlos and Enma, took on the task of cleaning and polishing several of my antique brass sconces in the Winter House of my Bedford, New York farm. Brass is a strong, corrosion-resistant alloy made from a combination of zinc and copper. With its bright golden color, brass has long been a favorite material for home furnishings and decorative accents. Cleaning brass takes time and a lot of elbow grease to complete, but now these pieces are shimmering once again.
Here are some photos - enjoy.
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- I removed all the sconces from the walls before cleaning. Here are the hurricanes on the counter of my servery – each one is labeled for easy identification.
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- On the opposite counter, all the brass backplates and arms are also labeled and set neatly on protective towels, ready to be cleaned and polished. Keeping everything neat and together in their pairs makes the process much easier.
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- Here is one of the sconces before cleaning. Like any metal, brass can become dull and tarnished over time. Tarnish is a thin layer of corrosion that forms over brass, copper, silver, aluminum, magnesium, neodymium and other similar metals as their outermost layer undergoes a chemical reaction, many times with the air.
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- For cleaning, I have long used these Cape Cod® Metal Polishing Cloths – moist polishing cloths that clean, polish, and protect the metal. This industrial sized tin comes with 12-cloths. Whenever polishing metals, be sure you use a product that is specifically made for the type of metal being cleaned.
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- Carlos gently rubs the tarnished sconce and then wipes it with a buffing cloth. These Cape Cod Metal Polishing Cloths can be used over and over again until they disintegrate. Carlos wears plastic gloves to protect his hands from becoming black from the tarnish.
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- Here is the piece after some cleaning – it’s looking much brighter and much shinier already. And look at the polishing cloths underneath – they’re filled with tarnish. Always avoid using highly abrasive scrubbing cloths, metal-bristled brushes, or steel wool; these will scratch the surface of the brass.
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- Look at how this backplate shines – if the brass pieces don’t contain any wires or water sensitive parts, you can also start by washing the piece with warm soapy water and a soft sponge.
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- Once it is polished and buffed, it shimmers like gold.
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- After the pieces are completely finished, they are paired with their cleaned hurricanes and ready for hanging.
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- All the parts of the sconces are set on another protective towel in the Green Parlor. Any screws that go with the sconces are gathered and placed with the piece.
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- Fred begins to fasten the screws into the piece, so it is easier to attach to the wall.
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- The backplate is also connected to the rest of the sconce.
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- These are hard-wired sconces meaning they don’t have exposed wires and are permanently wired to the electrical system and are operated by a wall switch. When returning the sconce to the wall, the wires are always matched to their coordinating colored lead – white fixture lead to the white wire and the black lead to the black wire. Then the ground wires are connected.
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- Fred tucks the wires into the junction box through the center of the mounting backplate. He is sure to keep the wires apart so they don’t touch each other. The backplate keeps the wires separated and hidden in the wall.
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- Next, the sconce and the backplate are centered over the wires and box.
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- Fred then begins fastening the backplate screws.
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- The sconce is slipped over the center of the backplate. Fred makes sure to stand back to check that the base is plumb before tightening.
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- And finally the fixture is secured to the backplate. It is best if you have an extra set of hands to help keep the sconce in position as it is being screwed back into the wall.
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- Then the hurricanes are returned carefully to their bases. These sleek luminaries provide indirect lighting in this room and work as wall accents. In rooms with high ceilings, also be sure they hang to match the proportions of the room.
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- The antique sconces use low-wattage bulbs to reduce glare while providing plenty of light. Make sure to get the right kind of bulb for any fixtures you are hanging.
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- These sconces look wonderful all clean and shiny – one down and another to go on this wall of the parlor.
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- I love this pair flanking the giant gold leafed mirror – it makes such a beautiful triad. In an upcoming blog, I will show you some of the many other sconces I have collected over the years.
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