Cleaning and restoring antique brass

Brass is a very popular choice for collection among those who collect antiques, from horse brasses to miniature teapots; it is a very diverse metal and a beautiful one when bright and shiny. Brass however does tarnish quite easily and cleaning is of the utmost importance if you want to keep it like new, but there is cleaning and then there is, cleaning, when it comes to brass.

Over cleaning or going about it with too much enthusiasm can quite quickly destroy a beautiful antique and reduce its value considerably. Some of the most beautiful brass pieces rely heavily on their fine engravings delicately etched into the surface and rough abrasive materials can destroy this in the blink of an eye.

Brass has a patina which is very distinguishable and rough cleaning or using the wrong type of cleaning can also destroy this patina over time.
Brass is made up of copper and zinc, the patina in the brass will vary depending on the proportion of materials that are used in the particular piece.

While the colour is usually a lovely golden yellow over time and exposure to the air this can turn into a brownish, greenish colour, some people like this tarnish and believe it gives the brass some character and beauty while others head for the cleaning materials immediately so this is only a matter of personal preference.

It is very important when acquiring a new piece of brass that you determine if the piece is solid brass or is brass plated, if it brass plated then over time the brass plating can reveal the metal beneath which of course is very unsightly and also undesirable to collectors.

The easiest way to determine if your item is made from brass plating is to take a small magnet and gently place in on the side of the item, if the magnet sticks to the piece then it is brass plated, if it doesn’t then your item is solid brass. Determine this before you start cleaning as cleaning of course can break down the brass plating.

If your brass is simply dirty then cleaning using nothing more than soapy hot water and a child’s toothbrush is recommended, this can be used very gently even on those pieces that have fine etchings and decoration. If the piece id only lightly tarnished then a silver polishing cloth can be used to remove the tarnish. If however there is severe tarnishing then a brass and copper polish should be used to gently remove the tarnish and restore the original beauty.

Whenever you are cleaning brassware it is essential that you dry the piece thoroughly after washing, making sure that great care is taken to remove any cleaning materials that you have used. Residue from cleaning materials can cause pitting of the brass and this should be avoided at all costs as it distracts from the beauty of the antique.

When done correctly a piece of cleaned brass wont need touching again for several years if it is handled correctly, you should avoid touching the actual item and instead use a cloth to hold and the place the item into place, touching it will only start the tarnishing process over again. The only thing you should need to do on a regular basis is to give the piece a quick dust over to ensure that its shine remains.