Part 36

V.—Wash the surface with a mixture of finely powdered pumice stone and vinegar, and leave it for several hours; then brush it hard and wash it clean. When dry, rub with whiting and wash leather.

VI.—Soft soap. 4 parts Whiting 4 parts Sodium bicarbonate 1 part Copper sulphate 2 parts

Mix thoroughly and rub over the marble with a piece of flannel, and leave it on for 24 hours, then wash it off with clean water, and polish the marble with a piece of flannel or an old piece of felt.

VII.—A strong solution of oxalic acid effectually takes out ink stains. In handling it the poisonous nature of this acid should not be forgotten.

VIII.—Iron mold or ink spots may be taken out in the following manner: Take 1⁠/⁠2 ounce of butter of antimony and 1 ounce of oxalic acid and dissolve them in 1 pint of rain water; add enough flour to bring the mixture to a proper consistency. Lay it evenly on the stained part with a brush, and, after it has remained for a few days, wash it off and repeat the process if the stain is not wholly removed.

IX.—To remove oil stains apply common clay saturated with benzine. If the grease has remained in long the polish will be injured, but the stain will be removed.

X.—The following method for removing rust from iron depends upon the solubility of the sulphide of iron in a solution of cyanide of potassium. Clay is made into a thin paste with ammonium sulphide, and the rust spot smeared with the mixture, care being taken that the spot is only just covered. After ten minutes this paste is washed off and replaced by one consisting of white bole mixed with a solution of potassium cyanide (1 to 4), which is in its turn {197} washed off after about 2 1⁠/⁠2 hours. Should a reddish spot remain after washing off the first paste, a second layer may be applied for about 5 minutes.

XI.—Soft soap 4 ounces Whiting 4 ounces Sodium carbonate 1 ounce Water, a sufficient quantity. Make into a thin paste, apply on the soiled surface, and wash off after 24 hours.

XII.—In a spacious tub place a tall vessel upside down. On this set the article to be cleaned so that it will not stand in the water, which would loosen the cemented parts. Into this tub pour a few inches of cold water—hot water renders marble dull—take a soft brush and a piece of Venetian soap, dip the former in the water and rub on the latter carefully, brushing off the article from top to bottom. When in this manner dust and dirt have been dissolved, wash off all soap particles by means of a watering pot and cold water, dab the object with a clean sponge, which absorbs the moisture, place it upon a cloth and carefully dry with a very clean, soft cloth, rubbing gently. This treatment will restore the former gloss to the marble.

XIII.—Mix and shake thoroughly in a bottle equal quantities of sulphuric acid and lemon juice. Moisten the spots and rub them lightly with a linen cloth and they will disappear.

XIV.—Ink spots are treated with acid oxalate of potassium; blood stains by brushing with alabaster dust and distilled water, then bleaching with chlorine solution. Alizarine ink and aniline ink spots can be moderated by laying on rags saturated with Javelle water, chlorine water, or chloride of lime paste. Old oil stains can only be effaced by placing the whole piece of marble for hours in benzine. Fresh oil or grease spots are obliterated by repeated applications of a little damp, white clay and subsequent brushing with soap water or weak soda solution. For many other spots an application of benzine and magnesia is useful.

XV.—Marble slabs keep well and do not lose their fresh color if they are cleaned with hot water only, without the addition of soap, which is injurious to the color. Care must be taken that no liquid dries on the marble. If spots of wine, coffee, beer, etc., have already appeared, they are cleaned with diluted spirit of sal ammoniac, highly diluted oxalic acid, Javelle water, ox gall, or, take a quantity of newly slaked lime, mix it with water into a paste-like consistency, apply the paste uniformly on the spot with a brush, and leave the coating alone for two to three days before it is washed off. If the spots are not removed by a single application, repeat the latter. In using Javelle water 1 or 2 drops should be carefully poured on each spot, rinsing off with water.

«To Remove Grease Spots from Marble.»—If the spots are fresh, rub them over with a piece of cloth that has been dipped into pulverized china clay, repeating the operation several times, and then brush with soap and water. When the spots are old brush with distilled water and finest French plaster energetically, then bleach with chloride of lime that is put on a piece of white cloth. If the piece of marble is small enough to permit it, soak it for a few hours in refined benzine.

«Preparation for Cleaning Marble, Furniture, and Metals, Especially Copper.»—This preparation is claimed to give very quickly perfect brilliancy, persisting without soiling either the hand or the articles, and without leaving any odor of copper. The following is the composition for 100 parts of the product: Wax, 2.4 parts; oil of turpentine, 9.4 parts; acetic acid, 42 parts; citric acid, 42 parts; white soap, 42 parts.

«Removing Oil Stains from Marble.»—Saturate fuller’s earth with a solution of equal parts of soap liniment, ammonia, and water; apply to the greasy part of the marble; keep there for some hours, pressed down with a smoothing iron sufficiently hot to warm the mass, and as it evaporates occasionally renew the solution. When wiped off dry the stain will have nearly disappeared. Some days later, when more oil works toward the surface repeat the operation. A few such treatments should suffice.

«Cleaning Terra Cotta.»—After having carefully removed all dust, paint the terra cotta, by means of a brush, with a mixture of slightly gummed water and finely powdered terra cotta.

«Renovation of Polished and Varnished Surfaces of Wood, Stone, etc.»—This is composed of the following ingredients, though the proportions may be varied: Cereal flour or wood pulp, 38 1⁠/⁠2 parts; hydrochloric acid, 45 parts; chloride of lime, 16 parts; turpentine, 1⁠/⁠2 part. After mixing the ingredients thoroughly in order to form a homogeneous paste, the object to be treated is smeared with it and allowed to stand for some time. The paste on the surface is then removed by passing over it quickly a piece of soft {198} leather or a brush, which will remove dirt, grease, and other deleterious substances. By rubbing gently with a cloth or piece of leather a polished surface will be imparted to wood, and objects of metal will be rendered lustrous.

The addition of chloride of lime tends to keep the paste moist, thus allowing the ready removal of the paste without damaging the varnish or polish, while the turpentine serves as a disinfectant and renders the odor less disagreeable during the operation.

The preparation is rapid in its action, and does not affect the varnished or polished surfaces of wood or marble. While energetic in its cleansing action on brass and other metallic objects, it is attended with no corrosive effect.

«Nitrate of Silver Spots.»—To remove these spots from white marble, they should be painted with Javelle water, and after having been washed, passed over a concentrated solution of thiosulphate of soda (hyposulphite).

«To Remove Oil-Paint Spots from Sandstones.»—This may be done by washing the spots with pure turpentine oil, then covering the place with white argillaceous earth (pipe clay), leaving it to dry, and finally rubbing with sharp soda lye, using a brush. Caustic ammonia also removes oil-paint spots from sandstones.

«RUST REMOVERS:»

«To Remove Rust from Iron or Steel Utensils.»—

I.—Apply the following solution by means of a brush, after having removed any grease by rubbing with a clean, dry cloth: 100 parts of stannic chloride are dissolved in 1,000 parts of water; this solution is added to one containing 2 parts tartaric acid dissolved in 1,000 parts of water, and finally 20 cubic centimeters indigo solution, diluted with 2,000 parts of water, are added. After allowing the solution to act upon the stain for a few seconds, it is rubbed clean, first with a moist cloth, then with a dry cloth; to restore the polish use is made of silver sand and jewelers’ rouge.

II.—When the rust is recent it is removed by rubbing the metal with a cork charged with oil. In this manner a perfect polish is obtained. To take off old rust, mix equal parts of fine tripoli and flowers of sulphur, mingling this mixture with olive oil, so as to form a paste. Rub the iron with this preparation by means of a skin.

III.—The rusty piece is connected with a piece of zinc and placed in water containing a little sulphuric acid. After the articles have been in the liquid for several days or a week, the rust will have completely disappeared. The length of time will depend upon the depth to which the rust has penetrated. A little sulphuric acid may be added from time to time, but the chief point is that the zinc always has good electric contact with the iron. To insure this an iron wire may be firmly wound around the iron object and connected with the zinc. The iron is not attacked in the least, as long as the zinc is kept in good electric contact with it. When the articles are taken from the liquid they assume a dark gray or black color and are then washed and oiled.

IV.—The rust on iron and steel objects, especially large pieces, is readily removed by rubbing the pieces with oil of tartar, or with very fine emery and a little oil, or by putting powdered alum in strong vinegar and rubbing with this alumed vinegar.

V.—Take cyanide of calcium, 25 parts; white soap, powdered, 25 parts; Spanish white, 50 parts; and water, 200 parts. Triturate all well and rub the piece with this paste. The effect will be quicker if before using this paste the rusty object has been soaked for 5 to 10 minutes in a solution of cyanide of potassium in the ratio of 1 part of cyanide to 2 parts of water.

VI.—To remove rust from polished steel cyanide of potassium is excellent. If possible, soak the instrument to be cleaned in a solution of cyanide of potassium in the proportion of 1 ounce of cyanide to 4 ounces of water. Allow this to act till all loose rust is removed, and then polish with cyanide soap. The latter is made as follows: Potassium cyanide, precipitated chalk, white castile soap. Make a saturated solution of the cyanide and add chalk sufficient to make a creamy paste. Add the soap cut in fine shavings and thoroughly incorporate in a mortar. When the mixture is stiff cease to add the soap. It should be remembered that potassium cyanide is a virulent poison.

VII.—Apply turpentine or kerosene oil, and after letting it stand over night, clean with finest emery cloth.

VIII.—To free articles of iron and steel from rust and imbedded grains of sand the articles are treated with fluorhydric acid (about 2 per cent) 1 to 2 hours, whereby the impurities but not the metal are dissolved. This is followed by a washing with lime milk, to neutralize any fluorhydric acid remaining. {199}

«To Remove Rust from Nickel.»—First grease the articles well; then, after a few days, rub them with a rag charged with ammonia. If the rust spots persist, add a few drops of hydrochloric acid to the ammonia, rub and wipe off at once. Next rinse with water, dry, and polish with tripoli.

«Removal of Rust.»—To take off the rust from small articles which glass or emery paper would bite too deeply, the ink-erasing rubber used in business offices may be employed. By beveling it, or cutting it to a point as needful, it can be introduced into the smallest cavities and windings, and a perfect cleaning be effected.

«To Remove Rust from Instruments.»—I.—Lay the instruments over night in a saturated solution of chloride of tin. The rust spots will disappear through reduction. Upon withdrawal from the solution the instruments are rinsed with water, placed in a hot soda-soap solution, and dried. Cleaning with absolute alcohol and polishing chalk may also follow.

II.—Make a solution of 1 part of kerosene in 200 parts of benzine or carbon tetrachloride, and dip the instruments, which have been dried by leaving them in heated air, in this, moving their parts, if movable, as in forceps and scissors, about under the liquid, so that it may enter all the crevices. Next lay the instruments on a plate in a dry room, so that the benzine can evaporate. Needles are simply thrown in the paraffine solution, and taken out with tongs or tweezers, after which they are allowed to dry on a plate.

III.—Pour olive oil on the rust spots and leave for several days; then rub with emery or tripoli, without wiping off the oil as far as possible, or always bringing it back on the spot. Afterwards remove the emery and the oil with a rag, rub again with emery soaked with vinegar, and finally with fine plumbago on a piece of chamois skin.

«To Preserve Steel from Rust.»—To preserve steel from rust dissolve 1 part caoutchouc and 16 parts turpentine with a gentle heat, then add 8 parts boiled oil, and mix by bringing them to the heat of boiling water. Apply to the steel with a brush, the same as varnish. It can be removed again with a cloth soaked in turpentine.

«METAL CLEANING:»

«Cleaning and Preserving Medals, Coins, and Small Iron Articles.»—The coating of silver chloride may be reduced with molten potassium cyanide. Then boil the article in water, displace the water with alcohol, and dry in a drying closet. When dry brush with a soft brush and cover with “zaponlack” (any good transparent lacquer or varnish will answer).

Instead of potassium cyanide alone, a mixture of that and potassium carbonate may be used. After treatment in this way, delicate objects of silver become less brittle. Another way is to put the article in molten sodium carbonate and remove the silver carbonate thus formed, by acetic acid of 50 per cent strength. This process produces the finest possible polish.

The potassium-cyanide process may be used with all small iron objects. For larger ones molten potassium rhodanide is recommended. This converts the iron oxide into iron sulphide that is easily washed off and leaves the surface of a fine black color.

Old coins may be cleansed by first immersing them in strong nitric acid and then washing them in clean water. Wipe them dry before putting away.

«To Clean Old Medals.»—Immerse in lemon juice until the coating of oxide has completely disappeared; 24 hours is generally sufficient, but a longer time is not harmful.

«Steel Cleaner.»—Smear the object with oil, preferably petroleum, and allow some days for penetration of the surface of the metal. Then rub vigorously with a piece of flannel or willow wood. Or, with a paste composed of olive oil, sulphur flowers, and tripoli, or of rotten stone and oil. Finally, a coating may be employed, made of 10 parts of potassium cyanide and 1 part of cream of tartar; or 25 parts of potassium cyanide, with the addition of 55 parts of carbonate of lime and 20 parts of white soap.

«Restoring Tarnished Gold.»—

Sodium bicarbonate 20 ounces Chlorinated lime 1 ounce Common salt 1 ounce Water 16 ounces

Mix well and apply with a soft brush.

A very small quantity of the solution is sufficient, and it may be used either cold or lukewarm. Plain articles may be brightened by putting a drop or two of the liquid upon them and lightly brushing the surface with fine tissue paper. {200}

«Cleaning Copper.»—

I.—Use Armenian bole mixed into a paste with oleic acid.

II.—Rotten stone 1 part Iron subcarbonate 3 parts Lard oil, a sufficient quantity.

III.—Iron oxide 10 parts Pumice stone 32 parts Oleic acid, a sufficient quantity.

IV.—Soap, cut fine 16 parts Precipitated chalk 2 parts Jewelers’ rouge 1 part Cream of tartar 1 part Magnesium carbonate 1 part Water, a sufficient quantity.

Dissolve the soap in the smallest quantity of water that will effect solution over a water bath. Add the other ingredients to the solution while still hot, stirring constantly.

«To Remove Hard Grease, Paint, etc., from Machinery.»—To remove grease, paint, etc., from machinery add half a pound of caustic soda to 2 gallons of water and boil the parts to be cleaned in the fluid. It is possible to use it several times before its strength is exhausted.

«Solutions for Cleaning Metals.»—

I.—Water 20 parts Alum 2 parts Tripoli 2 parts Nitric acid 1 part

II.—Water 40 parts Oxalic acid 2 parts Tripoli 7 parts

«To Cleanse Nickel.»—I.—Fifty parts of rectified alcohol; 1 part of sulphuric acid; 1 part of nitric acid. Plunge the piece in the bath for 10 to 15 seconds, rinse it off in cold water, and dip it next into rectified alcohol. Dry with a fine linen rag or with sawdust.

II.—Stearine oil 1 part Ammonia water 25 parts Benzine 50 parts Alcohol 75 parts

Rub up the stearine with the ammonia, add the benzine and then the alcohol, and agitate until homogeneous. Put in wide-mouthed vessels and close carefully.

«To Clean Petroleum Lamp Burners.»—Dissolve in a quart of soft water an ounce or an ounce and a half of washing soda, using an old half-gallon tomato can. Into this put the burner after removing the wick, set it on the stove, and let it boil strongly for 5 or 6 minutes, then take out, rinse under the tap, and dry. Every particle of carbonaceous matter will thus be got rid of, and the burner be as clean and serviceable as new. This ought to be done at least every month, but the light would be better if it were done every 2 weeks.

«Gold-Ware Cleaner.»—

Acetic acid 2 parts Sulphuric acid 2 parts Oxalic acid 1 part Jewelers’ rouge 2 parts Distilled water 200 parts

Mix the acids and water and stir in the rouge, after first rubbing it up with a portion of the liquid. With a clean cloth, wet with this mixture, go well over the article. Rinse off with hot water and dry.

«Silverware Cleaner.»—Make a thin paste of levigated (not precipitated) chalk and sodium hyposulphite, in equal parts, rubbed up in distilled water. Apply this paste to the surface, rubbing well with a soft brush. Rinse in clear water and dry in sawdust. Some authorities advise the cleaner to let the paste dry on the ware, and then to rub off and rinse with hot water.

«Silver-Coin Cleaner.»—Make a bath of 10 parts of sulphuric acid and 90 parts of water, and let the coin lie in this until the crust of silver sulphide is dissolved. From 5 to 10 minutes usually suffice. Rinse in running water, then rub with a soft brush and castile soap, rinse again, dry with a soft cloth, and then carefully rub with chamois.

«Cleaning Silver-Plated Ware.»—Into a wide-mouthed bottle provided with a good cork put the following mixture:

Cream of tartar 2 parts Levigated chalk 2 parts Alum 1 part

Powder the alum and rub up with the other ingredients, and cork tightly. When required for use wet sufficient of the powder and with soft linen rags rub the article, being careful not to use much pressure, as otherwise the thin layer of plating may be cut through. Rinse in hot suds, and afterwards in clear water, and dry in sawdust. When badly blackened with silver sulphide, if small, the article may be dipped for an instant in hydrochloric acid and immediately rinsed in running water. Larger articles may be treated as coins are—immersed for 2 or 3 minutes in a 10 per cent aqueous solution of sulphuric acid, or the surface may be rapidly wiped {201} with a swab carrying nitric acid and instantly rinsed in running water.

«Cleaning Gilt Bronze Ware.»—If greasy, wash carefully in suds, or, better, dip into a hot solution of caustic potash, and then wash in suds with a soft rag, and rinse in running water. If not then clean and bright, dip into the following mixture:

Nitric acid 10 parts Aluminum sulphate 1 part Water 40 parts

Mix. Rinse in running water.

«Britannia Metal Cleaner.»—Rub first with jewelers’ rouge made into a paste with oil; wash in suds, rinse, dry, and finish with chamois or wash leather.

«To Remove Ink Stains on Silver.»—Silver articles in domestic use, and especially silver or plated inkstands, frequently become badly stained with ink. These stains cannot be removed by ordinary processes, but readily yield to a paste of chloride of lime and water. Javelle water may be also used.

«Removing Egg Stains.»—A pinch of table salt taken between the thumb and finger and rubbed on the spot with the end of the finger will usually remove the darkest egg stain from silver.

«To Clean Silver Ornaments.»—Make a strong solution of soft soap and water, and in this boil the articles for a few minutes—five will usually be enough. Take out, pour the soap solution into a basin, and as soon as the liquid has cooled down sufficiently to be borne by the hand, with a soft brush scrub the articles with it. Rinse in boiling water and place on a porous substance (a bit of tiling, a brick, or unglazed earthenware) to dry. Finally give a light rubbing with a chamois. Articles thus treated look as bright as new.

«Solvent for Iron Rust.»—Articles attacked by rust may be conveniently cleaned by dipping them into a well-saturated solution of stannic chloride. The length of time of the action must be regulated according to the thickness of the rust. As a rule 12 to 24 hours will suffice, but it is essential to prevent an excess of acid in the bath, as this is liable to attack the iron itself. After the objects have been removed from the bath they must be rinsed with water, and subsequently with ammonia, and then quickly dried. Greasing with vaseline seems to prevent new formation of rust. Objects treated in this manner are said to resemble dead silver.

Professor Weber proposed a diluted alkali, and it has been found that after employing this remedy the dirt layer is loosened and the green platina reappears. Potash has been found to be an efficacious remedy, even in the case of statues that had apparently turned completely black.

«To Clean Polished Parts of Machines.»—Put in a flask 1,000 parts of petroleum; add 20 parts of paraffine, shaved fine; cork the bottle and stand aside for a couple of days, giving it an occasional shake. The mixture is now ready for use. To use, shake the bottle, pour a little of the liquid upon a woolen rag and rub evenly over the part to be cleaned; or apply with a brush. Set the article aside and, next day, rub it well with a dry, woolen rag. Every particle of rust, resinified grease, etc., will disappear provided the article has not been neglected too long. In this case a further application of the oil will be necessary. If too great pressure has not been made, or the rubbing continued too long, the residual oil finally leaves the surface protected by a delicate layer of paraffine that will prevent rusting for a long time.

«To Clean Articles of Nickel.»—Lay them for a few seconds in alcohol containing 2 per cent of sulphuric acid; remove, wash in running water, rinse in alcohol, and rub dry with a linen cloth. This process gives a brilliant polish and is especially useful with plated articles on the plating of which the usual polishing materials act very destructively. The yellowest and brownest nickeled articles are restored to pristine brilliancy by leaving them in the alcohol and acid for 15 seconds. Five seconds suffice ordinarily.