Cleaning Bronze Portals

[dgsail]

Has anyone found anything good for cleaning and maintaining the bronze portals?



dgsail@earthlink.net

[Greg Lutzow]

Let them weather. Not only is it less work, but the boat gains that salty appearance.
If you must clean them... Try lemon juice, or use a product such as DURAGLIT which is available commercially. As an ex-Marine I can testify that DURAGLIT is, without reservation, the best brass cleaner that I have ever used.

Greg Lutzow
CEFALU III
Typhoon Weekender

[Bristol Bronze]

Has anyone found anything good for cleaning and maintaining the bronze portals?

The brown or green/brown patina on your Bronze is copper oxide. It is a protective oxide that builds up on the surface of any copper base metal when it comes in contact with a corrosive environment. Since copper oxide is a natural earth element it protects the metal from any further corrosion. You will do yourself and your fittings a favor by leaving the patina alone.

If you must have polished Bronze then the best product to use to get back to bare metal is a 3M product called ScotchBrite. It comes in pad form for hand polishing as well as wheel form for mounting on a drill. Once you have polished through the patina then any good metal polish will work for you to keep it polished.

Roger W.
Bristol Bronze
401-625-5224



rogerw@meganet.net

[Geoff Safron]

No slight against the worthy "leave them alone" advice below, but my ports were so tarnished they were black. They looked dingy next to my buffed white fiberglass and 8-coat Cetol brightwork...so over the last few years I've been trying all sorts of cleaning products looking for a chemical solution. I haven't tried Duraglit (I will, for brass), but last summer I stumbled upon the near-miraculous substance: Phosphoric Acid. I accidently spilled some bathroom cleaner I was using on the fiberglass on a bronze winch. I didn't notice it for about ten minutes, but when I did and wiped it off, it GLEAMED like a new penny! (cue Hallelujah Chorus). I got busy with a scotchbrite pad, and managed to make that winch look like new with about a half-hour of elbow grease. The portals were a little tougher due to the pebbled surface; so I went shopping for products with Phosphoric Acid, and lo and behold, good ol' Naval Jelly has it. The viscuous nature of NJ allows you to brush it on and let it sit for 20 minutes or so before scrubbing (which you still have to do). Two applications later, the portals looked like new; I gave each one two coats of Polyurathane gloss varnish, and a full summer and Michigan winter later, they still look just fine. NOTES: 1) tape off the area around the ports as if you were painting them (which you are), and keep the ooze from dripping or spattering onto the fiberglass: the blackened acid will stain it in a big way; 2) Tarp-off the areas inside, under each port, to keep from dripping acid on your uhpolstery; 3) Use heavy-duty rubber gloves and safety goggles; nasty stuff on skin, worse on eyes. Good luck! If you need more convincing, email me and I'll send you before-and-after shots.



brainstorm@unidial.com