sculpture care

for stainless steel sculptures or parts:

for stainless steel sculptures or parts:

 

Treat with WD-40 at least once a year.  Stainless Steel LOVES oil so treat it as often as you can to keep it at its best.  Please treat the whole area or the finish will not be uniform.

If your sculpture requires any additional cleaning such as removal of stains or yellowing on the Stainless Steel, I recommend Bar Keepers Helper. Follow these instructions to ensure proper care:

  1. Using a hose, spray down entire stainless steel section with water.
  2. Squeeze Bar Keepers Helper onto the area you want to clean (do one section at a time).
  3. Leave on for 30-60 seconds.
  4. Wipe it all off with a cloth.
  5. Using a hose, spray down area again and dry with a cloth.
  6. Once you are finished cleaning, immediately apply WD-40 to the entire Stainless Steel portion to keep the finish uniform and stabilize it.

for mixed stainless steel & cor-ten sculptures:

As the Cor-Ten rusts you may find that the Stainless Steel becomes streaky. You can easily remove the streaks with an orbital sander as shown in the video to the right.

for cor-ten steel sculptures or parts:

Cor-Ten requires little to no maintenance. If you need to remove anything stuck on the sculpture, please wipe it off with a rag after a rainstorm. DO NOT USE STEEL WOOL! If some of the finish should get scraped off, the metal will self-correct itself over time. Just be patient and it will rust again!  Please note that while Cor-Ten is suitable in the majority of climates and geographical locations, care does need to be taken if your Cor-Ten artwork will be displayed in a high salt (coastal) location or in a humid subtropical environment.  Both of these factors can lead to the material not stabilizing as it normally does, but continuing to erode.  In circumstances like this, an annual application of Penetrol will protect and prolong your artwork.

It is important to keep in mind, the color of the Cor-Ten will vary slightly on each sculpture depending upon how old it is and how much sunlight exposure it receives.  The deeper, darker color is a result of less sunlight, while a lighter, reddish color emerges when the artwork is exposed to more sunlight. 

for rusted balls in a sculpture:

These should be treated once a year with Penetrol, a paint thinner. It is very important that Penetrol does not come in contact with any stainless steel portion of your sculpture.

  1.  Cover the stainless steel portion with cardboard and/or rags to catch any Penetrol that may drip as it is being applied.
  2. Using a paintbrush, completely cover the rusted ball with Penetrol.
  3. Allow it to air dry and then remove the cardboard and rags.

for painted balls in a sculpture:

As of mid 2014, we use a highly durable, weather tested powder coat finish for all of our accents.  Many clients have found that they can maximize and extend the beauty of the finish by applying a common car wax to the painted feature.  For clients who live in a high salt environment, we recommend regular rinsing with fresh water to wash away excess salt.  To remove anything that may be stuck to the surface, a clean soft rag can be used (best to do this after a good soaking rain).