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T O P I C R E V I E WfuzzfootI have a Beta Cloth artifact that has some soil (unfortunately not lunar) and mildew stains. Has anyone had success cleaning Beta Cloth without damaging the artifact. I'm thinking steam would be the way to go...what's the trick?Best,Mike B.Rick MulheirnMike,You might want to drop a letter to Amanda Young at the Garber facility in Washington D.C. She is responsible for the restoration and preservation of the Smithsonian suit collection and is probably THE best person to advise you on cleaning beta cloth.Regards,Rick.fuzzfootExcellent idea, thanks Rick. Will post suggestions later.Mike B.Rick MulheirnKeep us informed Mike. I'd like to know how you get on.Regards,Rick.fuzzfootFor those of you interested, I got in contact with Amanda and, with her permission, this is what she wrote:...I do very little cleaning, partly because it is something I need to be verycareful of with museum objects, and also I don't want to clean of any"historic dirt"....If it is dust, vacuuming it with a very gentle vacuum cleaner is OK... Agentle brush is good to brush dust off as well.. Cleaning metal parts withethanol and a cotton swab is usually good....Some deionized water (you could probably use distilled water as well) witha soft brush might get the more stubbon bits of dirt off.Unfortunately, mold is something that I don't remove, much as I would liketo.. I don't want to risk damaging the material, or leaving a "whitespot"...Beta cloth is a fiberglass with a teflon coating, and in some instancesthey used a teflon fabric that is often erroneously called beta cloth...It is not indestructable, particularly at the age most of it is now, sogoing slowly is what I would recommend..."Best,Mike B.[This message has been edited by fuzzfoot (edited August 24, 2004).]Rick MulheirnThanks for the update Mike.Regards,Rick.SpacepsychoMy 2 cents, have you tried using Oxyclean or one of the O2 cleaners? I've used them on color fabrics in a dense paste form to remove ink and it doesn't remove any color at all. I think if you mix up a paste, rub it in, use a toothbrush and GENTLY go in circles, you should have good results without changing the color or bleaching it whiter on the spot.Ray
Best,Mike B.
You might want to drop a letter to Amanda Young at the Garber facility in Washington D.C. She is responsible for the restoration and preservation of the Smithsonian suit collection and is probably THE best person to advise you on cleaning beta cloth.
Regards,
Rick.
Mike B.
...I do very little cleaning, partly because it is something I need to be verycareful of with museum objects, and also I don't want to clean of any"historic dirt"....If it is dust, vacuuming it with a very gentle vacuum cleaner is OK... Agentle brush is good to brush dust off as well.. Cleaning metal parts withethanol and a cotton swab is usually good....Some deionized water (you could probably use distilled water as well) witha soft brush might get the more stubbon bits of dirt off.Unfortunately, mold is something that I don't remove, much as I would liketo.. I don't want to risk damaging the material, or leaving a "whitespot"...Beta cloth is a fiberglass with a teflon coating, and in some instancesthey used a teflon fabric that is often erroneously called beta cloth...It is not indestructable, particularly at the age most of it is now, sogoing slowly is what I would recommend..."
[This message has been edited by fuzzfoot (edited August 24, 2004).]
Ray
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