Trophies and awards are always the matter of pride be it from sports, academic, or corporate, and it serves the intended purposes very well. We like to display our achievements in the form of trophies and awards of different kinds. Thereby, we take different routes to display them in our home, office, or wherever a possibility we find.
Some awards need a simple stand to take a seat in your table or top of the wall-mounted stand. Whereas, some demand the especial cupboards or cases with transparent front glass for pricy things like gold and silver trophies.
Similarly, many trophy winners invest a good deal of fortune on the care of their achievements in different forms while many neglects and let dust to eat the beauty of trophies or awards.
We, at Olympia in Australia, are facing several inquiries regarding guideline for the right care of trophies and awards from our esteemed clientele, as well as many winners who know that we are a manufacturer of their awards.
In due course, today we are going to give you useful hints regarding the cleaning practices for the different kinds of materials used in the manufacturing of trophies and awards.
Apart from trophies, Olympia also boasts with a gift shop selling a range of various products.
Let's see material-wise cleaning practices for trophies and awards.
1 - How to Clean Your Gold & Silver Trophies?
Air humidity and contaminations are the prime cause of oxidation in precious metals like gold and silver. The damage occurs only up to a few top layers and metal beneath is remaining unaffected.
Unfortunately, most of trophies and awards are of not pure gold or silver used entirely, but of plated/coated inferior metals. It is the reason the trophy owners have to be careful and regularly clean the gold-plated or silver-plated trophies using the suitable method given below.
I would like to mention here three kinds of treatments we used to apply for precious metal cleaning.
- Plain Water Washing
- Spa Bath with Mild Alkaline Solutions
- Spa Bath with Mint Containing Solutions
Wash Your Trophy with Detergent Powder & Plain Water:
Most of the dirt and mild stains can easily remove by plain water washing or direct application of soap mixed water.
- You can use the usual washing detergent instead of soap solution for a bit hard cleaning.
- Wash the gold or silver trophy after application of mild detergent powder/solution and wipe down it with soft cloth or silverware drying pad.
- Don't use any abrasive material at all to create scratches on the surface.
Give Your Gold or Silver Trophies A Spa Bath:
Material needed: An Aluminium Foil, Baking Soda (Soda Bi-carb), and Boiling Water.
- The very first step is plugging your washing sink or use bowel. Now cover the inner surface of sink/bowl with an aluminium foil. Aluminium foil provides another pole for the ionic process.
- Boil water and add baking soda in the required quantity.
- Now pour boiling water in the sink/bowel to submerge the entire trophy in it.
- Let the water to cool down so you can hold trophy object and dry it completely using a soft cloth specially made for gold/silver cleaning.
Wash Your Trophy with Mint Solutions:
Toothpaste is a handy mint containing a solution for harmless washing of your gold or silver trophies and medals. Apply toothpaste cream on the surfaces of trophy and rub gently with fingers. Rinse it well after a lapse of a few minutes with fresh water. Dry it thoroughly using a soft cloth. However, professionals do not prefer it due to the possibility of scratches on the surface.
Other gold and silver trophy cleaning solutions are ammonia, beer or alcohol, club soda, denture tablets, ketchup, vinegar, and special commercial solutions used by jewellers.
2 - How to Clean Your Bronze & Pewter Trophies?
Gold and silver metal trophies are getting tarnish effects with the pace of time, but pewter and bronze are not. Instead, these metals are looking grubby over time. You can remove dirt on the surfaces by simple cloth cleaning.
Staining or grubby look can be treated by plain water wash or with mild detergents or solutions described in the section of gold and silver trophy cleaning.
3 - How to Clean Your Copper & Steel Trophies?
Copper and steel are tougher metals than gold and silver in many aspects. Therefore, cleaning or washing of stainless steel or copper trophies becomes an easy task. Most of the homes have stainless steel and copper utensils, and they know the safe methods to wash them.
You can apply the most suitable one for your steel or copper-based trophies and awards. Mostly plain water or detergent washing is enough to refresh your metal trophies.
4 - How to Clean Your Glass & Crystal Trophies?
Glass, acrylic, and crystals are delicate material in washing too. They need the utmost care while applying chemicals. Soapy water is a good way to remove light marks. Glass cleaner solutions become essentiality for stubborn dirt and stains. Be careful while washing or drying glass or crystal trophies and use a non-abrasive or soft cloth.
5 - How to Clean Your Plastic & Resin Trophies?
Plastic and resins are chemical-based material and tough to get deterioration over time by weathering effects. However, staining by other ways is possible and plain water washing or detergent or baking soda washing is the best way to clean plastic trophies or resin trophies. A soft cloth is a good way to dry it up.
6 - How to Clean Your Marble Trophies?
We know the marble base is a very common component in various trophies, plaques, and awards. However, marble may be soft or hard by types. So, soft types of marbles need care while cleaning with acidic solutions. In most cases, plain water or detergent water washing proves adequate methods to remove dirt and stains on marble parts of a trophy.
7 - How to Clean Your Wood Trophies?
Polished woods when used in trophy making it hardly demand any treatment other than cleaning dust with a cloth or a wind blower. You can use soft cloth or brush to remove dirt over the surfaces. Wood polish is the best way to bring the charm back.
8 - How to Clean Your Mounted Hunting Trophies?
Animal hunting is a hobby and sometimes considers as a competition when an entire group is organising the trip. Parts of hunted animals mostly kept as mounted hunting trophies as a physical memory of an unforgettable experience.
Such mounted hunting trophies or awards demand special care while cleaning because they contain preserved fur, bones, teeth, horns, tails, and other parts of their bodies. Dry or wet cloth cleaning is common among most of the mounted hunting trophies.
Some chemical applications like preservatives and safe cleaners are essential to apply in the regular schedule to extend the lifespan of those trophies.
At last:
Olympia in Australia is a hub of trophies and corporate awards. A big inventory is waiting to explore online. Make your selection out of tons of options and designs; the custom order is welcome here and provides the best delivery and post-delivery services in the industry. Would you like to discuss your next order with us?
