Cleaning Leaves of Remembrance: A Primer
CLEANING & MAINTAINING THE HOMELESS REMEMBRANCE PROJECT’S LEAVES OF REMEMBRANCE
www.fallenleaves.org
INTRODUCTION
Before you set out to volunteer to assist the Homeless Remembrance Project, PLEASE check in with the Project Organizer at wheelorg@yahoo.com, or (206) 956-0334. She’ll help you get started and helps Coordinate these efforts! Thank you!
Here’s some introductory information: The leaves are made of silicon bronze, a metal which is a wonderful golden color, but develops a patina when exposed to water, chemicals, etc. The patina is a dull dark brown.
Early in the project, the leaves were simply polished with fine sandpaper before installation. Maintenance consisted of cleaning them from time to time using Brasso. The issue with Brasso is that it will leave a pale halo on the pavement unless the whole area around the leaf is very well rinsed.
Other cleaners can be used which don’t have the halo issue. For instance, equal parts vinegar and Dawn dish soap can be useful.
Keep in mind that the leaves are subject not only to rain, snow, and people’s feet, but also to bird poop, ice-melt chemicals, snow shovels, brooms, tree sap and other natural stuff.
In an attempt to reduce maintenance and keep the bright tone, we began coating the leaves with clear products, like varnish. We have used a variety of products that provided various levels of protection.
Before installation, we currently spray with several coats of Rust-Oleum Satin Clear Enamel. Using this to re-coat leaves already installed is rather fussy since you have to protect the surrounding area with a stencil.
CURRENT SUGGESTIONS FOR CLEANING AND MAINTAINING THE LEAVES ON THE SIDEWALK
First, determine whether the leaves you are cleaning are uncoated or still have a protective coating on them. Leaves without a coating will show a fairly solid brown patina plus stains, while coated leaves will show stains and more variation in their patina. They may look quite golden, which means their coating is working.
Cleaning Uncoated Leaves
If you have leaves that seem to be uncoated (just brown patina and stains), you can either clean with Brasso or other cleaner or sand with fine (220 grit) sandpaper. If sanding, you can use a disk sander on a battery drill, and touch things up by hand, with sandpaper or a sanding sponge.
NOTE: The bronze will resume its patina-development immediately.
Cleaning Coated Leaves
If your leaves seem to have been coated, you have a couple of options:
- Just clean them up with soap and water (or other cleaners). Use a scrubby sponge. The coatings wear away unevenly, but if it looks OK, that’s OK.
- If the coating is badly worn (like there is a lot of dark brown patina and it looks bad), sand off the coating remnants and patina with fine sandpaper and treat them like uncoated leaves.
Recoating Leaves
OK, you have cleaned up the leaves. What next?
1. You can leave them as they are and clean the patina and dirt off as needed. This is the simplest, but requires many more repeat cleanings.
2. You can recoat them. For leaves installed, it is simplest to use a clear, quick-drying metal coating that can be applied with a brush. Apply the coating and then put a small cardboard box over the leaf to protect it while the coating dries.
As mentioned, you can also use spray finishes, but it is a messier fussier process.
