Part 315

PAINTINGS, TO CLEAN: See Cleaning Preparations and Methods.

«Paints»

(See also Acid-Proofing, Ceramics, Enamels, Fireproofing, Glazing, Painting Processes, Pigments, Rust Preventives, Varnishes, and Waterproofing.)

«PAINT BASES:»

«Dry Bases for Paints.»—The following colors and minerals, mixed in the proportions given and then ground to fine powder, make excellent dry paints, and may be thinned with turpentine oil, and a small percentage of cheap varnish to consistency required.

Buff.—

Yellow ocher 44 pounds Whiting 6 pounds Oxide of zinc 5 pounds Plaster of Paris 1⁠/⁠2 pound

Brick Brown.—

Yellow ocher 26 pounds Calcined copperas 4 pounds Red hematite 1 1⁠/⁠4 pounds Best silica 7 pounds Whiting 18 pounds

Gray.—

Oxide of zinc 30 pounds White lead 6 pounds Whiting 12 pounds Bone black 1⁠/⁠4 pound Yellow ocher 2 pounds

Crimson.—

Indian red 25 pounds Crocus martis 7 pounds Oxide of zinc 6 pounds Whiting 6 pounds

Vandyke Brown.—

Yellow ocher 25 pounds Whiting 18 pounds Umber 4 pounds Oxide of zinc 7 pounds Purple oxide of iron 1 pound

Blood Red.—

Crocus martis 30 pounds Whiting 20 pounds Hematite 3 pounds Silica 6 pounds Venetian red 2 pounds

Drab.—

Yellow ocher 40 pounds Whiting 10 pounds Oxide of zinc 8 1⁠/⁠2 pounds Sulphate of barytes 1 pound

«Paint for Blackboards.»—

Shellac 1 pound Alcohol 1 gallon Lampblack (fine quality) 4 ounces Powdered emery 4 ounces Ultramarine blue 4 ounces

Dissolve the shellac in the alcohol. Place the lampblack, emery, and ultramarine blue on a cheese-cloth strainer, pour on part of the shellac solution, stirring constantly and gradually adding the solution until all of the powders have passed through the strainer.

«Dark-Green Paint for Blackboards.»—Mix 1 part Prussian blue and 1 part chrome green with equal parts of gilders’ size and alcohol to a thin cream consistency. Apply with a large, stiff brush and after an hour a second coat is given. After 24 to 48 hours smooth the surface with a felt cloth. This renders it rich and velvety. The shade must be a deep black green and the quantities of the colors have to be modified accordingly if necessary. Old blackboards should be previously thoroughly cleaned with soda.

«BRONZING SOLUTIONS FOR PAINTS.»

I.—The so-called “banana solution” (the name being derived from its odor) which is used in applying bronzes of various kinds, is usually a mixture of equal parts of amyl acetate, acetone, and benzine, with just enough pyroxyline dissolved therein to give it body. Powdered bronze is put into a bottle containing this mixture and the paint so formed applied with a brush. The thin covering of pyroxyline that is left after the evaporation of the liquid protects the bronze from the air and keeps it from being wiped off by the cleanly housemaid. Tarnished picture frames and tarnished chandeliers to which a gold bronze has been applied from such a solution will look fresh and new for a long time. Copper bronze as well as gold bronze and the various colored bronze powders can be used in the “banana solution” for making very pretty advertising signs for use in the drug store. Lettering and bordering work upon the signs can be done with it. Several very small, stiff painters’ brushes are needed for such work and they must {490} be either kept in the solution when not in use, or, better still, washed in benzine or acetone immediately after use and put away for future service. As the “banana solution” is volatile, it must be kept well corked.

II.—A good bronzing solution for paint tins, applied by dipping, is made by dissolving Syrian asphaltum in spirits of turpentine, etc., and thinning it down with these solvents to the proper bronze color and consistency. A little good boiled oil will increase the adherence.

«Paint Brushes.»—To soften a hard paint brush, stand the brush overnight in a pot of soft soap and clean in warm water. Afterwards clean in benzine. If the brush is wrapped with a string do not let the string touch the soap.

Paint brushes which have dried up as hard as stone can be cleaned in the following manner: Dissolve 1 part soda in 3 parts water; pour the solution in a cylinder glass, and suspend in it the brushes to be cleaned, so that they are about 2 inches from the bottom of the vessel. Let it remain undisturbed at a temperature of 140° to 158° F., 12 to 24 hours, after which the most indurated brushes will have become soft, so that they can be readily cleaned with soap. It is essential, however, to observe the temperature, as bristle brushes will be injured and spoiled if the heat is greater.