“PLEXI IS NOT GLASS!!! – Care for Plexi-Mounted Strata Cut Artwork”
CLEANING
Plexi is not glass. Do not use windex or glass cleaner. It is a common mistake.
Please use soap and water, or BRILLIANIZE or any other plexi specific cleaner.
NEVER use ordinary cloth or paper towel. This is hard to learn, I have to repeat it to myself.
Use micro fiber cloth or lens cleaner like you use on your glasses.
Very dense thread count may also be okay I think.
Most small Plexi scratches can be ‘buffed out’ – but that is a skill I have not mastered, and would let those who work that craft fix any of these if noticeable.
STORAGE
Temperature – Keep ambient temperature below 85 degrees when hanging on the wall. 90 is okay for short periods of time. If your AC breaks down during a 100 degree day and the house is unbearable, just put this art FLAT on it’s plexi back until normal ‘human’ temps return.
In general, when not hanging on the wall, keep the artworks stored flat between two sheets of cardboard, or inside a thin cardboard sleeve, clay side UP. A box can be a micro climate – it takes a bit longer for ambient heat to rise inside a box, when the temperature rises outside.
5 minutes of direct sunlight on a warm day is bad.
30 minutes of direct sunlight on a cold day is also bad.
Like vampire objects, these strata cuts live forever if kept out of the sun in heat no greater than human comfort itself.
MOUNTING
Mounting bracket screws – Using a Phillips screw driver – make sure these are snug tight. The nylon hanging wire will hold 100lbs, but the mounting bracket not being snug, means it can slip off if ‘tugged’ on – and the whole piece will fall 5 feet to the floor.
Most of the time, the plex will survive this. But sometimes … if it hits right on the corner … it can shatter a corner. So tighten the screw on each bracket very snug.
(Note, each Phillips screw has a flat head with a plastic or rubberized piece on the end. This is to prevent ‘digging’ a mark into the plex. If this tiny part is missing, dab a silicone rubber drop on the end to achieve same safety effect.
MAJOR CHANGES
As a last resort – mounted slices can be scraped off the plex with a long cake slicer or meat slicing knife … art cleaned up, and re mounted. This is something I can teach others, but a re scrape will cause some distortion which can be reverse pressed back toward normal. I should make a video, but until then, I am probably the one who can do this best.
Extra ‘finishing’ possibilities: One can sand paper the edges of the Plexi, for a smoother straight edge. One can use a light grinding wheel and radius the corners. I am not a ‘fine’ craftsman. Others can do this better. Just ideas.
This is an essential PRIMER for CARE of STRATA CUT ART created by David Daniels. I have been reluctant to write this for months, but it is essential as over a dozen pieces have been sold, and more to come.