In their advertising for CRN Auctions, Carl Nordblom and Karin Philips described the sale, which included early American furniture, European paintings, Chinese scholar stones, art, and pottery, as eclectic. According to Antiques and The Art Weekly, the top-selling antique was a group of fifteen watercolor portraits of members of a single African-American family, selling at $73,200. The highest-priced furniture, a Boston mahogany Chippendale reverse serpentine chest sold at $29,280. Antique furniture and art from places like our Brass Armadillo Antique Mall locations are real gems for your home, as they make your space appear stylish and elegant regardless of what is trending right now.
Each piece of antique, be it a painting, rug, or furniture, is unique, made from durable materials. However, water can damage your precious artwork and furniture. That’s why knowing how to preserve your antiques is crucial. You should also know how to restore water-damaged antiques quickly before they become irreparable. Below are a few restoration tips for water-damaged furniture and antiques.
Clean and Slow Dry Antiques
Wooden antique furniture, portraits, rugs, and other collectibles can get soaked in water because of natural flood disasters, leaks caused by broken pipes, and leaking roofs. Whatever the reasons for water damage in your home, cleaning and drying your antique pieces is essential. To achieve the best results, clean your antiques, especially furniture, with a soft cloth and mild cleaner, like hand washing soap. Avoid using chemical-based cleaners to clean your antiques, as they may destroy the original finish.
Drying your antique furniture and artwork using the slow method prevents the wood or painting from shrinking or deforming. When wood shrinks or deforms, it ends up splitting or cracking, causing irreparable damage. While drying antiques under using fans or special dryers might seem ideal, it isn’t. Doing so will speed up the drying time, resulting in deformation of the structure and reduction of your antiques’ price value. So, as a water damage restoration tip, dry your furniture and antiques naturally.
In the case the appraised value of your antiques is high, consider seeking the services of water damage restoration experts. Make sure the service provider specializes in salvaging water-damaged wooden furniture. With the help of an expert, you can remove your antique furnishings and other valuables from the flooded area to a dry space, clean, and disinfect the affected items safely.
Disassemble Antique Furniture
It’s normal for cabinet doors and drawers to expand and get stuck after being soaked in water. So, as a water damage restoration tip, don’t use force to get them out of your antique furniture chest, cupboard, or wardrobe. Instead, wait for the water to seep out from the drawers and cabinet doors. Then remove them slowly and use the slow dry method. Place the drawers upside down and check if the glue on the wooden joints is weak, and apply new glue if necessary. As a general rule of thumb, don’t replace original antique fixings with modern nails and screws, as they can damage your furniture.
Treat Antiques To Prevent Mold And Mildew
Treating wooden antique furniture with antifungal and anti-mildew agents is a step you shouldn’t overlook. Even after drying, your antique furnishings carry mold spores. With increased levels of humidity, mold, and bacteria will grow and reduce indoor air quality, causing allergies. Another water damage restoration tip is to use antifungal and anti-mildew compounds designed for fabric when treating upholstered furniture or other antique textiles.
Unlike modern furniture, antique furnishings don’t feature stainless steel metal detail or hardware. This means the metal on your antique stools, chest, or wardrobe can rust when exposed to water. Water damage restoration experts recommend performing a thorough inspection on all parts of your antiques for rust. Then, use a brush to remove the rust and apply anti-corrosion grease on each metal part.
If the furniture has scratches on the wooden surface, use varnish to re-coat the area. Re-coating scratches on wooden surfaces helps prevent moisture from getting inside the wooden pores and deforming the antique’s structure. After treating your antiques from mold, mildew, and rust, assemble them using the original fixings.
Retouch Antique Rug Colors
Like antique furniture, antique rugs are made of high-quality fabric like silk, wool, cotton, and natural dyes. When submerged in flood water, the colors run in different areas, discoloring the entire rug. The restoration process of water-damaged antique rugs entails hand washing and drying the rug. This step helps assess the level of damage and the dye you can lift from the rug.
Once dry, water damage restoration experts specializing in fixing textiles will remove excess or unwanted colors from the rug. Next, faded areas will get painted with natural dyes using colors that correspond with the original ones for each section. Besides retouching dye color, your water-damaged Persian or Oriental rugs may require re-knitting to prevent wear and tear.
Antiques are priceless and require the utmost care to prevent damage. Unfortunately, water damage caused by natural floods, leaking roofs, and pipe leaks is hard to control. It is, therefore, crucial to know how to restore your antiques when flooding occurs in your home. First, clean antiques, especially furniture, and rugs, then dry them using the slow method and treat them for mold and mildew. Also, as a water damage restoration tip, disassemble antique furniture to avoid deformation and apply new glue on weak joints. For rugs and painting, hire an expert to remove excess paint, and recolor faded patches using natural dye colors that match with the original ones.
Guest Blog provided by:
Jacqueline Gilbert
