Are you one of those people who are addicted to wood burning? Also known as pyrography, wood burning is a unique form of art. It’s a rewarding way to be imaginative using different wood-burning methods for basic decorative designs for your home. This form of art can’t just be utilized as a decorative, crafty sort of art. It could be elevated to the level of fine art by skilled and professional pyrography artists.
It can be utilized on wooden bowls and boards, dressers, chairs, or kitchen cupboards. You could also make lovely artwork to embellish the walls of your home with family and memory portraits. Monochromatic pictures and designs are the most preferred styles for pyrography art. Geometric, buildings, pets, birds, and wildlife have magnificent effects. If you have not heard about the wood-burning tool, we have prepared for you a detailed guide to buying the best wood burning kit.
As you’re burning, at some point, you will see that the pen is not burning well as it was at the beginning. You could rotate the pen, and your burner will do as it did at the beginning. Later on, you will notice that every side of the top will fall victim to the accumulation of carbon. Every time organic material is burned, the byproduct of that reaction is carbon.
Before you can finish your pyrography design, you are faced with a dirty and messy pyrography tips. You are now stressed out on how to clean it. But don’t worry. This post got you covered. Below, you will find different cleaning methods you can use to make your wood-burning tip brand new again. Without further ado, let’s get started:
Avoiding the Accumulation of Carbon
We all want to eliminate the accumulation of carbon in our wood burning tip. To prevent that from happening again, make sure you avoid it from building up than what’s needed. You can try using a small piece of wood, which does not have retained sap. Bear in mind that this kind of wood has sap or resin that comes out of the pores when it’s heated up with the wood burning pen.
That resin or sap could glue up your pyrography pen. Not to mention that it will be more difficult for you to clean. The last thing you want is smudging and destroying your masterpiece.
We gather some of the materials you can use to clean your wood burning tips:
1. Jeweler’s Rouge
This first option might not be the best method to clean your wood burning tip. This isn’t the fastest method too. So why do we include it on our list? The good thing about using a jeweler’s rouge is that it is less abrasive. This is a much safer option for your delicate wood burning tips. If you cannot find a jeweler’s rouge, you can always opt for any polishing compound.
You can also utilize a bristly green rouge for daily use. Using a finer red gouge to offer your wood burning pen a finishing polish is an ideal cleaning method as well.
2. Higher Heat
A few artists like to remove the carbon accumulation on their wood-burning tips by increasing the temperature to burn it off. That might be a good option to do every now and then. However, take note that it can wear out your tips much faster than usual. That’s true, particularly if you use extremely high temperatures. We recommend that you do so frugally.
3. Knife Method
Did you know that you could also utilize a knife to get rid of the carbon buildup on your wood-burning tip? To do this, you simply scrape off the residue over some scrap paper or wood to get rid of the mess.
Your tip will perform heat better and work more efficiently once you go back to your wood burning.
4. Sandpaper
You can take advantage of sandpaper with a 320 grit to brush the residue or accumulation off the wood burning tip. We do not suggest using rougher grades of sandpaper, as this might damage the tip. Try not to utilize your hand to hold the paper or touch it for longer if you are doing this while your pyrography pen is still hot.
We recommend using sandpaper to clean your wood burning tip every so often. Nevertheless, always remember that using sandpaper too much could cause your tip to wear down quickly.
5. Leather Bench Strop
Apart from the cleaning methods we mentioned above, you can also utilize a leather bench strop to clean your pyrography pen. You can use it similar to what you would utilize for sharpening knives. If you cannot find one, don’t worry. You can always use a rough piece of leather to get the tip polished and looking good.
Do you always use acidic types of wood like oak? If yes, you might observe fast corrosion of your pen tips. To clean them, make sure you get rid of the pit marks every time you polish them and keep them tidy. Doing this will make it more difficult for the carbon to attach to the tips.
Your wood-burning pen will surely work like a brand new one after the tip is cleaned. In case it’s still malfunctioning, you need to ensure it is tightened to the pen properly. The majority of wood burning tips are screw-on design. Thus, they might come loose often that could lower their burning ability and conductivity.
Don’t forget having pliers by your side. You can utilize them to tighten your wood burning tips if required, as you work with your masterpiece. We recommend that you do not tighten it too much, as they could break while hot.
Do you find this guide helpful? Make sure you follow all the tips we mentioned above so your wood burning tip will stay in the best shape while you’re doing your best masterpiece.
We hope we presented you with practical information you can use today. What are your thoughts about this post? Share your ideas and insights with us by leaving your comments below! Don’t forget to share this with your friends too!
