Taxidermy:
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You're proud of your trophy. That's why you had it preserved. So you want to keep it looking as noble as the day it came home from the taxidermist. And not like something from the Addams Family house.
Don't pet the animals. A taxidermic specimen isn't made for manhandling. Often it contains insecticides to prevent moths, larvae, and other organisms from setting up house and feasting on it. So inspect it regularly or signs of damage from these pests. But avoid touching it. Besides leaving damaging skin oils on the piece, you might expose yourself to insecticides or even to toxic heavy metals such as arsenic and mercury, which may have been used in preserving it.
Dust is another sneaky enemy of your stuffed wonder. It can find its way into fur and feather and be a stubborn tenant that fails to respond to eviction notices. But leaking toxins can migrate into a dust cloth or become airborne as you dust. Besides stirring up heavy metals, you could send asbestos flying it, if the modeling compound used to construct parts such as facial features contains asbestos, as some do.
For a thorough cleaning, call a professional. Unless you know that your taxi-dermic treasure was preserved without dangerous toxins--perhaps because you requested it be done without them---realize that even minimal cleaning involves risks. Experts recommend that specimens be cleaned by a professional every 10 years or so. That's the lowest-risk way to get the job done.
If you know your specimen is free of these toxins, or you have decided to give it a quick once-over regardless, gingerly dust fur-bearing trophies with a barely damp soft cloth, following the natural direction of the fur. Wipe only the fur: Even slightly dampened skin will begin to stretch, and fats in the wet skin can begin to turn rancid. For birds, use a feather duster (of course!) working from the bill or beak back, following the natural direction of the feather pattern.
To keep those eyes bright, apply glass cleaner or a mix of 1 part white vinegar to 4 parts water to a small patch of clean cloth and wipe onto the glass eyes. Baby oil, applied similarly, will bring back the luster of horns, and tusks. In either case, keep the cleaner away from fur, feathers, and skin. Avoid getting any solvents on specimens, particularly on preserved fish--they'll dissolve the fish's lacquer finish.
Simple SOLUTIONS
Location Is Key >
If you want to preserve a stuffed creature, find it a haven away from tobacco smoke, fire-places, heat ducts, air borne grease and food particles, the oil from human hands, and direct sunlight (which will fade the fur or feathers). It needs to be a dry area, to ward off mildew. If possible, keep your stuffed animal in a self-contained display case (available from some sporting goods stores and taxidermy supply houses).
Telephones
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You use it every day. So do the other members of your household. And guests. And repair people calling their offices to get final approvals on how much to charge you this time. With all the people who reach out and touch your telephone receiver, you can bet it needs on occasional cleaning. And disinfecting.
But simply spraying it with disinfectant won't do. Your phone is an electronic instrument with intricate wiring and receiver and speaker holes that you don't want to gum up. Follow the iron-clad electronics-cleaning rule: Apply cleaner (or sanitizer) to a cloth and use the dampened cloth to wipe it clean.
To simultaneously clean and disinfect a phone, use isopropyl (rubbering) alcohol. Pour a little onto cleaning cloth and wipe the entire phone, paying particular attention to the receiver, and receiver bed. Wait a few minutes and then buff with a dry cloth.
You also can give your phone the one-two punch of a cleaner followed by a disinfectant. Pick an all-purpose cleaner that's labeled safe for plastics. (You won't want a cleaner that contains strong solvents like those used to clean petroleum or tar---they'll damage the phone.) For a natural, plastics-friendly cleaner, use 1 tablespoon of borax in 3 cups of water.
Follow the cleanser with a sanitizer such as Lysol, dabbed onto a rag or cotton pad. Leave the sanitizer on the phone surface for 5 to 10 minutes. Then buff with a dry cloth.
An alternative disinfectant: Use a strong, germ-killing mouth-wash, such as Listerine. (what's good for the mouth is good for the mouth piece.)
Perhaps the easiest option for cleaning and disinfecting your telephone is the premoistened towelette made specifically for telephones and sold in office supply stores. Towelettes are the more expensive way to go but are certainly effective and easy--just wipe and toss.
Televisions
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
.
In fourth grade, you and your classmates happily shocked one another with static electricity. Now, somewhat a older and presumably somewhat more mature, you are shocked to discover that the same static electricity is a dust magnet that covers your television screen with minute gray fuzz. Unless you have a toddler or you've been tossing chips and dip at the screen whenever a ref makes a bad call, dust is likely to be your biggest TV-cleaning challenge.
First things first: Unplug the television before you clean it, particularly if you need to use a wet cleaner.
To clean a TV screen, first identify the type of screen you have. Only standard tubes and plasma screens can be wiped with a wet cleaner as described below for the TV's case. Liquid crystal display screens, which include not only LCD TVs but also projection TVs with digital light processing (DLP)
screens, should be wiped clean with a dry, clean cotton cloth. Consult your owner's manual (you kept it, right?) for what the manufacturer suggests. If the TV came with a cleaning kit, use its cleaner and cloths.
RULES OF THE GAME
Tube Tactics >
The primary nonnegotiable rules for cleaning TVs are these:
To clean a TV's case--or to clean a tube or plasma screen that allows liquid cleaner--slightly dampen a soft cotton cloth with your chosen cleaner. (Pick a nonraveling fabric to avoid having ragged ends
catch in the ventilation slits.) Glass cleaner, denatured alcohol, or rubbing alcohol make good cleaners because they will evaporate quickly. Or use a solution of 1 part liquid fabric softener to 4 parts cleaner. Wring out the cloth so it's just barely damp, never dripping, and wipe down the television. Never apply liquid cleaner directly to your screen or casing--the drips could damage the electronics. Buff the screen afterward with a dry cloth.
Some other ways to clean your TV:
Simple SOLUTIONS
TV Dust Magnet? >
To reduce the dust-attracting static electricity on your television's screen, wipe it with an antistatic
dryer sheet such as Bounce.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
You're proud of your trophy. That's why you had it preserved. So you want to keep it looking as noble as the day it came home from the taxidermist. And not like something from the Addams Family house.
Don't pet the animals. A taxidermic specimen isn't made for manhandling. Often it contains insecticides to prevent moths, larvae, and other organisms from setting up house and feasting on it. So inspect it regularly or signs of damage from these pests. But avoid touching it. Besides leaving damaging skin oils on the piece, you might expose yourself to insecticides or even to toxic heavy metals such as arsenic and mercury, which may have been used in preserving it.
Dust is another sneaky enemy of your stuffed wonder. It can find its way into fur and feather and be a stubborn tenant that fails to respond to eviction notices. But leaking toxins can migrate into a dust cloth or become airborne as you dust. Besides stirring up heavy metals, you could send asbestos flying it, if the modeling compound used to construct parts such as facial features contains asbestos, as some do.
For a thorough cleaning, call a professional. Unless you know that your taxi-dermic treasure was preserved without dangerous toxins--perhaps because you requested it be done without them---realize that even minimal cleaning involves risks. Experts recommend that specimens be cleaned by a professional every 10 years or so. That's the lowest-risk way to get the job done.
If you know your specimen is free of these toxins, or you have decided to give it a quick once-over regardless, gingerly dust fur-bearing trophies with a barely damp soft cloth, following the natural direction of the fur. Wipe only the fur: Even slightly dampened skin will begin to stretch, and fats in the wet skin can begin to turn rancid. For birds, use a feather duster (of course!) working from the bill or beak back, following the natural direction of the feather pattern.
To keep those eyes bright, apply glass cleaner or a mix of 1 part white vinegar to 4 parts water to a small patch of clean cloth and wipe onto the glass eyes. Baby oil, applied similarly, will bring back the luster of horns, and tusks. In either case, keep the cleaner away from fur, feathers, and skin. Avoid getting any solvents on specimens, particularly on preserved fish--they'll dissolve the fish's lacquer finish.
Simple SOLUTIONS
Location Is Key >
If you want to preserve a stuffed creature, find it a haven away from tobacco smoke, fire-places, heat ducts, air borne grease and food particles, the oil from human hands, and direct sunlight (which will fade the fur or feathers). It needs to be a dry area, to ward off mildew. If possible, keep your stuffed animal in a self-contained display case (available from some sporting goods stores and taxidermy supply houses).
Telephones
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
You use it every day. So do the other members of your household. And guests. And repair people calling their offices to get final approvals on how much to charge you this time. With all the people who reach out and touch your telephone receiver, you can bet it needs on occasional cleaning. And disinfecting.
But simply spraying it with disinfectant won't do. Your phone is an electronic instrument with intricate wiring and receiver and speaker holes that you don't want to gum up. Follow the iron-clad electronics-cleaning rule: Apply cleaner (or sanitizer) to a cloth and use the dampened cloth to wipe it clean.
To simultaneously clean and disinfect a phone, use isopropyl (rubbering) alcohol. Pour a little onto cleaning cloth and wipe the entire phone, paying particular attention to the receiver, and receiver bed. Wait a few minutes and then buff with a dry cloth.
You also can give your phone the one-two punch of a cleaner followed by a disinfectant. Pick an all-purpose cleaner that's labeled safe for plastics. (You won't want a cleaner that contains strong solvents like those used to clean petroleum or tar---they'll damage the phone.) For a natural, plastics-friendly cleaner, use 1 tablespoon of borax in 3 cups of water.
Follow the cleanser with a sanitizer such as Lysol, dabbed onto a rag or cotton pad. Leave the sanitizer on the phone surface for 5 to 10 minutes. Then buff with a dry cloth.
An alternative disinfectant: Use a strong, germ-killing mouth-wash, such as Listerine. (what's good for the mouth is good for the mouth piece.)
Perhaps the easiest option for cleaning and disinfecting your telephone is the premoistened towelette made specifically for telephones and sold in office supply stores. Towelettes are the more expensive way to go but are certainly effective and easy--just wipe and toss.
Televisions
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
.
In fourth grade, you and your classmates happily shocked one another with static electricity. Now, somewhat a older and presumably somewhat more mature, you are shocked to discover that the same static electricity is a dust magnet that covers your television screen with minute gray fuzz. Unless you have a toddler or you've been tossing chips and dip at the screen whenever a ref makes a bad call, dust is likely to be your biggest TV-cleaning challenge.
First things first: Unplug the television before you clean it, particularly if you need to use a wet cleaner.
To clean a TV screen, first identify the type of screen you have. Only standard tubes and plasma screens can be wiped with a wet cleaner as described below for the TV's case. Liquid crystal display screens, which include not only LCD TVs but also projection TVs with digital light processing (DLP)
screens, should be wiped clean with a dry, clean cotton cloth. Consult your owner's manual (you kept it, right?) for what the manufacturer suggests. If the TV came with a cleaning kit, use its cleaner and cloths.
RULES OF THE GAME
Tube Tactics >
The primary nonnegotiable rules for cleaning TVs are these:
- Pull the plug before you clean.
- Identify the type of screen you have. Some don't take well to liquid cleaners.
- Never spray any liquid directly onto the television or its screen. Spray cleaner onto a cloth to slightly dampen it and then use the cloth to wipe it.
To clean a TV's case--or to clean a tube or plasma screen that allows liquid cleaner--slightly dampen a soft cotton cloth with your chosen cleaner. (Pick a nonraveling fabric to avoid having ragged ends
catch in the ventilation slits.) Glass cleaner, denatured alcohol, or rubbing alcohol make good cleaners because they will evaporate quickly. Or use a solution of 1 part liquid fabric softener to 4 parts cleaner. Wring out the cloth so it's just barely damp, never dripping, and wipe down the television. Never apply liquid cleaner directly to your screen or casing--the drips could damage the electronics. Buff the screen afterward with a dry cloth.
Some other ways to clean your TV:
- Simply wipe the screen with an electrostatic dust cloth.
- Dust the body of the box with a dry cloth, or clean it with a solution of 1 part neutral-pH cleaner (such as liquid hand soap) to 3 parts water.
Simple SOLUTIONS
TV Dust Magnet? >
To reduce the dust-attracting static electricity on your television's screen, wipe it with an antistatic
dryer sheet such as Bounce.
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