Over time, the surface of the plexiglass becomes covered with scratches, loses its luster, various flaws begin to appear on it, and the reflection in it is significantly distorted. But it is still possible to return the glass to its previous appearance, although the process itself is laborious and rather lengthy. The main thing is to know how to polish plexiglass, be patient and not let the material become completely unusable.
Features of plexiglass
Organic glass is a synthetic polymer composed of thermoplastic resin. It has many other names:
- plexiglass;
- acrylic glass;
- transparent plastic;
- carboglass;
- acryplast, etc.
In Europe, plexiglass has been known since 1933, although it was created back in 1928. At that time, plexiglass found its way into the aviation industry. Its properties, such as transparency, shatterlessness and insensitivity to the effects of aviation gasoline, were excellent for the design of the cockpit.
Domestic plexiglass appeared in 1936, and modern developments made it possible to use its composite versions even for MiG aircraft. What then to say about domestic use plexiglass, which is widely used:
- in interiors;
- when glazing openings and making transparent domes;
- as decorative partitions;
- in the production of shower cabins;
- as a diffuser for fluorescent lamps and decorative elements with illumination;
- for aquariums and molded products.
It is impossible to list all areas of application of Plexiglas, especially in industry. It is released:
- colored;
- transparent;
- matte;
- corrugated.
It is safe to say that plexiglass looks great in any case, has a lot of advantages, but is prone to scuffs and scratches, which can be removed if you learn how to polish plexiglass. With a positive result, it will last for a long time.
How to restore transparency and shine to plexiglass
To begin with, it should be remembered that when polishing organic glass, one should not use highly abrasive compounds, aggressive chemicals and coarse-grained emery skins. All of them will surely lead to tarnishing of the surface and loss of aesthetics.
There are several ways to give plexiglass a second life, each of which has the right to exist. It should be noted that it is most convenient to work with glass that is removed from the structure. In this case, adhesive tape is glued to the ends in such a way that it goes a couple of millimeters onto the main surfaces of the plexiglass.
If it is not possible to remove plexiglass for a number of reasons, then the surfaces of other materials adjacent to it will need to be pasted over with the same adhesive tape. Next, the glass is cleaned of dust and dirt with a piece of soft cloth.
It is important to know that the prepared plexiglass is polished only by hand. Any machine processing leads to its deterioration due to the relatively fast processing.
Option 1
For the process of polishing plexiglass you will need the following materials and tools:
- emery skin - with a grain size of 2000 and 800;
- soft cloth, which can be replaced with felt or felt;
- polishing paste.
Polishing is started using 800 sandpaper and a small amount of water. It is necessary to monitor the accuracy and uniformity of stripping. surface after finishing this stage It turns out matte, but that's how it should be. The main thing is that there are no ruts left. The glass is wiped with a soft cloth and the Plexiglas is processed with a finer sandpaper with a grain size of 2000, as a result of which it becomes more transparent, and scratches disappear on the surface.
Next, a polish in the form of a paste is applied to the plexiglass with a soft cloth, which is offered in a wide range in building supermarkets, and polishing is continued, evenly rubbing the composition over the surface of the glass. The effect of the appearance of glitter on it can be seen after a few seconds.
Option 2
In this case, you will need:
- paste GOI;
- soft cloth, or felt, felt, cotton pads sold in cosmetic departments.
First, the paste is applied to plexiglass and polished using one of the above materials. Then it is processed with a fine skin soaked in water. Plexiglas is also sprayed with water, its surface should not remain dry during operation.
At the final stage, the glass is wiped soft cloth and again processed with GOI paste using felt. This option recommended for polishing old Plexiglas.
Option 3
On the market in a large assortment are colorless car polishes from various manufacturers. They are also suitable for polishing organic glass, but before starting the application process, it is not superfluous to check on a small area of \u200b\u200bplexiglass what the result will be, so that unforeseen situations do not occur.
With a successful check, you can safely apply the polish to the surface, carefully rubbing it with felt. After the end of this stage, it is recommended to grind the plexiglass with machine oil.
There are still quite a few options for polishing plexiglass. Home craftsmen will be able to talk about using a zero skin and a can with a burner, which is unsafe and, if used incorrectly, can lead to glass melting. Some craftsmen advise using self-prepared products, which include tooth powder or paste, wine vinegar or chalk.
But it's not worth the risk - it's better to use long-proven technologies for polishing plexiglass!
POLISHING OF PLUS GLASS AND OTHER PLASTICS
Sometimes, in the manufacture of home-made gizmos from plexiglass and other plastics - various boxes, puzzles and other things - it is required to polish the product. How to do it! P. ANTONOV, Moscow.
Polishing is usually preceded by grinding, which removes gross defects. Grind products with emery bars, sandpaper and coarse abrasive powders.
You need to know that there can be two types of plastics: those that can soften and melt when heated - thermoplastic plastics (plexiglas, polyethylene, nylon) and non-melting - thermosetting plastics (textolite, carbolite, melalite).
When polishing, a very thin layer of plastic is removed. Preliminary (rough) polishing is carried out in a wet or dry way. Wet is more often used for thermoplastics, for mechanical polishing. Plastics are polished with a thick paste prepared from finely ground pumice or tripoli and water. Having finished polishing, the paste is washed off with water and proceed to fine (final) polishing.
For dry polishing, pastes of abrasive powders (pumice, emery, corundum, carborundum, tripolite, chalk, chromium oxide, aluminum oxide, crocus) with various binding additives are usually used: beeswax, wax-like substances (ceresin, paraffin), oleic acid, oil machine, spindle, vaseline. Sometimes, in order to better hold the paste on polishing wheels, 5-7% of rosin is added to it by weight of the waxy component.
Composition of polishing pastes industrial production shown in the table. Such pastes are commercially available. Pasta "Lik" is especially good. It does not use chromium oxide, which has green color, and crystalline alumina. This paste, for example, polishes the plastic keys of accordions and other musical instruments, it does not stain the plastic, it gives a mirror polished surface.
For polishing parts made of thermoplastic plastics, N2 1, 4 and 5 pastes, as well as Lik paste, are recommended, for thermosetting - any of those given in the table.
Polishing pastes are easy to prepare yourself by purchasing the necessary components at hardware stores and chemical stores. Slava”, “Pemoksol”, “Universal Paste”. These must be washed well in large numbers water, let the water settle, drain it, and dry the sediment - pumice powder.
Polishing a surface with large flaws should be started with a coarse paste, then moving on to a finer one. During polishing, the paste softens under the action of heat and is evenly distributed over the surface of the part and the polishing pad or wheel. After polishing, the paste should be washed off with soap and water or gasoline, a soft absorbent cotton swab.
In manual polishing, the paste is applied to the surface of soft felt, flannel and other soft materials, which for convenience can be fixed on a bar made of cork, rubber, foam rubber.
With a large amount of work, it is advisable to use an electric drive, on the shaft of which discs-circles are fixed from several layers of materials such as cloth, twill, flannel, felt - for preliminary polishing and coarse calico, bike, madapolam, muslin - for final polishing. Discs should be moderately resilient, but not hard. Thickness of disks - 60-100 mm.
Grind and polish products by gently pressing them and moving them evenly up and down the disc, avoiding overheating. Thermoplastics are polished at a speed of 1000-1,500 rpm, and thermosetting plastics - up to 2,000 rpm. Thermoplastics require softer polishing materials than thermosets.
During mechanical processing of plexiglass (polymethyl methacrylate) and polystyrene, small cracks called "silver" may appear on the surface. To remove them, after polishing, it is recommended to slowly heat the product in the oven to a temperature of 70-80 ° C, hold it at this temperature for two to four hours, and then gradually cool it to room temperature within 30-60 minutes.
Candidate of Technical Sciences V. IVANOV.
"Science and Life", 7, 1975
- a synthetic polymer material that has all external characteristics inorganic, but in many ways superior to it in physical and chemical properties. Unlike ordinary glass, plexiglass is characterized by increased strength, resistance to moisture, high transparency and light transmission, as well as much lower weight.
However, over time, small chips and scratches appear on its surface, and transparency is significantly reduced. Polishing plexiglass will help restore its original appearance and eliminate defects. You can perform this procedure at home.
How to properly polish plexiglass
It is impossible to polish plexiglass with special tools - this will lead to injury to the surface. For the same reasons, do not use aggressive chemical solutions eg acetone. The best way to return it to its former brilliance - manual polishing with sandpaper, however, there are rules here as well.
The first step is to prepare the material for polishing. To do this, it is best to remove the plexiglass from general design. If this is not possible, the nearest surfaces in contact with Plexiglas must be sealed with adhesive tape to avoid damage.
- We clean the material from dust and dirt with a soft felt cloth or just a cotton pad.
- For the initial polishing, you will need a large sandpaper with a grit of 800, which will remove large flaws and make the surface evenly matte. Important condition: sanding must necessarily take place with the addition of a small amount of water (“dry” polishing will lead to mechanical damage!).
- The next step is grouting with a finer sandpaper with a grit of 2000, which will eliminate deep scratches and pits.
- After the main stage of polishing plexiglass, wipe it dry and apply polishing paste - special remedy to bring back the shine. After uniform rubbing of the paste, the surface gradually acquires its former transparency.
How else can you polish plexiglass?
The polishing method described above is the main one, the most commonly used and the most affordable. But there are other options for updating plexiglass: for example, using GOI jewelry polishing paste. In this case, the paste with the addition of water is applied to the product and rubbed in a circular motion with a soft cloth. The next step is fine polishing. sandpaper(1500 - 2000). At the end, the surface is again treated with paste and wiped dry.
Another affordable way renovation of plexiglass at home - processing with auto polish. The agent is applied to the prepared surface and rubbed with uniform efforts. Save the result will help finishing machine oil.
As you can see, it is not so difficult to return the attractive appearance of plexiglass manually - you just need to decide on the method of polishing. At proper care and timely polishing, plexiglass will retain its transparency and original brilliance for a long time.
Plexiglas is strong and reliable material. Despite this, during operation, small scratches or chips, abrasions may appear on the surface. This is obtained as a result of mechanical action. Do not despair if some product in your home made of plexiglass has lost its original appearance. You just need to polish desired part, and it will again become beautiful and transparent.
The polishing procedure is generally simple, but at the same time it is very meticulous. To polish plexiglass at home, you will need to devote a lot of time to this work, patience and endurance will be required from you.
What you need
To grind acrylic without the involvement of professionals, you need to understand the features of this process. Polishing plexiglass at home is quite real. With manual polishing, you can achieve a better result than with special equipment, this is justified by the fact that the material heats up very quickly, therefore, it begins to melt.
So, you will need:
- Masking tape. It is paper, not clerical, that is needed;
- Paper;
- Special polishing paste;
- Sandpaper. Size 800 will be required, as well as for final processing — 2000;
- A piece of soft matter;
- Blade or knife.
Having prepared the listed materials, you can polish your favorite plexiglass model boat or other products made from this material.
Preparing for polishing
Asking the question - how to polish plexiglass with your own hands, you must first prepare everything necessary materials and only then proceed directly to the process. Carefully polishing the plexiglass part will not work if you do not remove it from the overall product. When you get it necessary element, glue its edges with adhesive tape. This is necessary to prevent the possibility of chipping, other damage. If the element cannot be removed, it will be necessary to work very carefully, also pasting the edges with tape first.
polishing process
After you prepare the part for processing, namely, remove it from the general product and glue its edges with adhesive tape, you can start the polishing process. To get started, take a sandpaper with a size of 800 and start processing the Plexiglas plane with it, add a little water.
The whole process must be smooth and even. Do not overdo it in some places. You need to remove approximately the same thickness of material from the entire surface. When the sanding is done, wipe the surface, see what you have learned.
You should see a cloudy Plexiglas surface. This is quite normal, this is exactly the effect you were trying to achieve. It is only important that the glass is frosted evenly, otherwise repeat your steps. There should not be any flaws on the surface.
When the surface has become uniformly matte, you can proceed to the next step. Polishing of plexiglass parts continues with sandpaper with a size of 2000. As a result of your actions, the acrylic will gradually become transparent again. At the end of the work, there should be no scratches or scuffs on the entire surface. When you achieve the desired result, wipe the surface.
Now it's time to use the polishing paste. It will take quite a bit. Apply the paste to the prepared cloth and continue the sanding process. With careful and measured movements, turn a damaged plexiglass part into perfect surface. Very soon you will see a shine on the surface, the polished element will become like new.
At this stage, carefully consider whether you have processed the acrylic well, there should not be any flaws on it. If you find them, repeat the described process again. If you have achieved the desired result, you can remove the tape, use the blade. The edges of the part may need to be sanded. Use the described method.
Now you know how to properly polish plexiglass products using sandpaper and polishing paste.
Polishing with GOI paste
We will describe the process of polishing an acrylic product with GOI paste and felt. If you didn’t find felt, it can be replaced by a piece of felt boots, it can also be an ordinary woolen insole or even cotton wool available in every home.
Polishing is as follows: it is necessary to apply GOI paste on the surface of the material being processed, and using one of the listed materials, it is necessary to process the surface in circular motions until the desired result is achieved.
If the surface is very badly scratched, most likely you will also have to use the sandpaper, as in the previous method. Field of work with sandpaper, polish the surface with GOI paste to a flawless shine.
Plexiglas is a unique material that does not lose its appearance for a long time and can serve for many years. Despite this, during operation it is quite long time, plexiglass may still become cloudy or on its surface, depending on the method of operation, scratches may appear, which may be deep or shallow, but they will still spoil the appearance of the product. If this happened to you, and the plexiglass product is no longer as bright and transparent as before, you should not be upset, because you can polish the plexiglass yourself at home.
You can give the product its original look, and for this you do not have to go to a specialized workshop, or buy expensive tools, to polish plexiglass at home, you will need some things that you most likely have in your home, or you can purchase them, because they are not expensive.
Before you start polishing plexiglass, you need to understand that this process will require a lot of time from you, because this process is quite laborious. Do not use any chemicals to treat the surface of Plexiglas, as this action may lead to clouding of the material, which is completely undesirable.
The process of polishing plexiglass at home
For polishing, you need two things, this is GOI paste and a small piece of felt. It is necessary to apply a small amount of GOI paste on a piece of felt, and then proceed to rub this paste into the surface of the Plexiglas product that needs to be polished. Polish in this way for so long until a shine appears on the entire surface of the polished product.
There is also another way to polish plexiglass at home. Take waterproof sandpaper, and start polishing the plexiglass surface with it, periodically wetting it. After that, it is necessary to continue polishing the plexiglass using felt and GOI paste. This method is suitable for products on the surface of which there are large scratches.
There is another way, but it will take some work skills to complete it. First of all, polish the surface with an emery zero, you need to polish it well. After that, take a spray can with a burner, and proceed to carefully singe the entire surface of the plexiglass. Be careful and do not linger in one area for a long time, otherwise you will burn the product.
