The Energon Pub

News Credits: 22 · by **Rodimus Prime** » Wed Apr 02, 2014 2:47 am

What are some good and effective ways to clean openly displayed figures which collect dust over time? Most of my figures are covered from dust, but I have a few in the open, and they're staying to gather dust. It's been a while since I cleaned them, and it's getting bad. :-(

Sometimes I don't have the time and/or patience to take each one and clean it thoroughly with cloth. Does a can of air work? Or a small fine brush? Any other methods you use?

News Credits: 9 · by **Mykltron** » Wed Apr 02, 2014 4:05 am

A doubt a can of air would be effective by itself.

I blow on them while brushing them with a thinnish paint brush. It's not totally effective as the moisture in the atmosphere means that some dust actually sticks and needs to be scraped off. One can see that the smooth flat surfaces are still covered in dust after brushing. A damp cloth is the way to remove that.

News Credits: 22 · by **Rodimus Prime** » Wed Apr 02, 2014 9:27 am

Mykltron wrote:A doubt a can of air would be effective by itself.

I meant a pressurized can of air, the same used to clean keyboards.

One can see that the smooth flat surfaces are still covered in dust after brushing. A damp cloth is the way to remove that.

That's what I do now, I was just wondering if there were just as effective yet easier methods, perhaps ones that don't involve having to move the figure.

News Credits: 12 · by **GuyIncognito** » Wed Apr 02, 2014 9:55 am

Clean dry cloth for large surfaces, Q-tips for crevices and small spaces, pressurized air for the places Q-tips can't reach.

News Credits: 461 · by **mooncake623** » Wed Apr 02, 2014 10:01 am

Do what this idi.. I mean guy does.

by **Arucard** » Wed Apr 02, 2014 9:22 pm

I used to have mine open on a shelf. I've just moved house, and over 3-4 weeks, put them all into a 3m long, 2m high glass-fronted IKEA BESTA display case (pictures ni the collections forum soon). The reason it took so long was needing to transform everthing to robot mode, that had been stored in boxes, and cleaning as much dust as I could off of every one to give them a clean start. Not a quick process.

Back when they stayed in the open, once every 6 months or so, I'd take them down, take each one outside, blow off what I could with my mouth, then use a brush attachment on a vacuum for everything that didn't have stickers it could lose. Accessories went into a sink of water. It didn't get everything, but made a huge improvement.

This time, I did the blowey, but used tissues to wipe off what I could after, and cotton-tips to get into the crevices. I found ones with different-shaped ends that worked well, something like these: http://www.alvabeauty.com/store/Alva-Ro ... s_p962.htm

Just moisten the tips, and they'll pick up a lot of dust.

News Credits: 9 · by **Mykltron** » Thu Apr 03, 2014 5:44 am

Moist Q tips sounds like the best plan.

News Credits: 127 · by **Counterpunch** » Fri Apr 04, 2014 11:17 pm

I've been doing this of late, going back and cleaning older figures.

I use a combination of Q-tips and a soft toothbrush. Works well.

I'd avoid wetting brushes where possible. Wet dust that doesn't come off at first becomes grime. :/

News Credits: 33 · by **Amelie** » Sat Apr 05, 2014 4:29 am

I use a natural fiber artists paintbrush and lightly dust it off. Nothing too small, but not too large, either.

by **VioMeTriX** » Sat Apr 05, 2014 6:25 am

after your figures are all clean by some of the methods above, you can then do a weekly cleaning with a Swiffer... it pulls the new dust off and keeps things easy to clean. by spending a little time with the Swiffer each week, major cleanings are no longer needed.

by **thedistinctroom** » Tue Apr 08, 2014 9:49 pm

Q-Tips and blowing the dust away. That's my method.

by **Arucard** » Wed Apr 09, 2014 8:20 am

https://redmart.com/product/swisspers-d ... metic-tips

These are exactly what I used.

News Credits: 33 · by **Amelie** » Wed Apr 09, 2014 9:14 am

If you're going to take a trip down the cosmetics isle - you're better off just getting a large powder brush.

by **Arucard** » Wed Apr 09, 2014 6:57 pm

Depends on whether you have loose dust, or caked on grime type dust. I had to deal with the second on some of my older figures, and even on newer ones, there are still crevices you need something thin to get into.

by **MGrotusque** » Wed Apr 09, 2014 10:14 pm

I use Q tips and rubbing alcohol. It's thorough and you would be surprised how grimey they actually get when dust mixed with humidity, over time, clinges to the figure.

Blowing them off doesn't really cut it. My Q tips get black when cleaning my figs that i haven't touched i a while.

News Credits: 9 · by **Mykltron** » Thu Apr 10, 2014 5:17 am

Soft brushes only work on fresh dust. The humidity in the air makes old dust stick really well. Even some of my RotF figures need more that a soft brush!

A toothbrush is effective but I think it will cause damage eventually, after all, one can tell when cars have gone through auto car washes from all the tiny scratches.

Q tips, cloths and soft paint brushes (probably cheaper than cosmetic brushes) used in combination seem like the best plan to me.

News Credits: 16 · by **It Is Him** » Fri Apr 11, 2014 11:10 pm

And here I am using my tongue to clean all those surfaces.You guys have the best advice.

My Ikea Billy bookcases and glass doors keeps the dust from getting too thick. Occasionally Ill lightly clean surfaces with a swiffer. That seems to do the trick

by **Arucard** » Sun Apr 13, 2014 7:09 pm

And don't be tempted to throw them in a dishwasher or washing machine to let it do all the hard work for you.

News Credits: 38 · by **Sunstar** » Sun Apr 13, 2014 10:47 pm

I do not have great extractors in my kitchen so I get this weird oily grime, this is a pain in the rumpus. However I usually use a gentle soap and Q-tips. I also use a makeup brush (blush) to dust off the figures. these are very gentle. In order to reduce the oil-grime issue I moved them into my bedroom and have doors closed.