One area of the home cleaning regime which often gets forgotten is the lampshades. It’s important that these fittings or shades are cleaned regularly to get the best results in terms of lighting performance. Lampshades need to be cleaned in a certain way depending on the material out of which the shade is made.
Before cleaning any light shade or fitting it’s imperative that the electrical supply is turned OFF.
Cleaning glass lamp shades
It’s always easier to remove lamp shades from the electrical fitting before cleaning. Usually this will mean removing the bulb/lamp and then removing the plastic screw cap holding the fitting in place. When the fitting its removed it can be cleaned.
It’s important to determine what materials the glass shade is made from. If the shade contains metal parts such as in a stained glass shade, it may be adversely affected by excess water and may even rust. Because of this we always recommend wiping the shade over with a damp sponge and then drying it completely using a soft cloth instead of submerging a shade into water to remove the dirt and grime. If the shade is entirely made of glass it can be washed in a sink of mild detergent making the cleaning process much easier.
The shade should be totally dry before it is refitted to the lampstand or ceiling fitting. In the next article we’ll discuss how to clean fabric shades.
