Bisque pottery.

Hi all,
Can anyone tell me if its ok to immerse Bisque in hot water?
I have doubts about doing it as its unglazed but I need to get off some very old glue that has gone brown.

 

Try a Magic Eraser. That works really well on bisque. Mind you, I immerse the stuff all the time.

 

Thank you.
It's a Victorian figurine under a dome and her face and bonnet has been broken and stuck back together way back so I'm thinking to get the old glue off and glue it afresh.
I googled but didn't find anything on it.

 

Hi,
I soak bisque all of the time also. If fact all of my Wedgwood pieces go into the dishwasher at least twice a year, even my antique pieces.
greg

 

Thanks Greg, So really hot water won't hurt then?

 

I'm even worse.
I use 50/50 ammonia and water on my bisque/Wedgwood with a soft toothbrush to get all the old dirt out. Spray on with spray bottle. Afterwards, I soap up with Dawn, also with a toothbrush, then rinse in warm water, let stand to dry. The pieces come out beautifully.

 

It sounds pretty hardy then

 

If you think about it, they're fired REALLY high. It's not heat that hurts a thing, it's thermal shock. And this stuff was made in an age when washing up was done with caustic soda.

 

Thats true....

 

Hi,
I used to be afraid to wash my bisque. Then I saw an article by a well known Wedgwood collector that said that they always did the Wedgwood collections in the dishwasher. I always soaked new pieces to my collection in ammonia and soapy water to get them clean like Cluttered Closet. They are tough!!!!
greg

 

Thank you...
I made a start on it and the glue is coming off fairly easily.

Not looking forward to putting all the bits back together though

 

Hi Poisonivy,
You will start to think better about it once it starts to come together.
greg

 

Yes
I'll put before and after photos in here when its done .

 

I'm so glad to hear this! I have some old jasperware and will try this on it.

I also have jasperware set into jewelry, but will not try it on that. Unless you think it's a good idea.

 

Ok I finished it and putting in the before and after photos.
I'm really happy with this, I took it to bits, cleaned the pieces and then stuck it back together (thank goodness I took lots of photos as there were lots of pieces)
The dome was stuck together with old clear sticky tape which was a nightmare to get off.

I gave her a little silk choker to hide the damage on the neck.

 

That's looking pretty darn nice!!! I see some flaking at the bottom....on the base... are you finished???

 

Thank you, It does doesn't it.......
Yes I'm finished with it, I thought I would leave the base as it is as I quite like it that way.
The damage to the back of the bonnet is hidden by the foliage and her face went together with barely a trace of the break.
The neck didn't look good so thats why the ribbon

 

Hi,
Really nice job of cleaning her up!!! Glad they they did not just toss her when she broke originally. My In-laws had five old figurines bought when their kids were born
back in the 50s. The heads were knocked off and reglued with the thick brown crap.
They were going to toss them. I just soaked them and reglued them. They look great from a distance but up close. Anyway they were amazed at the difference.
greg

 

Yes I said the same thing that they would normally just throw them.
I love it even with all the damage and it was really cheap

 

I wouldn't soak it. Spray with 50/50, drop in a small bowl of Dawn and lukewarm water. Swish around. If it looks like it didn't clean up enough, use the soft toothbrush. Rinse in lukewarm water and let stand to dry.

You want to do this quickly, as you don't want to loosen any glue that might be holding the jasperware in place.