The Right Way to Clean and Maintain Your Giant Globe Lights

Spherical or globe lights are like magic eyes at your homes. They are always alluring and twinkling even when not lit. Look again at them, and they will look back at you.

This marvel of globe lights technology has become a must-décor for every household. Whether these light fixtures are inside or outside, they are solar or electric, all radiate life, and all need cleaning.

These lightings have an uncanny relation to cleaning for achieving their delightful glory. However, many will ask, how to clean these globe lights?

Here we are presenting you with the right ways to clean and maintain your giant globe lights.

Tools and Equipment for Cleaning

You will need the following tools and equipment for cleaning chandeliers, pendant-base globe lights, other globe lights, whether solar or electric, indoors or outdoors lights.

• Star or wedge-screw driver
• Gloves
• Ladder
• Distilled vinegar in a spray bottle
• A blanket, towel
• Microfiber cloth or cotton rags

For the kitchen globe lights, you will need the following additional detergents to clean them.

• A surgical spirit or rubbing alcohol (optional)
• Baking soda and dish liquid
  
  

We will share with you the tips and tricks for cleaning chandeliers, kitchen globe lights, other globe lights inside or outside your premises, and solar lights.

Cleaning Chandeliers and/or Globe-fitted Pendant Lights

For a chandelier, it's always safe to have some pictures from different angles on your smartphone. These images will help you place the crystal or glass pieces in the right places. The same tip works for pendant lights if they have globes or spherical lights.

Safety measures

• Turn off the light fixture and let its bulbs completely cool.
• Spread a soft, folded blanket under the chandelier or pendant light area. This is a preventive step to ensure safety if any pieces fall.
• Don't forget to lay a set of towels nearby so you can easily place the chandelier's crystals, globes, etc.
• Wear gloves to prevent any electric or detergent hazards.

Cleaning process

• Put your ladder appropriately so you can reach your lighting fixture/points.
• Select the right screwdriver for removing screws or other hardware.
• Remove any thick and very visible dust layer by wiping crystals or globe using a microfiber cloth.
• If screws are of different sizes, note down which screw is for what part.
• Now, you have removed the chandelier or pendant-fitted globe light.
• Take 1 part of vinegar, 3 parts water. Mix them in a spray bottle.
• Now get your gloves on and spritz clean microfiber cloth with the solution.
• Rub this solution gently to wipe the crystal or globe.
• Use a dry microfiber cloth to clear off any remaining solution and to buff its streaks.
• Use dry microfiber to remove dust from the metallic part.
• You can use washing liquid if the stain doesn't come off easily.
• You can also opt to leave these lighting fixtures in a bucket full of vinegar and water liquid for longer if stains or dust persists.
• Once dry, replace the chandelier or globe in their right sockets.
• Run a power check if all lights illuminate as they were glowing earlier.

Do not

• Place your ladder on the blanket, as it can make it wobble.
• Use harsh detergents or abrasive cleaners; they can make it look dull and greasy.

If you can do this cleaning exercise twice a year, you will add life to your lighting fixtures and keep your home bright for a long. Moreover, for better results, you can contact professional cleaners.

Clean your Kitchen's Glass Shades or Pendant Globe Lights

Kitchen globe lights can give you a low radiant light due to a mixture of grease, soot, smoke, and dust. This lowers your energy levels.

A kitchen is a place where you will find the globe light cleaning process slightly different from the rest of the globe cleaning process. However, the usual safety measures, cleaning tools, and equipment are the same.

Cleaning process

• Turn off the lights. Let bulbs cool down.
• Erect your stepladder appropriately closer to the globe light area.
• Lay a towel underneath the light area. This will make flying particles fall on it and save your extra cleaning effort.
• Get the right screwdriver to remove screws from their places.
• Before unscrewing, remove very obvious dust particles from the lights with a microfiber cloth.
• Carefully remove the globe and place them on the towel underneath. You can ask a helping hand from any of your family members for placing the globes on a towel.
• Once unfixing of globe light or their base or pendant plate is off the hinges put them on a towel.
• First, you may wipe the glass part with the cloth, damped with water or vinegar.
• Use surgical spirit with a paper towel to reach deep inside the crevices.
• For greasy patches or spots, use a mixture of baking and dish liquids.
• Apply this mixture with a cloth and remove any remains of grease, soot, or other hard particles.
• You can opt to use surgical spirit.
• Leave it on for some time and then again use a dry microfiber cloth to clean and shine the surface, inside and outside to get a glittering globe light.
• Repeat this process on the metallic part of the pendant or base plate.
• Dip the screws in liquid for some time and wipe them clean using a microfiber cloth.
• If the greasy part remains sticky or gets evenly spread around, then leave this globe dipped in the liquid of washing liquid and surgical spirit.

This will get you a clean globe light.

You can repeat this kitchen light cleaning process 3 or 4 times a year to get sparkling, clear lights in your kitchen. Maybe you can get good cooking results under better lights. Try it.

The usual safety measures and DO

Clean your Outdoor Globes Lights

Outdoor globe lighting is the face of your house and reflects your fashion taste. Thus, it is equally important and hard to ignore their regular cleaning.

Additional things you will need to clean outdoor globe lights

• Buckets
• Cotton Rags and sponge
• Hot or mild-warm water
• Window Glass cleaner
• Metal polish (if applicable)
• Heavy stepladder
• Wrench, Spanners (if applicable)
• Soft Brush

Precautions

Outdoor light fixtures, if clean, are attractive and give clear light. The thumb rule says to clean these outdoor globe lights twice a year to prevent their rusting. It also saves them from getting yellow from moisture, exposure to sunlight, and rains or snowfall.

Moreover, the following checks are important for consideration before cleaning your outdoor light fixtures.

• Properly check and ensure all light switches are OFF; better turn off the circuit breaker controlling outdoor lights.
• Secure a heavy stepladder near light fixtures you cannot reach easily.
• Take out globes, protective grills, or shields using the right tools like a wrench, screwdriver, and spanners if applicable.

Cleaning Process

• Fill two large buckets with warm water and add dish soap. Stir the water until you get bubbles.
• Put the globe, shield, or grill in a bucket.
• Dip your cotton rag or sponge on another bucket; let them get wet deep with the liquid.
• Pour this liquid on light globes, shields, and/or grills.
• Let the liquid do its job; after some time, use rags to remove the dust, dirt, and grease from these light fixtures.
• Now rinse the fixed or non-removable fixtures with liquid. Wipe them and remove dirt with rags.
• You can use a soft brush to remove the dirt particles if they stay on. However, dip the brush in the liquid as well to make it work effectively.
• Once the washing and cleaning part is complete. Let the light fixtures get dry.
• Once all fixtures are completely dry, you can apply polish or wax on metal parts. This will give them a new lease of life, and they will shine more, and last long.
• You can use glass cleaner to clean glass globes, etc.
• Wipe the light bulbs carefully with damp rags.
• Now you can replace the light fixtures, grills, shades, globes.

Once the cleaning part is over and you've installed the lights, globes in their places. You may turn on the circuit breaker and check if all lights are back on and working in a more glittering fashion. Cleaning works!

Do not

• Use detergents on bronze and copper fixtures. Wipe them with a damp cloth.
• Remove glasses from light cases that have multiple glasses on each side. Instead, remove the casing first, and then remove the glasses individually for better cleaning.

Some lighting systems use lenses to enhance the lighting capacity. That needs extra care while cleaning. Thus, use a sponge or soft brushes to clean them.

Outdoor lights get Yellow or Pale

Outdoor lights, particularly the globe light are more prone to getting yellow under sunshine. Apply polish on them and carefully buff them with cotton rags only. Let the polish dry and then again use cotton rags to make them emit a shining light.

How to Clean Outdoor Solar Globe Lights

As the name suggests, a solar globe light or a solar panel is a permanent outdoor lighting fixture. It has carved a niche for itself without parallels. These fixtures always remain under sunlight to keep glowing.

A solar light or panel cleaned once a year will yield 3.5% more electricity. It will generate 5.1% more electricity if you clean it twice a year. Such is the impact of cleaning your solar lights.

Solar lights are there to illuminate your gardens, lawns, backyards, surrounding pathways, pools, etc. Their significance is growing every year for their cost-effectiveness and convenience for their application. Needless to emphasize cleaning these solar lights will get you a bright environment, better light and keep you doing your chores with minimal strain on your budget.

Solar lights remain under the sun, and other weather like rain, snow, storm, etc., effectively reduces their performance. Their appropriate and timely cleaning is key to prolong their outdoor life and performance.

Solar lighting fixtures, panels, globes, bulbs are prone to attracting dirt, dust, loose debris, etc., more quickly than other lighting fixtures. Hence, they need more frequent cleaning.

You need the following things to clean your solar lights or solar globe lights:

• Soft bristle brush
• Single bucket with warm water
• Absorbent (towel or thick cotton rags)
  
  

Remember that solar lighting fixtures have three parts for cleaning with care.

1. Globe or Light Cover
2. Solar Panel
3. Battery Unit
   
   

Solar light globe or covers usually get cloudy. They are easy to clean; just apply a little quantity of toothpaste or a vehicle's head-beam restorer liquid. You may just rinse it well and then wipe off the paste gently with a cotton rag or absorbent.

Solar panels have a visible, see-through, clear plastic cover. They absorb dust and dirt, moisture which lowers their charging capacity. Thus give very pale, dull, and yellow light, putting the surrounding area in the near dark.

Apply dish liquid or soap with a damp cloth. You may use the soft brush to clear the dust particle from its screw groves, hinges, etc.

Dry it with an absorbent or cotton rags; this cleaning will give your solar panel maximum efficiency.

Battery Units attract moisture which can oxidize battery units and put subsequent output at minimal. These units come with a waterproof gasket; hence, you must ensure it remains intact while reassembling the battery unit.

Remove the battery leads and clean their terminals with a soft brush, cleaning vinegar liquid and dry them with dry cotton rags. Don't use absorbent which may lead to moisture and it takes longer for drying.

Besides the above, wipe off the loose debris from globes, bulbs with a slightly damp rag. Clean your solar panel batteries monthly, as this will give an additional performance boost to your solar lightings and its fixtures.

For all solar lights, panels you will receive a cleaning manual or directions from the manufacturers. As different lights, globe lights may have alternate cleaning requirements.

Do not

• Run tap water directly on a panel, as this may lead the water to internal electronics and it can ruin your solar panel or a short circuit later on.
• Use abrasive on solar panels, as this can haste their rusting process.
• Leave solar lighting and their fixtures unattended over 2 months.

You can clean your solar fixtures once a month, and a thorough introspective cleaning 2 or 3 times a year.

Conclusive Remarks

It doesn't matter how long you clean your solar or other lights. It's a small light cleaning effort that can spring fashion, delicacy, and exuberance in your surroundings.

Globe lights or chandeliers or solar lights, all give you long-term services. You can enhance their performance through proper and regular cleaning. This will keep their utility up to the maximum. That's how you can enjoy the globe lighting. check out our online bedroom ceiling lights guide.

References

https://www.merrymaids.com/cleaning-tips/quick-tips/how-to-clean-light-fixtures/
https://www.housetweaking.com/2015/01/20/how-i-clean-the-globe-lights/
https://www.chrislovesjulia.com/keep-glass-globe-lights-clean-scratch-free-offer-grove-collaborative/
https://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-clean-glass-pendant-shades-268193
https://lightingdistinctions.com/how-to-clean-outdoor-light-fixtures/
https://www.literoflightusa.org/how-to-clean-solar-panels-on-garden-lights/