1942 Canadian syrup crate...do you clean your crates?

[Canadacan]

I hope posting this here is ok seeing that it's soda related I picked this beauty up on Saturday night, It's a 1942 Canadian syrup crate. It has the older style script with the Trademark Registered in the tail of the C...I believe they updated the script font in around 1945 and also removed the Trademark out of the tail. I have never seen this style of crate printing in 28+ years of collecting!

Well I wanted to know if anyone has or does clean their soda crates when deemed it may be beneficial? This crate has white spatters on the one side that seem like they will come off, and overall just a lot of grubby dirt. Would it devalue it to clean it.. what would you do?



This is a comparison of the script style 1942 vs 1967

 

[jblaylock]

I would not clean it. I think it would be ok to try and get the white stuff off, but I wouldn't use any cleaner products on it.

 

[carling]

I have 75+ crates, most I picked up were filthy. I simply hose them off to get rid of the excess dirt, and its never hurt a one.

To remove the tougher dirt the hose won't spray off, I'll use a sopping wet large sponge and gently wipe them down. Be careful, you don't want to wipe too hard or too much on the painted lettering, just enough to wipe off the remaining dirt.

In my experience, black paint lettering can generally be sponge wiped without damaging it. Again, I never wipe it too hard, or too much.

But I find the red paint is not always so sturdy. There were times when I'd gently wipe the red, and then see red on my sponge (I've never seen black on my sponge). So now I first test a small spot in the red with a wet paper towel to see if any red ends up on the paper towel. If it does, I won't touch the red lettering.

Anybody know why this is? Is it the same reason why red acl's on bottles seem to not hold up as well as white acl's?

Anyway, I assume the white splatters on your crate is splattered paint. Hopefully someone will respond with a good way to remove them without leaving chemical stains on the wood. Pretty sure any white splatters on your red/black paint, if removed, will also remove the red/black paint underneath.

Good luck, and nice crate!

 

[iggyworf]

Beautiful crate! That hose method sounds good to me. Or just use a dry rag to try and rub off dirt & debris. I would be against using a chemical based cleaner on it, but if someone knows more hopefully they will chime in.

 

[Canadacan]

Yea the sponge approach seems to be the way to go, chemicals may ruin the lettering I suppose, what about a mild solution of Dawn dish soap?
I would think the problem with the red paint is from being oxidized.
Yes I'm pretty sure the white spatters are paint. I have a couple of other crates but never cleaned them because they are fairly clean but this one just seems to have a layer of grime.
Thanks for the compliments and comments fellas!

 

[Canadacan]

So I took a chance and tried cleaning one bottom section on the side with the white spatters. I used a soft tooth brush to very gently agitate the spots and they seem to be diminished by about 50%.
The next section will require extra care. I decided not to go with the hose method but rather a small container of water to dip the tooth brush into and paper towel to wipe down the muck.

 

[iggyworf]

Looks good! Hope to see it when you get it all done. I have about 5-8 wooden crates also, but never thought of really scrubbing them. You have opened my eyes about them. Thanx!

 

[Canadacan]

Thanks iggy!.... well this is the first side done, I used a tiny drop of Dawn dish soap in a small container with warm water, I would use extreme caution around any letting and would say I did not scrub but rather gently agitated in the direction of the grain...and so very light with pressure on any letters...in fact the less you touch them the better!, and used paper towel to blot up the dirt as you go. Oh and I used a soft tooth brush...not a medium.
I think over all It came out good...I'm happy with the results.

Before and after.

 

[carling]

Very nice!

 

[Canadacan]

Very nice!

Thanks carling!....and thank you for the invaluable tips on making sure the paint stays where you want it!...now to tackle the good side.
cheers, Ivan