Care For Your Driftwood Sculpture
Although your new sculpture has weathered wood and originated in the elements, special care is still needed. Driftwood is brittle and quite fragile. Optimum conditions for a long lasting driftwood sculpture would be a dry, indoor area. Longevity is not guaranteed when sculptures are displayed outdoors.
- Display your sculpture on a level surface. All sculptures are built to balance perfectly on level ground.
- When placing sculptures outdoors avoid high wind areas.
- Only move your sculpture when it is absolutely necessary. Always have help lifting it regardless of how light it may seem. Any amount of twisting can cause cracking and breakage. Never drag sculpture on floor to adjust position, small pieces of driftwood can catch and break, always lift.
- When assembling or dissembling multi-part sculptures, always have help to balance all the pieces. Sculptures may tip, for example; if one wing is removed and the other is still intact.
- Always lift your sculpture by the bottom or main body. Never lift by any appendages.
- Never move your sculpture when it is wet. The wood becomes soft, even if damp.
- Store your sculpture in a dry indoor area for the winter. Snow and excessively low temperatures will damage wood.
- Keep your sculpture up off the grass using small blocks of wood. This reduces rot and allows air to move under the structure.
- All the wood in the sculptures are untreated. It is strongly advised to treat your sculpture with a wood sealer and preservative combination, every year, depending on if the location in which it is displayed, is damp or outdoors. One recommended product: Linseed Oil. Put in a spray bottle and douse generously, even try to spray underneath and inside. Sculpture may have a wet look for a couple weeks.
- Even over a short time you can expect wood to shift, shrink, twist, and screws will loosen. Check your sculpture occasionally for loose pieces and damage. When the wood does loosen, break or crack, use a small amount of white “Gorilla Glue”. This glue is extremely strong and lasts in the rain. If the repair requires screwing the wood together, a pilot hole must be drilled first before the screw can be inserted.
- Feathers on indoor sculptures that have become bent or damaged can be repaired by applying steam.
Final note:
Please remember, THIS IS ART! My work does look lovely in outdoor areas, and enhances landscaping, however, wood and glue are very unpredictable mediums when exposed to the elements. Mother Nature enjoys blasting it with all her being. One of the major challenges is to try to make your sculpture withstand these elements. Just look around at decking and fences, the wood twists, shrinks, cracks, rots, fades, grays, screws loosen, and pieces break off. Expect the same from your sculpture if displayed outdoors. Also, depending on sun exposure and rain acidity, glue used in sculptures can also change colour. Be diligent with your water sealant treatments, store sculpture away before low temperatures set in, display in a wind protected area. And, most of all, expect these changes in your sculpture if you plan to display it outdoors.
Please remember, THIS IS ART! My work does look lovely in outdoor areas, and enhances landscaping, however, wood and glue are very unpredictable mediums when exposed to the elements. Mother Nature enjoys blasting it with all her being. One of the major challenges is to try to make your sculpture withstand these elements. Just look around at decking and fences, the wood twists, shrinks, cracks, rots, fades, grays, screws loosen, and pieces break off. Expect the same from your sculpture if displayed outdoors. Also, depending on sun exposure and rain acidity, glue used in sculptures can also change colour. Be diligent with your water sealant treatments, store sculpture away before low temperatures set in, display in a wind protected area. And, most of all, expect these changes in your sculpture if you plan to display it outdoors.
