Our latest restoration work at Santa Monica's Woodlawn Cemetery is the beautiful "California Springtime" window. This window was installed in the mausoleum in 1927. It is comprised of 9 separate panels installed in steel T bar 3 panels wide and 3 high, and is 6' wide and 11 feet tall. Some time ago the window was dual glazed with 1/4" plexiglass on the exterior. The exterior glazing had become very hazed over the years, and after we finished the restoration we installed 1/4" tempered glass as a protective layer.
Our restoration process began with removing the individual panel, boarding up the opening with plywood, and transporting them to our studio in Santa Monica. Once in the studio we soaked the panels in water to soften up the putty. The next step was to disassemble the panels and clean them.
cracked glass Glass showing half cleaned with Kaboom
In all there were about 65 broken pieces that had to be replaced. These were color, and texture matched, painted and fired. The painting work done by our glass painting artist(Mary Orrell) was unbelievable, but standard work for Mary. Even to a trained eye you couldn't tell the difference between the original and painted pieces. One difficulty we had was in cleaning the glass. At first, as recommended by the Department of Interior Guideline, we used clear water. When that had no affect we went to ionized detergent which also had no affect. Next we went to paint thinner, and alcohol, Nada. So after serious thought, we tested a small spot with "Kaboom" the bathroom shower cleaner. Kaboom removes scaling and water stained. After 90 years, and decomposing bodies, there was a very heavy oxidation build up on the interior of the windows. Originally, before there was air conditioning in the mausoleum, ventilation was provided by open decorative concrete screens, which opened to the outside. Of course being near the ocean didn't help the situation very much. Well, "Kaboom" really did the job. It removed the oxidation fairly easily, and left us with a very translucent painted glossy glass. We originally thought that the glass was more opaque and flat rather than glossy. It is amazing how beautiful the window is.
After we cleaned the old glass, and had the replacement pieces we leaded up the panels and installed. Then, of course, we installed the 1/4" protective tempered glass. I'm sure you will agree that this is a very special window.
We are anxious to continue on with the remained of these beautiful historic windows.
