Crystal chandeliers have come a long way from the days as traditional, stately pieces only enjoyed in the most formal of spaces and positioned to impress guests in the dining room or the foyer. CrystalÂ’s are found in various lighting applications of all shapes and sizes and their sparkling, elegant affect is energizing areas of the home from powder room and office to kitchen and bath.

More crystal means more cleaning, but it does not have to be too taxing. A few simple guidelines will help to keep your crystal chandeliers looking their best.

How to clean it

If you do not wish to remove the crystal components from the piece, you can use a spray. After the piece is sprayed, wipe off the solution with white cotton gloves. Crystal chandelier manufacturer Schonbek recommends a solution of one part isopropyl alcohol to three parts distilled water, while Waterford’’s chief lighting designer Billy Canning says hot soapy water will do the trick. Both agree that special cleaning formulas aren’’t needed.

“A real no-no in the area of cleaning chandeliers: …If the chandelier is adorned with a traditional polished gold finish or polished silver finish but it i’s not stainless steel, people will use these sprays that you can buy,” says Eileen Schonbek Beer, Creative Director for Schonbek Worldwide Lighting. “Basically, what the manufacturers say is you spray the chandelier and let the stuff drip off, that cleans the crystal. But in fact what it does is ruin the frames of the chandelier.”

If more aggressive cleaning is needed, the crystal parts will need to be removed from the frame. The crystals can then be hand-washed in soapy water, rinsed clean and dried with a cloth. Schonbek provides trim diagrams that detail reassembly of the chandelier.

For dusting between cleanings, Schonbek recommends using a feather duster, lambswool duster or a make-up brush.

How often to clean it

In general, crystal should be cleaned every two to six months. The frequency of cleaning required depends on where it is used and how easy it is to get to the piece.  According to Canning, extremely large pieces like 20-foot chandeliers can get away with being cleaned only once a year.

Since crystal lighting is being featured in virtually every room of the house these days, some pieces may need more frequent cleanings based on their location. Chandeliers used in kitchens will need more detailed cleaning due to oil and grease buildup, as well as dust sticking to the components due to moisture from sinks and stoves.

“The beauty of crystal, of course, is the prismatic refraction of the light passing through the crystal ornament,” says Beer. “So the minute it’s got any kind of residue of dust or even moisture — like in moist climates in Florida — the humidity will cause dust to adhere to the crystal and the salt in the air will kind of make it cloudy. So you actually have to clean crystal pretty regularly.”

Maintaining a regular cleaning schedule for crystal will always keep it sparkling. Yet if a piece is neglected, all it takes is a little extra effort with the methods listed above to make it shine like new.

“In my personal experience, I have been asked by many auction houses to identify Waterford products many times,” says Canning. “In most cases the difficulty with identification would have been that the chandelier was allowed to get dirty and the crystal would appear dull. But in all cases, when properly cleaned, they can look as good as the day they were bought.”

For the Chore-Challenged

For customers who arenÂ’t ready to get into the nitty gritty of cleaning their crystal by hand, suggest the Da Vinci chandelier from the Geometrix collection by Schonbek. The crystals stay attached to a stainless steel frame that can be placed directly in the dishwasher. The Da Vinci is available in a 10-inch or 36-inch diameter. The only Da Vinci that will not make it to the dishwasher is the dramatic 5-foot model.

Electricity may either be connected by 230 or 240 volts (these are called single phase circuits that are installed in most residential applications), or 400 & 415 Volts (3-phase). The latter are typically best-suited to provide power to heavy-duty appliances and equipment and in industrial settings as well as larger commercial applications.

Some people have electric kilns installed in their homes or garages because they indulge in making pottery or ceramics products. Certain homes have very elaborate and large, ducted air-conditioning systems. In all these situations, a 3-phase circuit would be required to support this heavy power usage.

The type of circuit used is dependent in the equipment or appliances installed on your property. It is important that you check the power & voltage requirements of the installations properly, before deciding what type of circuits you need. In most instances, even massive ovens and high energy-consuming heaters are typically singe-phase.

This current in amps has to be multiplied by the voltage to give you the power in watts. If a 3-phase supply is available, the total voltage of 24,000 watts will be divided by 3; this means 8000 watts will be used in each phase. This means the current in each phase is lower than 1/3rd of what it generally is in a single phase power supply (about 30 amps in each phase instead of 100).

The aspect to keep in view here is that if you have a 3-phase electrical connection, you will end up paying higher connection fees for it. In addition, you would have to pay fixed annual charges for 3-phase as well, so you shouldn’t be considering it for your new home unless it’s really needed.

Depending on the locality you live in, your property may also be connected to a SWER electrical line and many country areas have them. The SWER (single wire, earth return) delivers single-phase power. It is a very economical way of power distribution since it requires only a single transmission or active line. The earth is used as the return conductor and there is no neutral line.

In case you need to use any 3-phase motors in these settings, you would have to get a single-phase to 3-phase converter installed. Choosing the right phase is crucial to the optimal working of your equipment and for the safety of your property as well.