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Air current chimes are a lovely addition to whatever home. Only since they spend all of their time exterior the day will come up when they begin to look weathered and one-time. Giving your chimes a new life isn't difficult, however. Commencement by disassembling and cleaning all of the pieces. Make up one's mind on a paint or stain blueprint, and then reassemble and enjoy your renewed current of air chimes!

  1. i

    Have plenty of pictures of the wind chimes. Before yous begin to disassemble or piece of work on your chimes, become pictures of them from many unlike angles. That way, you can apply the pictures as a reference when information technology comes fourth dimension to put everything back together.[1]

  2. ii

    Examine the chimes to see if anything needs replacing. If your air current chimes are missing parts or have any damaged ones, you may want to supercede them. If pieces are hard to discover, however, y'all could just leave them off.

    • For example, yous might be able to observe a piece of copper tubing at a hardware shop that could supplant one of the tubes in a chime set.
    • Alternatively, you could just reduce the number of tubes. If one from a five-tube chinkle fix is damaged, you lot could remove it and yet have a four-tube one.

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  3. 3

    Take everything apart. Normally, this only means cutting off all the old string and discarding information technology. If your chimes have more than complicated pieces, do your all-time to take them apart as well. For instance, you might need a minor screwdriver to disassemble some parts.

  4. four

    Give all of the pieces a good wipe-downward. Removing clay and crud will make the chimes await instantly improve. If yous're planning on painting or refinishing your chimes, yous'll definitely need to make clean the pieces first. Most of the time, wiping the pieces with warm soapy water will be enough. Allow them dry afterwards.[2]

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  1. ane

    Sand whatever wooden pieces. If your chimes have wooden tubes or a wooden clapper that you want to refinish, you'll need to remove whatsoever dirt or old finish. Accept a piece of light-course sandpaper and become over the outside of the wooden pieces by manus until they await clean and fifty-fifty in appearance.[iii]

    • If y'all are replacing any wooden parts, brand sure to sand the new pieces as well.

  2. 2

    Go creative with a paint blueprint. You lot can paint either wooden or metal chimes. Spray paints intended for metal and outdoor apply will work best. You tin can make up one's mind on whatever design strikes your fancy. For case, yous could:[4]

    • Make two-tone or three-tone tubes past painting parts of the different colors.
    • Employ i color for the tube's base, then use a contrasting one to create stripes or spots for variety.
    • Give each tube a dissimilar color.
    • Paint the clapper 1 color, and the tubes another.
    • Paint all the tubes a single solid color.

  3. three

    Stain wooden chimes, if you prefer. Yous can apply just almost any wood stain or oil stop you like for this job. Since chimes are a relatively small project, you could look for stain wipes at your hardware store instead of cans of stain. Only wipe them over the pieces, instead of brushing the stain on.[5]

  4. iv

    Set up a finishing station and give your chimes a new life. If you're painting or staining your chimes a single color, you could only lay the pieces flat on a piece of newspaper. Paint or stain one side, and so let it dry out. Flip or roll the pieces over, and finish the other side.[vi]

    • If you have a more complicated design or desire to piece of work faster, you could stand the tubes upwards and finish them that way.
    • Lay newspaper on the basis, then poke pencils or like objects through the paper and into the soil. Place the tubes upright over the pencils, and they volition stand up in place as you piece of work and let the pieces dry.
    • Place toothpicks in the holes where the strings go. This volition prevent them from clogging with paint or stain as y'all work.

  5. five

    Seal your chimes. This will protect them against weathering and damage. A spray-on clear coat protective finish is a practiced, quick option that works for pigment or stain finishes. You lot can also employ a brush-on polyurethane finish for wood, if you prefer.[7]

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  1. 1

    Choose a type of cord. Many chimes might use hemp, jute, or other natural fibers to hold everything together, but these types of cord won't stand upwardly well to weathering. If y'all want your string to last longer, endeavor using waxed thread or stiff fishing line instead.[8]

  2. ii

    Measure and cut string or fishing line. Decide how low or high you lot want the tubes to hang from the support piece. Mensurate this, then add at least two inches to account for extra you'll need to tie everything together.[9]

    • Brand certain to cut enough pieces of string for all of the tubes.

  3. 3

    Retie everything using square knots. Feed your pieces of string, line, or thread through the holes of the tubes and support, and secure them in place with foursquare knots. These should proceed everything in place equally you chimes sway in the breeze and make sweetness music.[x]

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Add New Question

  • Question

    How do you make a foursquare knot?

    Community Answer

    Necktie the start of a shoe knot: Put one side over the other then pull the summit lace under the other lace and pull. Then, repeat the shoe tie knot. Square knot achieved.

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