Hi Roberta,
While I've never used one for artefact washing, I did use one when I was
working at a jewellery workshop to remove rouge polish and general grime
(from rings, etc).  The trick was to put roughly equal amounts of ammonia
and dishwashing detergent in the water and use a toothbrush or similar to
gently scrub any excess off after the pieces had been sitting in the
ultrasonic for a couple of minutes.  You would have to know the way ammonia
and dishwashing detergent would have on the artefacts, it works just as well
on jewellery without the ultrasonic though (ie, just with a toothbrush).
Was there some reason the artefacts needed to be cleaned with an ultrasonic
as opposed to any other way?
Hope this helps
Lucy Amorosi
Cultural Heritage Consultant
Belgrave VIC

----- Original Message -----
From: "Charpentier, Roberta" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Thursday, June 27, 2002 10:19 PM


> Does anyone out there use an ultra-sonic cleaner to wash artifacts?  We
have
> one here, but it barely removes any dirt from the ceramics and glass I
tried
> it out on.   Am I doing something wrong or are they worthless?
> Roberta Charpentier
> Archaeology Lab Supervisor
> Mashantucket Pequot Museum and Research Center
> 110 Pequot Trail
> Mashantucket, CT  06339
> Email:  [log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]>
> Phone:  860-396-6936
> Fax:  860-396-6914