I have found that my ultrasonic cleaner is a very quick and easy way to really get my paint brushes super clean. Especially when I accidentally dip the brush too far into the jar or cup and get paint in the ferrule. Even if I am very thorough in hand cleaning, I always notice a very faint wisp of paint coming off the brush if I put it in the ultrasonic cleaner.
My concern though is whether there might be some long term detrimental effect from using the ultrasonic cleaner. It can be pretty harsh on certain items. My general approach is to do a quick rinse and cursory hand clean first to keep the time in the ultrasound down to 30-60 seconds. Anybody have a bad experience doing this? I just bought a whole new set of nice brushes so dont want to ruin them all. Any difference between natural (sable) and good synthetic?
I don’t see any foreseeable consequences with using a ultrasonic (US) cleaner to clean your paint brushes. Time shouldn’t be an issue either.
Personally, I would US clean them in a mild detergent (e.g. Ivory dishwashing liquid) for 5 min. then rinse them out well with tap water. (You could US clean them after that for 5 min. in tap water.) If you use a degreasing detergent (e.g. Dawn), the soap may dry out the natural oils of a sable brush.
Interesting. The natural sable brushes are advertised and sold as watercolor brushes.
"Winsor & Newton have created a brush perfectly matched to their Artists’ Watercolor paints. This series of professional quality watercolor brushes features specially selected Kolinsky sable fitted into seamless ferrules. The innovative contoured, double-bodied handle with a satin matte finish provides a comfortable, secure grip.
Excellent color carrying capacity, ability to point, and spring back into shape are noted features of the “new classic” watercolor brush series."
I’ve used an ultrasonic cleaner with just water to “pre-clean” my sable brushes after painting with Polyscale acrylics. I then do a final cleaning with a cheap hair shampoo (don’t use one with a built in conditioner) and a water rinse. My brushes are 10 years old and are still going strong.