How to Easily Clean Antique Silver Items

Have you ever wondered how on earth you could "clean that piece of silver!?".

I recently acquired a silver plated collectors spoon (of which I made a ring from) and it was quite dirty.

I decided I would have a go at cleaning it - but the way in which to do so was cluttered by unnecessary stuff!

I picked and poked my way through ebay advice and sites in which you would send the object away to be cleaned and then finally found what I was after.

When I found the advice needed I went to work on creating an "easy to use" set of instructions without clutter.

All you'll need is:

1. a glass bowl big enough to fit your object to be cleaned,
2. baking soda,
3. al-foil,
4. paper towels or a cotton cloth,
5. Kettle for boiling water.

And that is it!

So, to begin you will need to grab that obj. (your thing in need of a clean) and put it in an easy to reach spot.

Get the glass bowl and line it with al-foil.

Put your obj. into the al-foil covered bowl and boil some water.

While the water is boiling you can cover the obj. with baking soda, use more than you think you'll need because the more the better (within reason...)

You now can add the water provided it is boiling.

Pour it straight on top of your obj. and watch the frothing and bubbling.

This is a chemical reaction between the baking soda and the al-foil.

When the chemical reaction occurs there is quite a vibration made which shakes off the particles of corrosion and unwanteds.

If the bubbling subsides within 30 seconds, add more baking soda and leave it sit for about 10 minutes.

If you want you can flip the obj. carefull with a pair of rubber coated tongs - don'ttouch it with metal at this stage!

Now, after the 10 minutes have passed you can take the obj. out of the solution.

Be careful not to touch the obj. from here on in with your hands, always use a cloth or paper towel otherwise your natural oils will ruin the effect.

If the obj. isn't at your desired level of cleanness you can always repeat!

When you take the obj. out of the solution you should wipe it off immediately with a cloth or paper towel - preferably something without lint.

As you can see in the fourth photo, my spoon was quite dirty!

Now, you can enjoy your obj. for another while and when it gets dirty again just clean it with ease!

Thanks for reading, please share this 'ible and if you have any questions just post them in the comments below!