Silver used to be more valuable than gold. In ancient times, it was believed that this particular metal drives away evil spirits. There is an opinion that people whose things from this metal darken are prone to diseases, they have a weak the immune system. And this, indeed, is tested in practice, it happens that after a sharp darkening the chain itself is cleared. This is due to harmful substances released from the sweat of a sick person.
Many of the fair sex have silver items, it can be cutlery and jewelry. After some time, these things darken. They no longer look as attractive and neat. Many housewives know how to clean blackened silver. And it will not take much time, and you will not need any special tools that are found in every home.
Why did the silver darken:
- One of the main reasons is moisture. When interacting with moisture in any of its manifestations, whether it is either damp air or sweat-soaked skin, the products will become dark.
- Features of the body. All people will definitely have blackouts, some earlier, some later.
- If cosmetics contain sulfur, then this will negatively affect the purity of silver products.
- Improper care, storage.
- Low grade products.
How to clean silver without stones?
Using any method, at the very beginning of work on the restoration of the product, you need to remove dirt and grease. To do this, it is possible to use soap in any form, shampoo, dish detergent, diluted with water. Products are first washed with soapy water, then rinsed thoroughly with water. For more thorough washing, you can use a soft toothbrush.
How can you clean silver?
- With tooth powder. Dip the pre-moistened object into the powder, then rub it thoroughly with a thick cloth.
- Tooth powder mixed with ammonia. Tooth powder is pre-crushed to the consistency of chalk, then mixed with ammonia to make it look like gruel in consistency, it helps well against blackness. Apply with cotton wool on silver, after complete drying it is wiped with a cloth, always dry.
- Ammonia diluted with water. You can use ammonia. Put the necessary item for a while in different solutions:
1 part ammonia to 10 parts water. Wet time from 15 to 60 minutes, more exposure is dangerous. This solution is effective for light to medium browning. It is necessary to monitor the product during operation. Next, with a cloth dipped in the same solution, clean the dirt.
For heavy stains, undiluted ammonia is best. Work on the product for no more than 15 minutes.
Then rinse with water and dry.
- Soda cleansing. Mix baking soda with water until the consistency of liquid slurry. Gently rub the object with your fingers. Perhaps with a very soft cloth, clean until shiny. In places that are not very easy to access, it is possible to use an old soft toothbrush.
- Next method: Water (1 liter), dish detergent (1 tablespoon), salt (1 tablespoon) and soda (1 tablespoon). Put the silver thing in a saucepan, boil in the resulting solution over low heat for half an hour.
- Add 100 grams to half a liter of water citric acid put the solution in a water bath. Put copper wire, a small piece, then place silverware, boil for 20-30 minutes, rinse with water.
- Raw potatoes, cut into slices, are placed in a plate with water. That's where the metal goes. Under the influence of starch, plaque is cleaned.
- Prepare a decoction of potatoes. The bottom of the pan is covered with foil, the broth is poured, items that need cleaning are added. After contact with the solution for 20 minutes, rinse with clean water.
- Immerse pre-washed and rinsed items for 5-20 minutes in a solution of hydrogen peroxide (3%), then rinse in running water and dry. Products after this procedure lighten, shine and sparkle.
- For effective cleaning you can use vinegar: warm the 6% solution. Rub the product with a cloth soaked in this solution.
- A very interesting method is cleaning with sweet sparkling water. Soda is poured into a saucepan, an object in need of cleaning is immersed in it, and boiled for 15 minutes. Then rinse and dry with a soft cloth.
- Dilute washing powder in warm water, boil together with the thing for 10 minutes.
Methods for cleaning with ammonia
- Pour ammonia into a dish, preferably glass, and add items to this container for no more than 15 minutes. After the product is washed and dried.
- Dilute ammonia (1 tablespoon) in water at room temperature (1 glass), add hydrogen peroxide (a few drops) and liquid soap, preferably for children. Put a thing that needs cleaning there for 15-30 minutes. When observing, noticing the result, rinse and dry with a cloth. Microfiber would be good to use.
- Ammonia, mixed with tooth powder, until a slurry is obtained. Apply with cotton wool to silver. After complete drying, quickly wipe with a cloth.
Methods for cleaning products with stones
Silver is a metal that is easily combined with stones of any kind. The main dirt accumulates in the recesses of the stone, cleaning these places requires great care. For this process, sticks wound with cotton wool, which are pre-soaked with glycerin, ammonia mixed with magnesia or cologne, are well suited.
The pebble is carefully processed together with the frame. Do not use pointed limbs when cleaning, as there is a high risk of damaging the jewelry.
- Mix a glass of water with 6 drops of ammonia, clean with a cloth or soft brush. Can be used for any type of stone, except for pearls.
- After boiled eggs, it is better not to pour out the water, but to put rings, earrings and other items with stones into the cooled, lukewarm water. After being pulled out, wipe the decorations.
- To make the stone shine brighter, you can rub it with cologne, then polish it soft cloth.
- Specialized stores sell solutions for cleaning silver with stones. It is better to use strictly according to the instructions.
- Glycerin will be very good for cleaning. With a cotton swab dipped in glycerin, rub the stones, polish with a soft cloth.
- Flannel with suede can be wiped gems, they will not scratch the surface, but only refresh it.
- Corn starch will be good for care.
The stones used in silver jewelry do not tolerate high temperatures, falls, and mechanical stress. They are not recommended to be worn during extreme heat when the sun is at its zenith. Pebbles are also very susceptible to excessively humid and dry air.
Prevention methods to avoid darkening:
- If there is contact with moisture, then with a dry cloth, preferably flannel, you need to wipe the item as quickly as possible.
- When doing housework, it is better to remove jewelry.
- When creams or ointments are applied, it is better to remove the silver.
- It is better to store the products in a dry box, it is desirable that there is no contact with each other.
- When rarely used, jewelry is best stored in full contact with darkness and foil. This is necessary so that the silver does not darken and does not oxidize.
- Do not store jewelry with precious stones in the open sun and near heating appliances.
How to clean gilded silver
Gold-plated things are easily exposed to mechanical stress. The layer of gold on the jewelry is applied in a thin layer. These elements look very elegant and noble, I wanted them to remain in their original form for as long as possible. At proper care jewelry made of this metal can increase its attractiveness over time.
To do this, you need to treat them more carefully. Jewelry must be removed when doing housework and gardening. Also, they will be out of place in the bath, bath. Mud exposure will be very harmful to your favorite jewelry. During sports, it is also necessary to remove this product, it will be superfluous when taking cosmetic services, physiotherapy procedures. Gold-plated objects can not only darken, but also give a gray or even green coating.
General rules:
- Cleaning is allowed only with a dry suede cloth.
- How to effectively prepare: moisten a cotton swab with turpentine and wipe gently. This is necessary for degreasing and removing contaminants. You can replace turpentine with medical alcohol.
- Dilute 2 tablespoons of vinegar with a liter of water. Put the metal into the solution for 15 minutes. Then rinse and dry with suede.
- You can clean it with wine (wipe the product with a sponge, rinse and dry with suede), beer (leave silver for 30 minutes in beer, rinse, wipe dry).
- With a strong darkening, the following solution helps: soap, after grinding, can be replaced with liquid soap or detergent, released into a liter of water, preferably warm, add ammonia, about 6 drops. Release the metal there for half an hour. You can’t keep it for a long time, as this can damage the gold.
- Make a mixture of petroleum jelly, soap, water and chalk. Wipe the metal with a soft swab. Rinse with water, rinse and polish.
What can damage gold-plated products:
In order not to spoil the product, not to leave scratches, it is strictly forbidden to use:
- Powders in any form.
- Brushes, hard cloths.
- Acids, which can scratch the surface if they are too aggressive.
- Each decoration must be stored separately so as not to scratch the surface. The best thing for these purposes is a box upholstered with a soft cloth.
- Wrapping in a suede cloth would be a good option.
- After removing the jewelry, you need to wipe it in order to remove fat from the surface of the skin.
- It is advisable to store these things away from direct sunlight, from batteries. Since high temperatures have an extremely negative effect. Sudden temperature changes have a negative effect.
- This metal does not like to live next door to drugs.
- Products that have been cleaned become softer, more tender, so you can not use coarse rags, hard brushes for wiping.
- It is good to periodically polish the metal.
Periodically, for cleaning, it would be nice to give the products to the workshop. This can be done at least once a year. You can also purchase care products in stores specialized in this type of metal. If the contamination is too great or the resuscitation carried out did not lead to desired result then you need the help of a specialist.
Silver jewelry, accessories or cutlery are highly valued by women of all ages. But, despite all the nobility and sophistication of appearance, this material has one big drawback - over time, the surface turns black and loses its former gloss. How to deal with a similar problem and clean silver from blackness at home - read below.
Causes of dark spots
Each owner of silver products has noticed that over time, silver begins to blacken. What is the cause of such misfortune?
- Constant contact with cosmetics. That is why it is recommended to remove silver jewelry before applying the cream.
- High humidity in the storage area.
- Blackening can be a reaction from exposure to human sweat material.
- Contact with rubber products, as well as detergents, is another reason for material deterioration.
The easiest way to clean silver is to buy a special cleaner or go to a jeweler. But such methods require an investment of money, and if you want to save money, then you should definitely think about how to clean silver at home. Below I will suggest a few effective options.
Effective cleaning methods
Unlike gold, cleaning silver is not a particularly difficult process. You can easily cope with it at home with the help of improvised means.
To begin with, the product should be prepared for the procedure: thoroughly wash the accessory in a warm soapy solution, clean its surface from residues of grease and dirt. Use an old soft-bristled toothbrush to clean the crevices and crevices much more effectively..
In addition to the soap solution, silver can first be washed with a regular shampoo, then rinse the accessory well in clean water and wipe it dry. Such manipulations will help prepare the metal for the upcoming procedure, and increase the effectiveness of the result.
Remedy 1. Ammonia
To update silver jewelry, many people use ordinary ammonia. The procedure for its use is as follows:
- Prepare a saline solution. To do this, dilute 10 ml of alcohol in half a glass of water.
- Dip the accessory in the solution and leave it in it for about 15-30 minutes.
- Carefully monitor the process of peeling blackness, if the desired result is achieved, remove the jewelry.
- Treat the surface with a soft and dry cloth.
If the product has darkened only slightly, it is not necessary to dip it into the solution. It is enough to moisten a sponge or cloth in ammonia and wipe the surface with it.
In a completely “neglected” case, it is better to dip the accessory in undiluted ammonia. Please note that it will need to be removed no later than 10 minutes later.
Remedy 2. Tooth Powder
In the case when the silver has turned black, you can resort to the tool that our grandmothers used - tooth powder. You will also need a dense fleecy fabric.
First, lightly moisten the cloth, then dip it in the powder. Start wiping the product, trying to remove dark spots from it. Keep in mind that cleaning with toothpowder should be done slowly and carefully, as silver is a soft metal and scratches very easily.
Instead of powder, you can use toothpaste - it works no less effectively.
- Apply the product in a thin layer over the entire surface and wipe it with a soft cloth. If an accessory with many small parts needs cleaning, use a toothbrush. You can only use ordinary white paste without additional impurities that can scratch silver.
- Rinse the product thoroughly with clean water, otherwise it will leave a white coating.
- Wipe the surface with a dry, lint-free cloth and your accessory will shine like new.
Remedy 3. Soda
You can fix blackened silver with ordinary table soda, which is in every kitchen. I offer you two options to choose from:
- Dilute soda with warm water so that you end up with a thick slurry. Dip a soft cloth into it and start wiping the product with it until the desired result is obtained.
- With your own hands, pour 20 g of soda with a glass of water (about 250 g), put the solution on fire. After boiling water, dip a silver accessory and a piece of foil into it. After 15 minutes, the product will look like new.
Remedy 4. Citric acid
Citric acid is another affordable and inexpensive remedy that can restore jewelry to its original appearance. For this you will need:
- dilute 100 g of citric acid with 500 ml of water;
- put the liquid to heat in a water bath by dipping a small piece of copper wire into it;
- after boiling water, dip silver items into it for 15 minutes;
- at the end of the procedure, rinse the accessories with water and polish with a cloth.
Remedy 5. Universal cocktail
If you don't know how best to clean your silver, you can use the recipe below. It consists of several components mentioned above at once.
You will need to take:
- in equal proportions salt and soda (10 g each);
- 10 ml of dishwashing detergent;
- half a liter of water.
Mix all the ingredients together, pour into a small saucepan and put silver in it. Put the container on the fire and bring to a boil. After half an hour, turn off the heat, cool the mass and remove the decorations from it.
Rinse them and wipe with a soft cloth - the blackness will go away without a trace.
As a preventive measure
In order not to ask the question “how to clean silver”, you need to constantly look after it. Do not forget about preventive measures that protect products from damage.
Care of the material is simple, and the instructions below will tell you how to take care of the precious metal:
- Do not leave silver jewelry on your hands while cleaning the apartment or washing dishes.
- If items get wet, wipe them off immediately with a flannel cloth.
- It is better to store jewelry in a dry place, having previously hidden them in a box.
- If you rarely use silver items, wrap them in foil. This will prevent the oxidation process.
If you stick to these simple rules storage, you will not have to clean silver often.
Finally
I told you about the most effective ways to clean silver items at home. Using one of them, you can easily return your jewelry or accessories to their original noble shine.
Want to know more useful information on this topic? Be sure to watch the video in this article, there you will find a lot of interesting things. If any nuances remain unclear to you, ask about them in the comments.
Almost everyone has silver jewelry or silverware, but as a result of exposure to moisture, prolonged contact with the skin, silver can turn black and tarnish. To keep your silver items looking their best, it is helpful to know how to clean silver at home.
So that silver things do not fade very quickly, it is useful to know the reasons for the darkening of silver:
- Moisture. When exposed to moist air, when in contact with moist skin, silver items will quickly darken.
- Impact cosmetics , especially containing sulfur. When silver comes into contact with sulfur, compounds are quickly formed, namely black.
- Features of the human body. Different people have different composition of sweat, different rate of darkening of silver items.
Most The best way for cleaning silver at home - use special agent, which you can buy in the hardware department of a supermarket or in a jewelry store. But in the absence of such a means, ordinary folk remedies for cleaning silverware.
- Cleaning silver with ammonia
. There are many folk ways cleaning silver with improvised means. The use of ammonia is considered one of the most common methods. Take 10% ammonia in a small amount and soak a silver item in it for 15 minutes. Then rinse with water and wipe with a soft cloth. You can also do without soaking, in which case you need to take a piece of woolen cloth, moisten it in ammonia and wipe the product. This method is not suitable for cleaning silver jewelry with pearls, as ammonia can affect the color of the pearl.
Another way: prepare a solution - add 1 tsp to a glass of water. ammonia, a small amount liquid soap and a few drops of hydrogen peroxide. The solution must be thoroughly mixed and the silver jewelry must be soaked in it for 15 minutes. Soaking time depends on the level of soiling, so you need to check the product periodically. After cleaning, the silver is washed with water and wiped with a microfiber cloth.
- Cleaning silver with citric acid. The method of cleaning silver with citric acid is simple and affordable, it is in almost every home. Half a liter of water is poured into an enameled container, a bag (100 g) of citric acid is poured, stirred and the container is placed in a water bath. A small piece of copper wire is thrown into the water, or even better, put a silver ring or earrings on the wire and so lower them into the solution. Boil for 15-30 minutes, periodically checking the degree of cleaning of the product. After boiling, it is washed in plain water.
- Cleaning silver with baking soda. Another easy and affordable homemade way to clean silver jewelry. To prepare the solution, half a liter of water is required, and 2 tbsp. l. baking soda. All this must be mixed well and put the container with the solution on fire. After the water boils, a small piece of ordinary food foil is placed in the container and the silver item is lowered. After a couple of minutes it will shine. With soda, you can prepare another special solution for cleaning silver. Pour 1 liter of water into an aluminum dish, add 1 tbsp. l. dish detergent, 1 tbsp. l. salt, 1 tbsp. l. soda. Boil over low heat for about 20-30 minutes, visually checking the cleaning result.
- Cleaning silver with potato broth and foil. Not too darkened silver jewelry at home can be cleaned in such a simple way. After cooking, drain the potato broth into a container and place a piece of foil about 15x15 cm in size there. Dip the product in this broth for five minutes.
- Cleaning silver with vinegar. Table vinegar will help to cope with black spots on silver products. Take 9% vinegar and warm it up a little in a container. Lower the product there, and after 15 minutes check the result. If the dirt is removed during this time, rinse the product with water and wipe cotton fabric. If you are not satisfied with the result of cleaning, leave the product in vinegar for a few more minutes.
- Mechanical cleaning of silver with toothpaste. For any mechanical cleaning silver wears off gradually, so jewelry with a beautiful fine pattern is not cleaned that way. But toothpaste is always at hand, which is convenient. They take an old toothbrush, apply toothpaste on a silver item and brush it to a shine.
If you have silver items that you rarely use, keep them separate from each other in a dry place, wrapped in foil. So the products will delight you for a long time with an impeccable look and will not oxidize.
How to clean silver
There are probably silver things in every home and every person. When you buy a silver thing, it shines and sparkles. And how you do not want such a bewitching brilliance to disappear! But, unfortunately, silver tends to darken, fade and become covered with some kind of unpleasant coating. Today's post is about how to clean silver. I'm talking about 10 ways to clean silver. Choose!
Cleaning silver with potatoes
1. Washed potatoes must be boiled in their skins. Drain the water in which it was boiled into a separate enamel or glass dish (not aluminum or iron!). Put a piece of foil on the bottom of this container, somewhere around 30x30. Wait until the water cools down and lower silver things into this magical water - not for long, for about 10 minutes.
Cleaning silver with alcohol
2. If the silver product has just faded a little, then it is wiped with a woolen cloth dipped in ammonia. IN hard-to-reach places use cotton swabs.
Cleaning silver with vinegar
3. How to clean silver knows ordinary nine percent table vinegar. It must be warmed up a little and put silver in it. After standing for 15-20 minutes, remove the product and rub it with a suede or woolen cloth.
Cleaning silver with salt
4. You can clean silver with ordinary table salt. Add 1 teaspoon of salt to a glass of water, stir well so that there are no grains left, and boil silver items in this salt solution for about 15 minutes. Finish the procedure by rubbing the silver with a woolen cloth.
How to clean silver with citric acid
5. Instead of salt, you can add citric acid at the rate of 100g per liter of water. Only here it is advisable to boil water with diluted lemon not directly on the fire, but keep it for 30 minutes in a water bath.
Cleaning silver with baking soda
6. How to clean silver with baking soda? Very simple! Put 2 tablespoons of soda in half a liter of water, mix thoroughly and put on fire. When the "soda water" boils, we throw a piece of foil and silver items into it. Boil for just 15 seconds, your silver is guaranteed to look shiny!
Cleaning silver with an eraser
7. Smooth silver things can be cleaned with an eraser (surely everyone has such a thing). Just three and get shine. Of course, for chains or complex jewelry, this method is not suitable.
Cleaning silver with laundry detergent
8. Some housewives say that you can clean silver and gold with ordinary washing powder. Just pour the powder into the metal! dishes and boil for 10 minutes. That's it! Simple, fast and beautiful.
Other ways to clean silver
9. Pour a tablespoon of salt into an aluminum pan, boil and turn off. Put there all the silver that needs to be cleaned and wait 15 minutes. Remove, rinse with clean water and rub (again with our favorite woolen cloth).
10. Finally, the easiest and most reliable way to answer the question: how to clean silver. Buy a special silver cleaner in the store, place the items there, wait and get it. Details are in the instructions that came with the tool.
Do not use coarse brushes or any other items that can scratch the surface of the precious metal to clean silver!
Think, maybe it's still worth contacting the workshop to a specialist master. Yes, it's not free, but it's also inexpensive. But it's reliable.
Vinegar
A dining room heated to 40–50 ° C will help to cope with darkening. Dip the jewelry in it for 15 minutes, and then rinse them and dry them with a soft cloth.
coreyegan.wordpress.com
toothpaste
Toothpaste, a brush and your perseverance will remove plaque from a silver chain or ring. A few minutes of careful polishing will make the metal shine.
ammonia and hydrogen peroxide
In a liter of water, dissolve two tablespoons of ammonia and the same amount of peroxide. Dip the jewelry in the solution for 15 minutes. The silver will react with the ammonia and the dirt will disappear without a trace.
Citric acid and copper wire
Pour half a liter of water into an enamel saucepan, add 100 grams of citric acid, and then put everything in a water bath. Put rings and earrings on the copper wire, wrap chains around it (contact of copper and silver is important). Boil the liquid for 15-20 minutes, periodically checking the cleanliness of the jewelry.
soda
Add water to the baking soda until you get a thick paste. Rub the resulting mixture on silver items with a toothbrush or sponge. Then rinse the jewelry with warm water to avoid streaks.
coreyegan.wordpress.com Vinegar, salt, baking soda and foil
To clean silver with a spa treatment, you'll need half a cup of boiling water, half a cup of vinegar, and a tablespoon each of salt and baking soda. Place a sheet of foil on the bottom of the container, pour in the dry ingredients and fill them with liquid ones. Decorations are placed in the solution so that contact with the foil is maximum. Silver will become perfect in just 5 minutes.
coreyegan.wordpress.com How to clean silver jewelry with stones
- Sapphire, emerald and aquamarine are high density gemstones. Cleaning will not harm them, whichever method you choose.
- Opal, malachite, turquoise and moonstone are not so dense: abrasive substances can scratch their surface. So choose soft detergents or baths.
- Ruby, topaz and garnet cannot be cleaned in hot water: from high temperature they can change color.
- Give items with amber, pearls, coral or ivory to specialists for cleaning. These materials are very sensitive to acids, alkalis and any solvents.
How to clean matte silver
The only caution for owners of jewelry made of such metal: do not use abrasive materials or acids. They will spoil appearance products. Soap shavings dissolved in water are an ideal gentle agent.
When cleaning such products, be careful and delicate so as not to damage the unique top layer. Soap and soda solution will help you: soak silver in it for 20-30 minutes.
And here is another effective way. Peel a few potatoes, put them in a bowl of water and add your decorations to the same. After 3-4 hours, remove the silver and rinse with water. If the plaque from the metal is not completely removed, erase it with a rubber eraser.
juvelirum.ru What to do so that silver does not darken
To make your silver shine brighter than the sun, follow these simple yet effective guidelines:
- Remove rings and bracelets before cleaning or applying cosmetics.
- If your jewelry gets wet, wipe it dry as soon as possible.
- store jewelry in a dark, dry place, ideally wrapped in foil.
Did these tips help you? Tell us in the comments about your experience of cleaning silver at home.
