How to Clean Your Silver Jewelry
Pour two cups of hot water into a bowl., Add salt and aluminum foil., Submerge your jewelry in the solution., Rinse the jewelry.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Pour two cups of hot water into a bowl.
You just need enough to cover the jewelry you're cleaning.
This method works as a gentle cleanser that removes tarnish without abrading the silver.If your silver is lightly tarnished, the salt bath should take the tarnish right off.
If you're cleaning a lot of jewelry at once, you can use more water.
For just one piece of jewelry, use less water.
If your jewelry has gemstones, make sure they won't be affected by being submerged in a saltwater solution.
This solution is gentle on most stones, but if you're cleaning very fine jewelry with expensive gemstones, you're better off taking it to a professional just in case.
You can also contact your jeweler for advice. -
Step 2: Add salt and aluminum foil.
Stir one tablespoon of salt it into the hot water with a spoon until it completely dissolves.
Take a sheet of aluminum foil and tear off a few strips, then put them in the bowl.
The combination of salt and aluminum will react with the tarnish on the silver's surface and create a bright, shiny surface in place of the tarnish.
Tarnish happens when the surface of silver combines with sulfur and turns into silver sulfide, which is black.
When silver sulfide reacts with aluminum in a salt solution, the chemical reaction between the substances turns the silver sulfide back to silver.
The reaction happens faster when the solution is warm.If you don't have table salt on hand, you can use baking soda instead.
It has the right properties to facilitate the same chemical reaction. , Allow it to sit for 5 minutes.
Stir it around a bit to see whether the tarnish is going away.
When you see that the silver's shine has been restored, remove the silver from the solution.
If you're working with deeply tarnished silver, you might need to repeat the process two or more times.
Make sure the solution is completely heated, since the reaction is much slower if the solution is cool. , Run it under cool running water to rinse off the salt, then gently dry it using a soft cloth or microfiber towel.
The jewelry should be good as new.
If you still see signs of tarnish, repeat the process until it looks clean. -
Step 3: Submerge your jewelry in the solution.
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Step 4: Rinse the jewelry.
Detailed Guide
You just need enough to cover the jewelry you're cleaning.
This method works as a gentle cleanser that removes tarnish without abrading the silver.If your silver is lightly tarnished, the salt bath should take the tarnish right off.
If you're cleaning a lot of jewelry at once, you can use more water.
For just one piece of jewelry, use less water.
If your jewelry has gemstones, make sure they won't be affected by being submerged in a saltwater solution.
This solution is gentle on most stones, but if you're cleaning very fine jewelry with expensive gemstones, you're better off taking it to a professional just in case.
You can also contact your jeweler for advice.
Stir one tablespoon of salt it into the hot water with a spoon until it completely dissolves.
Take a sheet of aluminum foil and tear off a few strips, then put them in the bowl.
The combination of salt and aluminum will react with the tarnish on the silver's surface and create a bright, shiny surface in place of the tarnish.
Tarnish happens when the surface of silver combines with sulfur and turns into silver sulfide, which is black.
When silver sulfide reacts with aluminum in a salt solution, the chemical reaction between the substances turns the silver sulfide back to silver.
The reaction happens faster when the solution is warm.If you don't have table salt on hand, you can use baking soda instead.
It has the right properties to facilitate the same chemical reaction. , Allow it to sit for 5 minutes.
Stir it around a bit to see whether the tarnish is going away.
When you see that the silver's shine has been restored, remove the silver from the solution.
If you're working with deeply tarnished silver, you might need to repeat the process two or more times.
Make sure the solution is completely heated, since the reaction is much slower if the solution is cool. , Run it under cool running water to rinse off the salt, then gently dry it using a soft cloth or microfiber towel.
The jewelry should be good as new.
If you still see signs of tarnish, repeat the process until it looks clean.
About the Author
Lisa Ferguson
Committed to making cooking accessible and understandable for everyone.
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