How to Clean Silver
I’m not a huge fan of yellow gold. Also, I’m not rich. But I do like jewelry. So under these conditions, what’s not to like about sterling silver? Well, one thing I can think of: tarnish. Tarnish is the dull gray or black coating that forms on the surface of silver, the result of a chemical reaction between the silver and sulfur. Its scientific name is silver sulfide, but most non-experts call it “ugly.” The happy news for your favorite jewelry is that it’s rare to see tarnish on a piece of silver that is worn often, because frequent contact with skin can prevent tarnish from forming. But table silver or jewelry that is brought out only on special occasions is notorious for being tarnished whenever you want it, especially if it’s been stored in or around materials like felt, wool, or rubber bands. Humidity can also accelerate the formation of tarnish.
One of the advantages tarnish has over us is that we tend to be impatient and it tends to be stubborn. And you can’t really blame us; who wants to spend twenty minutes cramping up their thumbs to remove tarnish from silver? So that’s one of the things I love about the recipe I’ve chosen for cleaning silver: little to no elbow grease required. Instead of removing tarnish by physical force, this recipe relies on chemistry—the same thing that put the tarnish there in the first place. To clean tarnished silver do this fun science experiment. All you need is a pan, aluminum foil, baking soda, water, a stove, and a pair of tongs.
Cleaning Tarnished Silver
Before you start, wash your silverware or silver jewelry with soap and water to remove anything from the surface that might get in the way of the chemical reaction.
Next, line the pan with aluminum foil and add enough water to completely cover the piece of silver you want to clean.
Stir baking soda (a couple of tablespoons for small items in a small pan, or as much as a cup or two for large items in a gallon or more of water) into the water in the pan. Turn the burner on underneath the pan and wait for the water to boil.
As soon as the water starts to boil, you can remove the pan from the heat and submerge the silver in the hot water. Make sure the silver is in direct contact with the aluminum foil. The whole process can take several minutes, but it shouldn’t be long before you start to see tiny yellow or black flakes in the water, or notice that the aluminum foil is turning black. What’s happening is that the hot solution of baking soda and water is separating the sulfur from the silver and transferring it to the aluminum. This easy homemade tarnish remover takes advantage of the fact that sulfur is more chemically attracted to aluminum than silver.
You can use tongs to move the silver around in the pan, or even take it out of the solution to get a better look at your progress. Just be gentle, so as not to scratch the silver. Once the silver is clean, you should rinse it in clean water to remove any traces of baking soda, then dry it with a soft clean cloth. You may find that you can take off even more tarnish by rubbing at any remaining dark spots with the cloth.
If your silver is severely tarnished, you may have to repeat the process several times, or you might have better luck with a natural tarnish cleaner from the list in the right sidebar. My silver bracelet and ring were moderately tarnished, and I’m pretty impressed with how shiny they are after just using this simple homemade silver cleaner. You can see the difference by moving your mouse over the picture to the left.
Toxic Silver Cleaning Products
Do you have any idea how hard it is to find out what’s actually in silver polish? Companies that manufacture silver polish rarely list their products’ active ingredients on their websites or even on package labels. But I’ve managed at least to find out that most silver polish isn’t very safe for people or the environment. In fact, the Environmental Protection Agency lists it as Hazardous Household Waste and discourages throwing it out with the regular trash. I won’t fling mud at the silver polish industry by listing every toxic substance that may or may not be present in tarnish remover, but it’s safe to say that it often contains ammonia, which can irritate the lungs; strong acids; and petroleum distillates, which can cause nerve damage. Most brands recommend that you wear rubber gloves during use, even though rubber and latex promote silver tarnish. And since safe and natural silver cleaners are so easy to come by, why take the risk.
Natural Silver Polishes
Baking soda figures into one other method to remove tarnish: pour some into a bowl and add enough water to make a thick paste. Using a soft cloth, scrub the silver free of tarnish with the baking soda paste. Most silversmiths, jewelers, and collectors discourage this method because baking soda is abrasive and can leave tiny scratches on the surface of silver. But if you have a piece that’s heavily tarnished and doesn’t have a lot of monetary or sentimental value, this is a good option. I used it on the bracelet pictured above, and if you move your mouse over the photo, you can see how well it worked.
Toothpaste can be used in the same way as baking soda paste. I recommend all-natural Tom’s of Maine. Just make sure to use a white variety, because a gel won’t do the trick.
Homewood Metal Polish is one of the few silver polishes whose ingredients can be found online. And guess what? They’re entirely natural and mostly plant-based.
Sur La Table’s cleaning solutions are nontoxic and biodegradable, making their Silver Polish yet another good green tarnish removal option.
