Think about this: you’re getting ready for a big event. You look great in your clothing and makeup, and you go for your favorite piece of sterling 925 silver Jewellery to finish the look, but it’s coated with a dark stain. What do I do now?
Silver jewelry is pretty and costly, but if you don’t take care of it, it will quickly lose its brilliance. This is a normal thing that happens, but luckily, it’s easy to learn how to clean silver jewelry. With a few simple steps, you can make your favorite silver items shine like they did when you first got them.
There are many methods to get the job done with things you already have on hand, whether you’re polishing up your family’s ancestral silver for a big dinner party or fixing up a spectacular find from an antique market.
This tutorial will show you the safest and most effective ways to clean silver jewelry while also clearing up some common misconceptions. Agor Jewellery also offered our best ideas for keeping things from tarnishing in the first place. To help you take better care of your jewelry, let’s start by talking about what tarnish is (and what it isn’t).
What is Silver Tarnish?
When silver comes into contact with chemicals in the air, most often sulfur, it forms a dark oxide layer. This is called silver tarnish. Tarnish is a typical chemical reaction that happens. It doesn’t suggest the silver in your jewelry is bad grade or that there is a problem.
According to Wikipedia, here is a more technical explanation: Tarnish is what happens when a metal and a non-metal compound, like oxygen and sulfur dioxide, react with each other. This forms a metal oxide on the metal, and sometimes metal sulfide or chloride.
What do you know? Tarnish is just a reaction on the surface and doesn’t hurt the valuable metal underlying. Tarnish can be yellow, brown, gray, or black, and it is not the same as rust.
Sterling silver is an alloy of 92.5% pure silver and copper that makes jewelry more durable. Because it has copper in it, sterling silver tarnishes more easily and more darkly than pure silver. Fine silver (99.9% pure) can get a dull, gray patina over time, and it’s also not good for making jewelry because it’s too delicate and will bend easily.
Green Stain on Silver
This green, generally powdery stuff on sterling silver is called verdigris. This doesn’t happen very often on sterling silver, but it happens when a chemical interacts with the copper in the silver alloy.
The most common time this happens is when cleaning residue is left on the silver for a while. Follow the steps below to get rid of it, and be especially careful when rinsing your jewelry after cleaning.
What Makes Silver Tarnish?
It is almost impossible to entirely eliminate tarnish; however, some things can speed up the process, such as:
- Long exposure to dust and free-flowing air
- Air pollution and humidity
- Lotion, perfume, and cosmetics
- Hand creams and soaps
- Chlorine (in pools, hot tubs, and bleach cleaning agents; these can also discolor metal)
- The pH and oils in your skin (some persons more than others)
- The best thing you can do about tarnish is to slow it down as much as you can. We know you agree that it’s better to stop something from happening than to clean it up. Read on for our best ideas on how to keep silver jewelry from tarnishing.
Now that you know what makes silver tarnish, keep reading to learn how to clean silver jewelry the right way, both at home and with the help of a pro (including a crucial tip!).
How to Clean Silver Jewelry?
Different amounts of tarnish and dirt need different ways to be cleaned. These are the finest ways to clean silver jewelry, starting with the least harsh and going up to the most harsh. We have already said that the best way to clean jewelry is to hire a professional service. This is always the safest approach to do it.
Note: Be especially careful when cleaning silver-plated jewelry because the thin plated surface hides a base metal. Plating can wear off easily, and then you’ll have further troubles to deal with. If you can help it, we don’t advocate buying plated jewelry, especially silver.
Soap and Water (For Light Dirt Removal)
Silver doesn’t just lose its shine; it also gets filthy, dirty, and gathers trash. Your jewelry comes into contact with your body and the things around you a lot, sometimes for hours at a time. Like your clothes and other personal items, your jewelry just has to be cleaned every once in a while.
Using warm water and a mild, unscented soap like Castile soap is the safest and easiest way to clean silver jewelry. Even though this won’t get rid of tarnish, it’s still an excellent way to clean your jewelry, whether it needs tarnish treatment or not. Every once in a while, take some time to wash your jewelry.
How to do it:
- Add a few drops of a mild, unscented liquid soap to warm water.
- To clean the jewelry, use a soft cloth or brush with gentle bristles.
- Rinse well with clean water.
- Use a soft cloth to dry right away.
2. Ultrasonic Cleaning (For Heavier or Complex Dirt Removal)
Ultrasonic cleaning won’t remove tarnish or polish your jewelry like soap and water can, but it will make it very clean and make gemstones sparkle, especially those that are harder.
An ultrasonic cleaner is useful for cleaning pieces with a lot of nooks or for jewelry that hasn’t been cleaned in a long time and is quite dirty (some jewelers jokingly call this “lady glue” or “man glue”).
These days, there are some small and pretty good ultrasonic cleaners for home use. If you have a lot of jewelry, you should probably get one. I use mine a lot.
But there are several concerns to be aware of while using an ultrasonic, even a lower-powered one for home use.
How not to do it:
- Don’t put soft stones like pearls, opal, lapis lazuli, or turquoise in an ultrasonic because they could get hurt.
- Also, don’t use an ultrasonic if you know a gemstone has a big fault or crack in it, because it can break.
- Don’t use an ultrasonic on blackened, antiqued, or other patinated metals since it could harm or remove these coatings.
- Don’t let the silver rattle touch the metal surface of the ultrasonic directly, especially if you’re cleaning for a long time, because this could scratch the silver. If you need to, hang the component in the solution with a string or wire.
- Always read the instructions that come with your ultrasonic cleaner, but here’s a quick overview of how it works.
How to do it:
- Use warm water with a little bit of mild, unscented liquid soap mixed in if you can.
- Start with the lowest power setting on your ultrasonic and see how it goes.
- After cleaning, rinse your jewelry well and dry it with a regular soft cloth.
- After utilizing a method to remove tarnish, you might want to put your jewelry back in the ultrasonic to get rid of any cleaning product or fluff that may have gotten stuck to it. Just do the same things again.
Silver Polishing Cloth (For Light to Moderate Tarnish and Shine)
Every jewelry lover needs a decent silver polishing cloth. It will get rid of most common tarnish and make your jewelry shine at the same time. I’m still amazed at how well a simple but high-quality polishing cloth can bring back the shine to tarnished silver jewelry!
I recommend starting with a polishing cloth before moving on to more thorough cleaning procedures. It might accomplish the trick without the mess that comes with some cleaning methods and the need for harsher or more abrasive chemicals.
Our professional-grade Sunshine Jewelry Polishing Cloth will do a great job of getting rid of tarnish and making your jewelry shine. The polishing compound that removes tarnish is inside the cloths, so you can use them on any expensive metal. I also use this stuff a lot.
Most of the time, it’s safe to use good-quality cleaning cloths, but there are a few things you should know.
How to not use:
- Don’t rub the towel directly on gemstones, especially soft ones like opals and pearls, because it could scratch them.
- Be careful while cleaning around portions of jewelry that have been intentionally blackened or patinated so that you don’t damage the finish.
- When polishing precious metals, don’t rub too hard.
How to use:
- Gently wipe the jewelry with the towel. Don’t rub too hard, or you can scratch the metal.
- To keep tarnish from spreading, turn the cloth often.
- Use clean water to rinse the jewelry to get rid of any polishing residue. If you need to, you can use a mild soap.
- Use a regular soft cloth to dry right away.
- Don’t wash the polishing cloth since it will stop working.
- You will need to get a new cloth when it is fully black.
Silver cream, polish, or paste (for tarnish that is moderate to heavy)
Silver cream, polish, or paste can help if your silver is really tarnished or has cracks that you can’t reach with a polishing cloth. But be careful because pastes and polishes might be rougher than other treatments. These ways of cleaning are also messier, so you will probably need to wear gloves and clean up after yourself.
We suggest looking for a polish, cream, or paste that is made just for cleaning silver. Polish that is made to work on a wide range of metals, especially brass and other base metals, is likely to be much more abrasive. I would rather use a silver cream to clean that isn’t too rough.
Make sure to read and follow the directions on the silver cleaning product you use. Here are the methods that are most likely to work.
How to use:
- You should wear gloves.
- Put a little bit on a soft cloth or use the one that comes with it.
- Gently rub the jewelry, moving to cleaner parts of the cloth and adding additional paste or cream as needed.
- Rinse the pieces every so often so you can see how it’s going more clearly.
- If you need to, rinse very well with water and little mild soap after cleaning.
- Use a regular soft cloth to dry it off completely.
Electrochemical silver cleaning (for tarnish that is heavier)
This do-it-yourself procedure employs a chemical reaction to get rid of tarnish. We also don’t think you should use this approach on silver that has been blackened, antiqued, or has another patina because it might take these finishes off.
For tarnish that is thick, this procedure might “loosen” it up enough so that you can use a polishing cloth or another way to finish the work.
What you need is:
- A glass or ceramic bowl with aluminum foil on the inside
- 1 cup of hot water
- 1 tablespoon of salt and 1 tablespoon of baking soda
- 1 tablespoon of gentle, unscented liquid soap
How to do it:
- Put the things in the bowl and mix them together.
- Put the jewelry on top of the foil and leave it there for 5 to 10 minutes.
- Rinse well and do it again as needed with a new batch.
- At this stage, you might alternatively try using a polishing cloth again, following the steps above, for a gentler second pass.
- Use a gentle cloth to dry your jewelry.
6. Silver Dip (For Moderate to Heavy Tarnish)
Silver dips are a quick and easy way to get rid of tarnish because they work quickly and don’t require rubbing. Dips can also get into small spaces and details that a polishing cloth, creams, polishes, or pastes can’t.
That sounds amazing, but silver dip is a strong chemical that should be used with care. I suggest that you only use a top-quality silver dip on things that really need it and not very often. Using it too often could hurt the surface of the metal.
How not to do it:
- Don’t dip delicate stones like pearls, opals, or lapis lazuli (pearls are the most sensitive).
- Don’t dip blackened, antiqued, or other patinated metals; it could damage or remove these surfaces.
- If the instructions don’t specify otherwise, don’t leave your jewelry in the dip for longer than a few seconds at a time.
- Don’t forget to rinse and dry well.
- Do not let the liquid touch your skin or any other surfaces.
- You should always read and follow the directions on the product, but here is a summary.
How to do it:
- Put the jewelry in for a few seconds.
- Make sure to rinse it extremely well with clean water.
- Use a soft cloth to dry right away.
- Do this again if the tarnish is really bad, but don’t go too far.
- You can also try using a polishing cloth again after dipping, as described above.
Get a professional to clean your jewelry (for all levels of tarnish)
Most people want to clean their silver jewelry at home. But if an item is complicated in any way (such soft precious stones, a very delicate pattern, etc.) or is really sentimental, important, or has a lot of tarnish, we suggest that you take it to a professional to have it cleaned.
A lot of high-end jewelry stores and jewelry makers offer cleaning services. It will probably cost something, but if you love the item and want to clean it safely, hiring a professional to handle it is the best alternative. They will use the right tools and methods.
Important Tip: Before you take your jewelry to a professional to be cleaned or repaired, wash it with mild soap and water (see above). You wouldn’t take dirty garments to a clothing alteration agency, but clients often bring them really dirty jewelry to jewelers.
Do them a favor and wash your jewelry first, or use an ultrasonic cleaner on really dirty items if they can handle it (see above). Believe us, every jeweler will really, really, and sincerely appreciate what you’ve done.
Silver Cleaning Myths: How Not to Clean Jewellery
So, we have told you about the best ways to clean your silver, but if you look online, you’ll find a lot of different “homemade silver cleaning” methods that use things you probably already have in the house.
Most of these are bad ideas, and silver conservationists and jewelry experts don’t endorse them. The electrochemical silver cleaning procedure above is the only one that doesn’t work.
If you need to clean your jewelry right away and can’t use any of these other methods, you might be able to get away with it if you’re very careful. But if you can prevent it, we don’t think you should use them at all.
Here are some things you should not do:
- Baking soda paste: too rough
- Toothpaste is too rough.
- Vinegar is overly acidic and could hurt diamonds.
- Lemon juice is highly acidic and could hurt gemstones.
- Baking soda and vinegar together: the same problems as above, plus the fizz looks cool but doesn’t do anything.
- Olive oil mixture: produces a sticky residue that may be hard to get rid of and will draw in dirt and dust.
- Glass cleaner: too strong
- Any of the above together
How to Keep Silver Jewelry from Getting Tarnished
You can do things to prevent tarnish from happening. You can’t prevent it, but you can make it less of an issue.
Wear your Jewellery
Wearing silver often helps keep it from tarnishing. But if your skin’s pH reacts easily with silver (which is true for a tiny percentage of people), you may need to clean your jewelry more often or perhaps wear a different type of metal.
Store your jewellery properly
- The best approach to keep silver from tarnishing is to keep it in a closed container where air can’t travel freely.
- Don’t put your jewelry on an open stand or rack since it will get dusty and silver will tarnish rapidly. These kinds of displays can appear nice, but they don’t help your jewelry.
- Put some silica gel packets or anti-tarnish strips in your jewelry storage box. These are things that come with other products and can help.
- Don’t leave jewelry in places that are damp, including bathrooms. Humidity and being outside are an ideal mix for… tarnish.
Avoid Contact with Chemicals
- Take off any jewelry before you swim in a pool or the ocean.
- Before taking a shower or bath, it’s also a good idea to take it off.
- Don’t wear jewelry while working out because sweat can cause corrosion and other problems (or clean it right after).
- When using cleaning solutions, especially harsh ones like bleach, you should also take off any jewelry you have on your hands.
- Put on jewelry after putting on makeup and perfume.
Final Thoughts
If you take care of and clean your silver jewelry the right way, it will look great for years to come. The most important things are to take care of your jewelry gently and store it correctly. We think you should set aside time at least twice a year to check your jewelry, clean it, and polish it if it needs it.
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