Cleaning Metal
Cleaning metal surfaces such as copper, brass, and silver is easy with common ingredients such as vinegar, salt, baking soda, and lemon juice. For best results, clean metal surfaces regularly, before a heavy layer of tarnish builds up and makes the object difficult to clean.
Chrome
Rubbing alcohol, or a small amount of ammonia with hot water. Also
try white flour in a damp rag.
Polishing copper with vinegar
and salt
Rub lightly with fine table salt wetted with vinegar and lemon juice.
Fill a
spray bottle with distilled white vinegar and spray liberally on to the tarnished
copper surface. Sprinkle salt over the vinegar and rub with a soft cloth. Rinse
with warm water.
Heavily oxidized copper may need more than one treatment.
Cleaning brass
Equal parts salt and flour, with a little vinegar. or;
Mix lemon juice with baking soda to the consistency of toothpaste. Rub the
mixture on to the metal surface and let sit for five minutes. Rinse well
with warm water
Brightening brass
To keep brass brighter after polishing, rub a bit of olive oil on to it with
a soft cloth.
Simple silver polish
Light tarnish can be cleaned from silver using the mild abrasive action of
baking soda
Dampen a clean sponge and sprinkle it with baking soda.
Rub the
silver cutlery or serving pieces until they are clean.
Rinse them thoroughly
with clean water, and dry.
For stubborn tarnish, make a paste of baking soda
and water, and apply to the silver.
Let the silver items dry, and then rinse
them with warm water
An old toothbrush will help to clean intricate pieces
of silver
Silver Polish 2
Soak in:
1 qt. warm water
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
small piece of aluminum foil
Silver Polish 3
Rub toothpaste on silver, let it dry and rinse off.
Removing tarnish from silver
Place a large sheet of aluminium foil in a sink of very hot water
Add 110g (3.5oz) of salt and stir to dissolve.
Place the sterling silver cutlery or serving pieces in the sink and allow them
to soak for five minutes.
Rinse the silver items thoroughly with clean water and dry.
Tarnish is easiest to remove if the silver is cleaned regularly in this way.
