Top 10 ways to clean silver at home and restore its shine with little effort. Tips for cleaning sterling silver objects using products you have at home without damaging or staining it.

Follow these tips to restore the shine of coins, frames and jewelry . In addition, we will also give you the guidelines to follow for jewelry that has zirconia, pearls or gems so that you do not damage or stain them.

10 ways to clean silver at home

First of all, please note that these home methods will cause a chemical reaction and are ONLY valid for jewelry WITHOUT gems, pearls or zircons, as they could be damaged. For this type of jewelry, we recommend other methods that are not as “aggressive” and more specific, which we explain in detail below .

IMPORTANT: The first step, which is common to all of these home tricks, is to clean the floor with soap and water to remove dirt. This will make all of these tricks more effective. Then, rinse them with plenty of water and dry them with a dry cloth.

With sodium bicarbonate and aluminum

This trick is very effective , and is ideal for cleaning and maintaining the shine. However, if it is very dirty, we recommend that you use a combination of several techniques that we explain below .

NECESSARY MATERIALS:

• A bowl or saucepan deep enough to cover the jewelry or piece.
• Mineral water to cover the parts, since it is an immersion cleaning method.
• Foil
• 2 dessert spoons of baking soda. If you don’t have baking soda you can make it with salt, below we explain how .

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. We heat the cold water, either in the microwave or with a saucepan on the stove.
2. Meanwhile, we line the inside of the bowl, saucepan, plate, etc. with aluminum foil and break off small pieces of aluminum, as if they were confetti.
3. Once the water is boiling, turn off the heat and slowly add the 2 tablespoons of baking soda. Stir until completely dissolved.
4. We introduce the piece or jewel and add the water little by little carefully until it is completely covered. And finally we add the aluminum shavings or confetti.
5. Using a wooden stick or other NON-metallic utensil, stir the pieces for 4-5 minutes.
6. Then we take them out and rinse them with plenty of water and rub them with a cotton cloth.
   

   Clean it with salt

   Salt can be used in two different ways. The first is using the same system that we saw before with baking soda, but replacing salt with baking soda, it’s that easy. However, it is less effective than with baking soda.

   The other way is with salt. Take a small container and pour 2-3 tablespoons of fine salt into it, then add a few drops of water until it becomes a paste , which you can rub on the pieces with your fingers. This way the salt will act as an abrasive product and polish the surface.

   We can also use a toothbrush to reach all the corners and recesses. The use of a toothbrush is especially recommended for cleaning silver chains, necklaces and Pandora bracelets .

   With sodium bicarbonate

   We take a small container where we are going to make the baking soda paste . To do this, we add 2 tablespoons of baking soda, then with a teaspoon we add a few drops of water and mix until the baking soda paste is formed.

   With this paste, we will rub the ring, bracelet, coin or photo frame with our fingers or with the help of a toothbrush. Then we will rinse it with plenty of water and rub it with a dry cotton cloth.

   With water and lemon juice

   Add enough water to a saucepan so that the jewelry is submerged 2 or 3 cm and heat it over medium heat with the jewelry inside. Meanwhile, cut 2 lemons and drain them into a glass. Once the water is boiling, add the lemon juice little by little and stir with a NON-metallic object, as this could scratch the jewelry.
   
   We turn off the heat and let them rest for about 10 minutes. Then we take them out, rinse them thoroughly with water until they cool and rub them with a dry cloth.

   With baking soda and vinegar

   We take a container and put the jewelry in it, then we cover it with baking soda and rub it so that the baking soda reaches all the corners. We take a utensil to remove the jewelry, but it should not be made of metal .

   Then we add the vinegar very slowly, since a chemical reaction will occur in the form of foam and gases will be released.

   Once the reaction begins, remove the jewelry and moisten it with more vinegar. Leave it for a few minutes until the chemical reaction stops, rinse with plenty of water and rub with a dry cotton cloth.

   With vinegar

   We take a container and place the jewelry, then we add the vinegar until it covers them. We let it rest for a few minutes, and we stir with a non-metallic utensil.

   

   Then we rinse with plenty of water and rub with a dry cloth.

   This method is valid for cleaning silver that is NOT very dirty.

   With vinegar and salt

   Take a saucepan and add 3 parts water and one part vinegar, then add a spoonful of salt and stir until dissolved. Place the jewelry in the saucepan and heat it, stirring occasionally.

   When it starts to boil, remove from heat, wait about 5 minutes and rinse with plenty of water. Then rub with a dry cloth.

   With toothpaste

   This method works very well with jewelry that is not very dirty . It is preferable to use white toothpaste and a whitening type, since it has more abrasive particles and the finish is a very shiny polish.
   
   We take the jewelry and add enough toothpaste so that it is well impregnated, then we rub it for 5 minutes, preferably with a toothbrush. Then we rinse it and dry it with a cloth.

   This method also works for polishing jewelry.

   With turpentine or ammonia

   The first thing is to make sure that we are in a well-ventilated room. Both products should never be mixed.

   We take a cloth, preferably cotton, and wet a corner with a few drops of turpentine or ammonia and rub the piece. As the cloth gets dirty, we change to rub with the clean cloth.

   With lemon and salt

   This method is useful for larger pieces such as pendants, tableware, cutlery and silverware.
   
   We cut a lemon into pieces and take one of the 2 halves, and with a fork we prick it to help the juice come out. Then, with the lemon half facing up, we add a spoonful of salt and spread it evenly over the entire surface and rub the pieces on a cloth.

   Then we rinse them with plenty of water and dry them with a dry cloth.

   Trick to clean very dirty or black silver

   We have seen many home methods in this post, but this method is ideal for restoring the shine of jewelry that is extremely dirty and has turned black . It is the best way to recover its shine without effort.

   To do this we are going to apply a combination of techniques that we have seen before.

   1. We take the jewelry in our hands and add a few drops of dishwashing liquid, wet it a little and scrub it with a toothbrush until foam appears. Then we rinse it with plenty of water.
   2. Place a container with vinegar and leave them for about 5 minutes. Remove the vinegar and, without drying or rinsing them, add 2 tablespoons of baking soda. And scrub again with the toothbrush.
   3. We line a bowl or container with aluminum foil, as we have seen before. And we add the jewelry together with the baking soda.
   4. We heat the water and pour it into the container. We stir with a wooden or plastic object until the bicarbonate dissolves.
   5. Add the aluminum confetti and stir again. Let it rest for about 5-10 minutes.
   6. We rinse the jewelry with water and add toothpaste to the brush (it is better if it is whitening toothpaste because it contains abrasive particles) and rub it in all the corners. This step will help us to polish it and give it shine.
   7. And finally, we rinse with water and rub with a dry cotton cloth.

   treatment .

   Natural pearls are very delicate and sensitive to chemicals and soaps that can dry them out, cause them to lose their shine and cause surface cracks or flakes. This damage is irreparable, so we recommend caution, and if you are unsure, go to your trusted jeweler.
   
   Some of the gems are porous or have been treated with oils during the cutting process (emeralds, rubies , sapphires , etc.), and if we apply heat or chemicals to them we could damage them.

   In the case of gold-plated jewelry, you must be especially careful not to use abrasive products such as toothpaste or metal cleaner, so the gold will last much longer. Read this post about the care of gold-plated jewelry .

   To clean jewelry with stones or pearls, we recommend that you use a cotton cloth slightly moistened with water at room temperature and rub them very carefully, avoiding rubbing the stones or pearls, thus preventing them from coming loose.

   If the jewelry is very dirty, it is best to go to your trusted jeweler and have them do it, this way you can be sure that the jewelry will remain in your family for a long time.

   You can also choose to buy special products for silver objects . There are many products on the market made especially for the care and cleaning of silver. In this post we show you the advantages and disadvantages of the different types of cleaners you can buy.

   How to keep silver shiny longer

   The reasons why silver turns black is a natural process of the jewelry , so over time it will turn black again and you will have to polish it again.

   Now, we give you some tips to slow down oxidation , so that your jewelry shines for longer, saving you some cleaning.

   1. Avoid contact between jewelry and cosmetics and creams, so it is best to put them on just before leaving home and take them off when you arrive.
   2. Store your jewelry in a jewelry box and do not leave it exposed to the air, as air is what oxidizes it.
   3. If you can, store each piece of jewelry individually to prevent them from scratching each other.
   4. Do not do housework with them on, as soaps, detergents and bleach can darken them, and knocks can scratch them.
   5. Avoid bathing with them at the beach, in swimming pools or showers with them.
   6. Do not exercise while wearing them. Sweat accelerates the oxidation process.
   7. Don’t wait until it is very dirty, it is worth cleaning it from time to time with toothpaste, which is a very quick method and with which you can easily recover the shine.
   8. Avoid leaving your jewelry in the sun, especially when you go to the beach or pool, try to keep it in your bag.

   Conclusion

   Now you know how to clean your silver jewelry depending on whether it has stones or not. But it must be said that these are not the only methods with home remedies, there are many more, and you can find them on the Internet, but they are not as effective.