What is the best way to clean large amounts of sterling silverware?

Question

I have a large quantity of sterling silverware, left to me from my mother. What is the easiest way to clean the tarnish from them?

Answer 1

You will need the following:-

* a pan or dish large enough to completely immerse the silver in
* aluminum foil to cover the bottom of the pan
* enough water to fill the pan
* a vessel in which to heat the water
* hot pads or kitchen mitts with which to handle the heated water vessel
* baking soda, about 1 cup per gallon of water

Line the bottom of the pan with aluminum foil. Set the silver object on top of the aluminum foil. Make sure the silver touches the aluminum.

Heat the water to boiling. Remove it from the heat and place it in a sink. To the hot water, add about one cup of baking soda for each gallon of water. (If you need only half a gallon of water, use half a cup of baking soda.) The mixture will froth a bit and may spill over; this is why you put it in the sink.

Pour the hot baking soda and water mixture into the pan, and completely cover the silver.

Almost immediately, the tarnish will begin to disappear. If the silver is only lightly tarnished, all of the tarnish will disappear within several minutes. If the silver is badly tarnished, you may need to reheat the baking soda and water mixture, and give the silver several treatments to remove all of the tarnish.

Answer 2

Please don't try Brillo pads, as John recommended. They will scratch and ruin your silver. I own 75 pieces of silver, along with 3 sets of sterling silverware. I inherited many large pieces and they were badly tarnished. Please do NOT use Tarnex or any other acid based quick cleaner, as it will eat off the tarnish and a layer of silver. You need to use a tarnish remover that also has polish in it, and I recommend Goddards Silver paste. The tin foil and soda works very quickly and well. But be SURE to polish afterwards. Anytime you remove tarnish and do not polish afterwards, the piece will retarnish within weeks. If you do not plan to display these pieces, go to a fabric store and buy "congress cloth", "kenized" fabric, or any good tarnish proof cloth. Wrap each piece carefully with the cloth and make sure no air or light can get to your silver. This cloth will not let sulfur through it, and sulfur is the main culprit that causes tarnish. Do not place silver pieces around rubber bands or anything that contains sulfur. Sorry this is so long, but I'm a silver professional and know what I'm talking about. If you can't find Goddards products where you live, you maybe can purchase a huge jar of it from their website. Try northernlabs.com or do a search...... I've tested them all, and Goddards keeps the tarnish away longer than any of the others.

Answer 3

The frustration with silverware is that it will tarnish over and over again no matter what you do. It is very definately maintenance intense.

There are a number of commercial silver cleaners that work fairly well at tarnish removal. Any one will do the job.

There is another way that can be helpful. You need a large aluminum pan - one that will become darkened markedly in the process and the darkening will not be able to be reversed so many do not like to use this process. You clean the aluminum pan - and scour with steel wool to make it fairly shiney. You fill it with the silverware and enough water to cover the silver ware. Add about 1 tablespoon of household grade table salt (NaCl) per quart of water used. Put strips of aluminum foil in the water (these will also darken in the process). Warm the water to approx 40 deg C or about 110 deg F (exact temperature is not critical). The silver oxide will reduce to silver metal, removing the tarnish. The aluminum will become aluminum oxide. Silver sulfide, another tarnish product, will become silver metal and the aluminum will become aluminum suphide. Silver metal is shiney. This process may require more aluminum foil addition as the aluminum foil darkens.

Regardless of whatever process you use, the silver will tarnish again and again.

Answer 4

Use a Tablespoon of Baking soda per two cups of boiling water in a foil lined tin pan then place your silverware on the bottom of the pan on top of this foil which should have the shiny side facing upward, within minutes your silverware will be clean and tarnish free Good Luck !

Answer 5

Best Silverware

Answer 6

Best Way To Clean Silver

Answer 7

clean large amounts sterling silverware

Answer 8

Silver polish and lots of elbow grease. I prefer Goddards. The immersion technique is not effective. And NEVER use steel wool soap pads. Do a few pieces every night. And before you know it everything will be done and next month you can start again. That's the beauty of owning silver.

Answer 9

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* Methods of cleaning silver should be determined by the value placed on it, monetary or sentimental, and the design of the pattern. Silver with deeply "carved" patterns that are enhanced by an oxide or French gray finish should be hand polished with a high quality silver cream or polish. Hand rubbing develops patina on silver which adds to its beauty. Ornamental silver pieces that have been lacquered may be washed in lukewarm water; hot water could remove the lacquer. Polishing silver while wearing rubber gloves promotes tarnish. Instead, choose plastic or cotton gloves. Silver has enemies. Rubber severely affects silver. Rubber corrodes silver, and it can become so deeply etched that only a silversmith can repair the damage. Raised designs can be lost permanently. Avoid using storage cabinets or chests with rubber seals, rubber floor coverings, rubber bands, etc. Other enemies of silver include table salt, olives, salad dressing, eggs, vinegar and fruit juices. Serve these foods in china or glass containers. Although flowers and fruit look lovely in silver containers, the acid produced as they decay can etch the containers and cause serious damage. When using silver containers, use plastic or glass liners. Baking Soda: Apply a paste of baking soda and water. Rub, rinse, and polish dry with a soft cloth. To remove tarnish from silverware, sprinkle baking soda on a damp cloth and rub it on the silverware until tarnish is gone. Rinse and dry well. Aluminum Foil, Baking Soda, and Salt: Place a sheet of aluminum foil in the bottom of a pan, add 2-3 inches of water, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon salt, and bring to a boil. Add silver pieces, boil 2-3 minutes, making sure the water covers the silver pieces. Remove silver, rinse, dry, and buff with a soft cloth. This method cleans the design and crevices of silver pieces. Toothpaste: To clean off tarnish, coat the silver with toothpaste, then run it under warm water, work it into a foam, and rinse it off. For stubborn stains or intricate grooves, use an old soft-bristled toothbrush. Silver Flatware Care Silver is easily scratched so never use harsh abrasives. It is corroded or tarnished by salt and salt air, sulfur and sulfur-containing foods, and rubber. Frequent use deters formation of tarnish. Do not let silver stand with food on it; salty or acid foods can stain it. Rinse if it will not be washed at once. Store silverware in a chest lined with tarnish- resistant flannel or air-tight plastic bag when not in use. Do not put rubber bands on silver as they cause tarnish. Handle silver with care to avoid nicks and heavy scratches; knife blades and other metals can do damage if they come in contact with silverware. Cleaning Flatware: Wash in warm sudsy water. Rinse well and dry immediately. Do not let hollow handled silverware or hollow ware stand in water as a combination of heat, water, and detergent may loosen soldering. Washing in a Dishwasher: Silverware may be washed in the dishwasher but the patina on fine silver is enhanced by the rubbing that occurs when washing and drying by hand. Hollow handles may be loosened with exposure to heat and detergent in the dishwasher. Electrolytic methods of cleaning: Aluminum, salt, soda and hot water are not recommended for cleaning silver with an oxidized or French gray finish. Do not spill dry dishwasher detergent on flatware; it may cause dark spots. If washing both silverware and stainless steel flatware in the dishwasher, do not put in the same basket section or let one metal touch the other, or the silver may be permanently damaged. New sterling silverware sometimes gets brown spots after washing in the dishwasher. Sterling is 92 1/2 percent silver and 7 1/2 percent other alloys including copper for greater durability. In automatic dish washing, a reaction can occur between water droplets and the small portion of copper at the surface to cause brown spots on some pieces. After the silverware has been washed several times, the copper on the surface is gone and the surface is pure silver. Avoid such spotting on new silverware by washing and drying new silverware by hand for the first few uses. If you want to use the dishwasher, follow these precautions: Use the automatic rinse dispenser feature of a dishwasher. The rinse agent lowers the surface tension of the rinse water so it sheets off the surfaces and droplets don't form. or use a rinse agent in solid form that hangs on the dishwasher rack, if your dishwasher does not have an automatic rinse dispenser. Remove new silverware from the dishwasher immediately after the last rinse cycle and towel dry for the first few times.

Answer 10

i,m sure its not the quickest way buy try brillo pads they are very gentle soap filled wire wool pads