Selfsufficientish.com

A friend has just brought a cornet form ebay and apparently it needs a clean!

It's silver.... and I'm gussing there's something to do with lemons and/or vinegar but don't really have any idea... does anyone know how to clean silver without going and buying all the expensive stuff from a jewellers?

I'm sure it's been posted before (sorry!) and I di search... but got bored wiht looking after the 3rd page!!

Thankies for your help in advance!

I know there's a way to do it with hot water, salt and aluminium foil - but I think you'd have to immerse the whole thing in it...

One method for cleaning silver is with tomato ketchup using a small brush to apply, then water to rinse off and buff up with a clean cloth.

Another method uses a solution of washing soda in a bowl of warm water and a sheet of aluminium foil. The item is soaked for a short time and the tarnish transfers to the foil.

Make sure it is thoroughly dried after.

Your friend will also need valve oil.

What is the active ingredient in the tomato ketchup, I wonder?

Vinegar and a bit of citric acid, I think.

MKG wrote:Vinegar and a bit of citric acid, I think.

If that is it - why waste perfectly good tomato on the silver?

Because the ketchup is thick and sticks to the metal - so you can coat it and leave it standing for a while. (Note to self: add point to 101 uses for men about explaining things)

I followed some Kim and Aggie (they are on telly) advice on cleaning metal...it was the letter box, the door handle and key hole, all on the same piece of metal on the front door.

Paste of lemon juice and salt....DO NOT DO IT... It took several weeks of cleaning it everyday to remove the tarnish it created and it still looks worse than it did before I attempted to clean it.

Crikey!!! I'd sue 'em. Salt is an amazingly efficient abrasive.

Well my house is a s*** hole anyway, tarnished door furniture is the least of my worries

As I was putting it on (by the way this was before we found the dry rot and the roof fell in ) I was thinking... "hmmm, this doesn't seem right, isn't salt corrosive" DOH

Oh Ann Pann! You've just reminded me of something my friend told me. She works in a school and before half term was helping less able students with their mock GCSEs. She was helping a young man who can neither read or write with his English exam (Ithought English was reading and writing but never mind!)

Anyway, he is a bit of a troublesome lad, shoplifting, truanting, you know the story. She had to read him the questions, write down his answers and ask him if he wanted any capital letters or punctuation but not help him get it right.

First question; describe you home. His answer; f@%&ing sh!t'ole! She was tempted to ask if he wanted a capital F!!!

MKG wrote:Because the ketchup is thick and sticks to the metal - so you can coat it and leave it standing for a while. (Note to self: add point to 101 uses for men about explaining things)

There are other things that stick - no need to waste perfectly good food! Well, that is if you think ketchup does go into the food category. Since I only eat my own, I certainly wouldn't waste it on cleaning silver...

Annpan wrote: As I was putting it on (by the way this was before we found the dry rot and the roof fell in ) I was thinking... "hmmm, this doesn't seem right, isn't salt corrosive" DOH

It seems to be, mixed with acid. However, the salt/water/aluminium foil mixture does work - I've always cleaned my silver like that. (Sounds a bit grand, doesn't it... But I do happen to own some silver plated cutlery, back from the good old days when girls were suppose to collect that kind of thing through their youth in readiness for marriage. )

ina wrote:There are other things that stick - no need to waste perfectly good food! Well, that is if you think ketchup does go into the food category. Since I only eat my own, I certainly wouldn't waste it on cleaning silver...

Couldn't agree more. I ws just pointing why it's used. But the idea of covering anthing with red gunk doesn't appeal to me either