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Silverware is a preciously loved and prized commodity among many households. Rigorous and diligent care is taken of these dear silver artefacts. Precious heirlooms passed down from generations or a sentimental piece of jewellery with a high silver price, are very well taken care of. However, silver artefacts are bound to become tarnished in their lifetime, no matter how much care is taken with them. Silver tarnishes when silver sulphide, an element in silver metal reacts with the sulphur in the air. Sulphur is found in the air as a by-product of burning of fossil fuels. The reaction causes brown or black patches in streaks or spots to appear on the silver object. This is known as tarnish. There are many products in the market today that proclaim to be able to clean silver and restore it to its previous glory. However, such cleaning agents are usually heavy in chemicals and may do more harm than good and lower the silver price of your artefacts. In fact some brands of silver cleaners contain solvents that pose grave threat to your health. If vapours from these are inhaled in an ill ventilated room, it could result in grave health consequences, even cancer. Constant exposure to such fumes may result in future chronic health complications. So it is better to employ natural methods for cleaning your prized silver cutlery or silver jewellery. A mild cleaning agent you can employ for cleaning silver is toothpaste. Coat your silver object with toothpaste by a clean cloth. Now hold it under warm running water and wipe dry with a clean cloth. For silver pieces with intricate carvings and detailing use a toothbrush with soft bristles. To clean small objects of silver, take an aluminium pot or an enamel container. Using a container of any other metal, may cause the silver to react with the metal. Line the container with an aluminium foil and place the silver pieces on the foil. Now, pour enough water in the container that the silver pieces remain submerged in water. Add 1 teaspoon of salt and baking soda to the container and bring the water to a boil. Once the water has cooled down, drop the pieces of silver into warm and soapy water. Wipe dry with a clean cloth. There is another similar method with some variations. Line the container with a silver foil and place the silver pieces on it. Pour boiling water to submerge the pieces and add two tablespoons of baking soda to the water. Let the silver soak until the water is cool to touch. As in the above method, wipe dry with a clean cloth. To clean items with high prices on silver , opt for a professional cleaner instead. Kyles Humphrey in this article states the advantages of natural methods of cleaning silver, over cleaning silver by chemical cleaning agents. She proposes a much better method to care for your silver so that even years later you can profit from the high prices on silver .
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