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Silver purifies water. This fact is known to everyone. But how and how to clean silver, not everyone knows.
How to clean silver
“It’s too early to talk about decor in Russia. Our people should be taught not to decorate the interiors, but to clean them, ”one very famous decorator said in her hearts, to whom I offered to hold a master class on serving. Her mood was spoiled by a call from customers who reported the next “intrigues” of the housekeeper. This time she destroyed an antique silver jug. The old master decorated it with graceful engraving and blackening, which the unfortunate woman took for dirt and carefully cleaned it with a brush and gruel of ammonia and chalk. After that, the rare vessel shone, “like cat eggs” (in the words of the au pair, now unemployed). In this form, he took a worthy place in the row of stainless steel pots and was not much different from them. The strangest thing in this story was that no matter who I told it, the reaction was the same: “Don’t be surprised, but rather write down how you need to clean silver.” Here. Writing. “In general, silver items can be in two states: mirror-polished (new silver) and” alive “(silver, which is actively used), – say consultants from the Louvre boutique. – This is a very soft metal, so its surface becomes covered with “wrinkles” over time, they cannot even be called scratches – after all, in this case, the layer of material is not removed, but “pressed”, the molecules “caked”, the material becomes denser – like human skin over the years … Consequently, silver, which is used constantly, is less susceptible to the influence of the external environment. Conclusion: to take less care of silver items, you need to use them more often! ”
Folk remedies
- Coat the silver with gruel of ammonia and chalk. After the mixture has dried, rinse the item thoroughly with water and wipe dry. Yolk stains are easy to clean with ash. Silver can be cleaned with chalk. Silver-plated objects – no: chalk will erase the finest coating.
- Silver can be cleaned well with toothpaste.
- In order for the devices to always shine, they must be immersed in boiling water with a small amount of soda immediately after use.
- Dip the darkened silverware in warm potato broth for 15 minutes. Then rub with a brush and rinse in water.
- Electrolytic method. Place aluminum foil on the bottom of the glass container. Arrange the silverware carefully on it. Stir baking soda in hot water (tablespoon per liter). Pour silver with this solution and leave overnight. In the morning everything will shine and shine.
Historically, silver was cleaned by professionals. In the days of the ancient Romans, there were special “slaves with silver” (servi ad argentum). Noble English families kept a butler in charge of the maintenance of the silverware and a footman in charge of cleaning it. The footman polished the spoons, knives, forks to a shine, and the butler did not leave him for a minute, checking if they were shiny enough and if everything was in place. In tsarist Russia, footmen spent hours polishing silver with their fingertips, at the same time rubbing over minor scratches. Things have become easier today. With the help of modern lotions, sprays, ultrasonic machines and rolls with special impregnation, the same result can be achieved in minutes or even seconds. The choice of silver care products is hardly less than the dishes themselves. It is important that these products not only clean, but also protect the precious metal from possible tarnishing and yellowness.
It is recommended to clean “frozen” silver at least once a month. It should be wiped down with a cloth or flannel or suede glove (this is exactly what shopkeepers do in boutiques). You can find cleaning products in the same stores where silver is sold (Louvre and Sens boutiques). In addition to cleaning rags, brushes, sprays, pastes, containers of cleaning liquid, you can find protective paper soaked in paper pads, rolls and bags for storing cutlery. If we are talking about cleaning and polishing a large number of items, it makes sense to call an English master with a polishing machine to your home (this service is provided by the Sens boutique).
“Launched” items can only be cleaned with a special paste. It will remove oxidation (blackening) and yellowness. The most difficult cutlery to clean are forks. They are placed in a plastic basket, and then in a container with a special solution (the small cells of the basket allow it to be used for jewelry). Three seconds are enough for cleansing. In case of heavy contamination, ten minutes. Cutlery can also be washed in a regular dishwasher. Just do not use chlorine products and avoid contact of steel blades of knives with silver-plated and silver surfaces. After completing the cycle, open the machine so that the steam does not settle on the appliances and leave no traces. Use water softeners to avoid corrosion. Devices made of combined materials (eg horn plus silver) must be washed by hand with a soft sponge and non-abrasive agents.
Finally, two very important remarks. First: silver must be treated with care, but without fanaticism. Remember: no matter how carefully you look after it, sooner or later “traces of time” will inevitably appear on it. And second: the better the silver (its composition and the quality of the initial polish), the more beautiful it will age and the easier it will be to care for it.
You can buy professional silver cleaners in boutiques Louvre (t. 737 8504) and “Sense” (t. 727 2496).
Silver care tips
- Silver is a very soft metal. Therefore, never clean it with harsh sponges or abrasives.
- Silver must be cleaned separately from other metals. Otherwise, objects will oxidize.
- Clean large items (candelabra, trays) with sprays, small items with paste, although a container with a special solution is more convenient. The exception is knives; their blades (except for fish ones) are made of stainless steel. If you immerse the combo knife in the cleaning solution, stains will appear on the blade.
- Store and wash cutlery so that they do not touch each other. When stacking silver dishes, transfer them with napkins. Store the cutlery in rolls and bags with special impregnation. This, by the way, is what manufacturers and sellers themselves do.
- When cleaning silver, avoid the stigma! Especially if you are dealing with a well-known brand. How well the stamp will be read will affect the price of this item in 50 years, when it becomes antique (at auctions, the price of two identical items with stamps of different degrees of preservation differs by an order of magnitude).
- Do not let the silver come into contact with the caviar. The resulting stains are difficult to remove.
- It is categorically impossible to clean silver with blackening, since the black will leave the object along with the dirt.
- Never wash silver cleaning wipes and gloves! They are impregnated with a special solution and after washing they will lose the ability to clean anything.