|
Understanding how tarnish forms on jewelry made of components containing Sterling Silver
Tarnish results from contact between sterling silver and chemicals in the atmosphere like chlorine and sulfur compounds. We can easily identify a way to avoid tarnish. The most simple way is to avoid contact between your sterling silver and the atmosphere. Obviously, it would be a little difficult to only wear your sterling jewelry in a vacuum since we do not live that way. So we have to investigate other options.
Option 1: Store your sterling silver jewelry in an airtight container. Zip lock bags and jewelry boxes can minimize contact between the chemicals in the atmosphere and your jewelry.
Option 2: Use chemistry to help with the problem in one, two, or three ways.
- By adding anti-tarnish strips/tabs to your jewelry box or zip lock bag. These strips/tabs have chemicals in them that capture the sulfur and other chemicals in the air that cause tarnish. They are very effective at minimizing tarnish that could occur while your jewelry was being stored and not worn. The Desert Bee provides one of these 1 inch x 1 inch tabs in each and every piece of jewelry which has silver in any of it’s components. This small tab will protect the jewelry for up to 12 months! Amazing technology wouldn’t you say?
- Use a simple non-abrasive non-caustic chemical bath you can prepare at home! See details below.
- Use a polishing cloth with an anti-tarnish compound impregnated in the cloth. This anti-tarnish compound works just like wax in that it coats your sterling silver so that it can't come in contact with the air. Many polishing cloths have agents that remove tarnish either by physically scraping it off, or chemically by reacting with the tarnish itself to form a new molecule that is easy to remove. Some polishing cloths have these polishing agents and the additional anti-tarnish agent that minimizes tarnish while the jewelry is being worn. The Desert Bee suggests that you will want to get a polishing cloth that has both polishing and anti-tarnish features.
General Guidelines on how to Minimize and Retard Tarnish on your Sterling Silver Jewelry
- Wrap the piece in jeweler's tissue paper and place it inside a plastic zip lock bag and seal.
- Remember sterling silver is a very soft metal and will easily be marred by a fingernail or wadded piece of fabric pushed roughly against the metal surface. For this reason, use one of the following methods to clean heavier soils and tarnish:
- To remove fingerprints, light grease or dirt, add a small amount of mild liquid soap to a half cup of warm water, soak 2-3 minutes, rinse thoroughly with clean water and dry completely before storing in an air tight plastic bag.
- Be VERY careful when using any soaking method to clean jewelry that has soft stones such as amber, lapis lazuli, or turquoise. Extended soaking in any solution may harm the polish on the stone. Never use chlorine bleach to clean jewelry.
- To remove excessive tarnish, polish with a 100% cotton cloth and a good nonabrasive metal cleaner. Be sure to remove any remnants of the cleaner from gemstones and rinse thoroughly with clean water. Never use toothpaste!
Using a Simple Non Abrasive Non-Caustic Chemical Bath You can prepare at home
Here is what I found on the web from Queen's University Kingston Ontario Canada’s Faculty Curriculum Planning Science Department pages which describes how to use aluminum foil, hot water and baking soda to make a chemical bath to remove tarnish from silver. This is a fantastic cleaning process and works like magic to clean moderate to heavily tarnished silver!
- In a large non metallic bowl or baking pan
- Place a piece of aluminum foil in the bottom shiny side up.
- Place the silver on top of the aluminum foil. Remember the silver must come in contact with the foil.
- Pour boiling water into the bowl or baking pan, enough to cover the silver.
- Sprinkle 3 tablespoons of baking soda over the silver.
- Soak for up to ten minutes, no more!
- Rinse thoroughly with water and dry well.
Here is the URL to the actual page if you wish to view it yourself:
http://educ.queensu.ca/~science/main/concept/chem/c03/C03DEEA1.htm
|
