Silver is a beautiful metal with strong energy. Not only jewelry, wedding rings, but also tableware are made from it. It is believed that silver products cleanse the human aura and protect him from diseases. But over time, they blacken and fade. Let's find out why this happens and how to properly store and clean silver.
How to store silverware
To preserve the beauty of silver products, you need to avoid:
- Exposure to high temperatures and moisture;
— Their contact with rubber, paper and cotton;
- Contact with cosmetics and household products.
Recommendations for the storage of silver products:
Store jewelry separately from each other. If there is no separate case for each of them, then use individual plastic bags or velvet bags.
If the room where silver is stored is humid, then put bags with silicate balls in caskets, cases and bags. They will absorb excess moisture.
Do not store jewelry and silverware near heat sources such as radiators, a fireplace, or simply in a sunny place.
Advice! Remove silver rings , earrings and chains before visiting the pool, bath, sauna and before taking a bath. This is also necessary before applying a cosmetic cream or ointment to the skin, especially if it contains mercury or sulfur.
Why does silver darken
For the manufacture of silver jewelry and dishes, not pure silver is used, but its alloy with the addition of copper. This is necessary to create durable and abrasion-resistant products. But silver and copper are metals with high chemical activity. They react with sulfur in human sweat and oxygen, an element found in air and water. As a result, sulfides (black deposits) and oxides (red-brown spots) are formed. It is they who spoil the appearance of silverware.
Silver cleaning
To clean silver products from oxides at home, use one of the recipes:
# Prepare a solution of 1 liter of water and 30 ml of ammonia. Dip silver into it and leave for 10-15 minutes, then remove and polish with a suede patch.
# To remove black deposits, apply a gruel prepared from chalk powder and a small amount of ammonia to the silver surface. Leave it to dry completely and then wash it off. Wipe the product with a flannel cloth.
#Wipe the darkened silver with cotton wool soaked in lemon juice or table vinegar (6%) and rinse it with water.
# Dip jewelry in Coca-Cola and hold there for 10-20 minutes, depending on the degree of contamination of the metal. The drink contains phosphoric acid, which dissolves oxides and sulfides.
# To prevent tarnishing of silver items, soak them once a month in a dishwashing detergent solution, then rinse them under running water and dry with a soft cloth.
# Get a special silver cleaner (Talisman, Aladdin, Unicum or other) for silver and use it whenever you notice that the metal loses its luster or darkens.
Attention! To clean silver, do not use soda, toothpastes and powders. They remove dark spots by acting abrasively (mechanically). As a result, the surface of the metal will lose its gloss and become covered with scratches, which will spoil the appearance of the product. The use of hydrogen peroxide can also lead to sad consequences: do not use it if you do not know if something other than silver and copper is included in the jewelry.
Cleaning of especially valuable items, as well as jewelry with inserts, is best left to professionals. Take your silver to a jewelry shop, where it will be returned to its former gloss with the help of manual cleaning or ultrasound. This will help prevent scratches and stones falling out.
Even with careful handling, silver items can darken. But contamination cleaning should be gentle, regardless of the degree of contamination. Otherwise, the surface may become scratched.
The article was prepared specifically for the site shop-ultra.ru. Consulted by specialists of the jewelry store "SAR-Yuvelir" https://sar-yuvelir.ru/
