Cleaning Silver

I come across much of my silverware whilst on my knees rummaging through large boxes of cutlery on the floor of a dark and dingy shop. Needless to say, most of the silverware I do find is so dirty and tarnished that it's hard to imagine what it could look like.

The science behind tarnished silver is simple. When exposed to air, the silver undergoes a chemical reaction (oxidation) to form silver sulfide, which is the cause of the blackened surface. But the solution is just as simple, the following method allows the oxidation to transfer from the silver to the aluminium foil.

1. Line a plastic container with aluminium foil shiny side up.
2. Place the silver inside and make sure all pieces are in contact with the foil.
3. Sprinkle 1/4 cup of bicarb soda into 1L of boiling water and stir.
4. Pour the bicarb solution over the silver and leave it to soak for 15 minutes.
5. Wearing rubber gloves, remove the silver and rinse.
6. Buff with a clean soft cloth.

For very tarnished items you may need to repeat the above process or polish using a soft cloth and silver polish such as Silvo.