How to Protect Silver from Tarnishing

sterling silver antique charm bracelet

Sterling Silver is the whitest of all metals and very soft even when alloyed. It is a proven fact that continuous polishing over time can remove infinitesmal amounts of the metal. In time, polishing, rubbing or buffing will completely obliterate crests, monograms, etchings, and worse, render valuable identifying hallmarks indiscernible. How do you protect your fine silver and fight off tarnish so you aren't always polishing?

Instructions

1. 

   Tarnish and oxidization are two very different things. Tarnished silver is a brown discoloration caused by humidity, air-pollution, certain foods, or just neglect. Oxidation is the dark gray areas found on raised areas of silver, was put there by the silversmith to emphasize the design. If removed would drastically effect the aesthetic beauty of the piece. Tarnish on the other hand is not good for the silver.

2. 

   Museums and collectors protect their silver from tarnish by using a tarnish-shield. The problem with this is that it is poisonous and must not be used on sterling silver that you will be serving food from. It will clean and protect in one application, but it isn't a permanent deterrent to tarnish. You can buy tarnish-shield at hardware stores.

3. 

   Silver mitts and cloths require no wetting. They are best used to dust silver and maintain a lustre. These are great for sterling silver jewelry. It is always best when using these to NOT buff or polish briskly. It is better to gently wipe the silver clean. Never use rubber gloves when cleaning your silver, there is sulfur in the rubber that is very bad for fine silver.

4. To clean your tarnished silver use a non-abrasive silver foam or silver cream. Use a soft sponge or cloth and never use brushes. I one article on cleaning silver I mentioned using soured milk. This is actually a wonderful old fashion way to clean your silver. You are never supposed to rub or buff after you have cleaned your silver just rinse in warm water and wipe dry with a clean soft cloth.

5. To avoid further tarnishing you can use camphor blocks or camphor gum that emanates a protective atmosphere that deters tarnish on silver. This is excellent to use if you have sterling silver flatware. You can place a block in with your flatware or on a shelf where you store your silver. For fine jewelry you need to keep each piece of jewelry separated in seal bags. You can purchase these at stores like Michael's.

6. For daily protection or storage you can use Pacific Cloth. It is the best protection.

   If you store silver platters and trays put flannel or felt pads between them. It is organic material and will help prevent the silver from tarnishing.

Tips & Warnings

• Plated silver should never be saved in newspaper. The printer ink will remove the plating. Silver that is plated over copper the plating is removed every time it is polished. Rubber always leaves stains so if you use a rubber band around the silver it is torture to remove the stain.

• Sterling silver vases are lovely to put flowers in but the flowers are not good for the silver. The acid from the flowers can etch and eat away the silver. It is best to use a plastic or glass liner or use aluminum foil in your vase.