How to Polish Silver Without Silver Polish

Polishing silver is a tedious, time-consuming task. The tarnish on silver, the source of the discoloration, is actually collected sulfur, or silver sulfide, so by polishing you are simply removing this compound. There is a much simpler way to remove the tarnish from your silver, and it entails the use of a heated baking soda/water bath to transfer the collected silver sulfide from the tarnished silver to aluminum. It's possible to have shining silver without expending a single ounce of precious elbow grease.

Things You'll Need

• Glass baking dish or roasting pan Aluminum foil Pot for boiling water 1 cup baking soda 1 gallon water

Instructions

1. Combine your baking soda and water in a pot on the stove. Use 1 cup of baking soda with 1 gallon of water, so, if you wish to double or half the amount of water that you use, adjust accordingly. Heat the water to boiling, and continue to simmer until the baking soda has dissolved into the water.

2. Line your glass baking dish or roasting pan with aluminum foil and pour the baking soda/water mixture into the pan.

3. Piece by piece, place your tarnished silver into the baking soda/water bath. Upon contact with the aluminum foil, the tarnish will instantly come off of your silver, leaving freshly polished silverware without the use of polish and without rubbing.

Tips & Warnings

• Do not overfill your water bath with silver, as the silver must have contact with the aluminum foil for the chemical reaction to occur.