How to Clean Valuable Coins

Member

By dambrath
User-Submitted Article

Article Rating:

(1 Ratings)

Clean Valuable Coins

As any coin collector knows, old coins are often dirty and discolored when you first get them, particularly if they have been in the ground. Fortunately there are ways of cleaning them without harming or wearing them too much.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Old Coins
Toothbrush
Dish soap
Water
Paper towels

Step 1

Before you begin the process of cleaning your coins, wearing latex gloves is a good idea if any of the coins are particularly old or fragile looking. The reason being that sweat from our fingers can stain and eat away at the surface of more delicate coins.

The first thing you should do with a group of old coins is to separate them into their different metal types. The reason for this is that some metals, such as silver for example are a lot less resistant to damage than others, such as gold. Also some of the grime that comes off of dirty coins can then stick to other coins, particularly if they are made from different types of materials.
Step 2

Having sorted the coins for cleaning, you should now get a bowl of cold water and have either a toothbrush or paintbrush ready. Nylon based brushes are known to make small abrasions in certain coins, so soft bristles are best.

Let the first coin sit in the water for a few seconds, and then lightly brush away any loose dirt or discoloration. After a few brushes, dry off the coin with a paper towel, and repeat the process until the paper towel comes up clean after drying.
Step 3

If you have extremely old coins, several hundred years old for example, or made from bronze rather than copper, then using distilled water instead of tap water is better. Minerals in tap water in some areas can tarnish these kinds of coins even whilst cleaning them.
Step 4

Gold coins tend to be the most resilient to cleaning, and hot soapy water can be used on them. Copper and nickel coins are best cleaned with cold water, although separately. Silver coins can discolor very easily, and you should be more careful than normal when cleaning them.
Step 5

Some people use harsh chemicals such as tomato ketchup or vinegar for cleaning copper coins. However unless the coin is worthless and you simply want to make it more shiny, this is not a good idea. Valuable copper coins tend to be a lot older than coins made from silver or gold, and so also tend to be more delicate. As such acid based chemicals will tend to melt away the finer details of a coin, often decreasing the value a lot mroe than just having a dirty coin.
Step 6

Over time most coins will take on an oxide coating, and might appear to be a little discolored. This is particularly the case if they aren't stored very well. Coins which are sealed in a set on the other hand shouldn't be removed, due to the fact that exposing them to the elements will lower their grade immediately.
Step 7

There are ways of having very valuable or old coins cleaned, which usually involve the use of either specialist cleaning liquids or ultrasonic cleaning tanks. However often if you are looking to eventually sell a valuable coin, then selling it uncleaned is the best way to go.

Comments

dambrath said

Flag This Comment

on 11/11/2009 Re:Jadedragoninbc

That is true for most coins, but certain coins (such as those found with a metal detector) often have to be cleaned to be identified. A fair point though that anything very valuable should be taken to a specialist unless you have a lot of experience in collecting.