6 Steps to Easily Remove Tarnish & Keep Silver Beautiful for Years to Come!

Do you have Great Grandma Lydia’s old silver from 1901? I do and I'm embarrassed to say it has been wrapped up in those anti-tarnish cloths for the past 30 years and it's beyond tarnished! Silver tarnishes so easily and is not fun to clean. Tarnish on silver is black sulfide so when silver is exposed to sulfur-containing gasses in the air, it will discolor as it reacts with the gas. This is how the surface of your silver can change so quickly. The fun part is instantly removing the tarnish from silver using commonly available household items. To prevent your silver from tarnishing again, apply ProtectaClear®. ProtectaClear® is an easy to apply, clear protective coating and will keep your silver looking like you just spent the whole day polishing it.

All you will need is a container big enough for your items, aluminum foil, baking soda and hot water. The steps are listed below, and this method works great, plus you avoid harsh chemicals and spending money.

1. Gather the needed items:

• Tarnished silver

• Large container/Plastic tub

• Aluminum foil

• Baking soda

• Hot water

2. Wrap the silver item in aluminum foil. Add baking soda and hot water to your container and mix well. A ratio of 2 cups baking soda to 1 gallon of water works best.

3. Add foil wrapped items to the hot water/baking soda solution. The time it will take depends on how badly the silver is tarnished. Give it time to work. If the water cools, add more hot water. Check the progress periodically.

4. Once the tarnish is gone, unwrap the silver completely. You will see that the tarnish has transferred to the foil, and you have beautiful silver again! Wash with a mild soap, rinse and dry the silver. If it does need a bit of polishing, we recommend Midas Touch®, or one that is not acid based. Acid causes tarnish as well and polishes with high levels of acid will make the tarnish you just worked on removing come right back!

5. Apply ProtectaClear® following the Instruction Guide, letting it dry 1 hour between the recommended two coats. ProtectaClear® is easy to apply and self-leveling; your silver will look freshly polished for years! ProtectaClear® will also protect plated silver from wearing off.

6. ENJOY YOUR BEAUTIFUL SILVER KNOWING IT WON’T TARNISH OR NEED POLISHING FOR YEARS!

On the next episode of Everbrite Ideas….Fall *back* in love with your copper sink!