| Silver becomes tarnished from materials that | | | | Never, never put silver in the dishwasher! There |
| contain sulfur. Some of the most common things | | | | are several reasons for this. The most important |
| that will cause your silver to tarnish are wool, felt, | | | | being that the harsh detergent and hot water will |
| food (especially eggs and mayonnaise), rubber | | | | simply ruin your silver. Patina that is sometimes |
| bands, latex and certain types of paints. If the | | | | applied to silver to give an antiqued finish will |
| atmosphere is humid, the tarnish will accelerate. | | | | eventually come off in the dishwasher leaving |
| It is very important that when handling a silver | | | | your silver dull looking. The glue that is used on |
| item that your hands and fingers are not oily as | | | | hollow knife handles will also melt at such high |
| the salts from the oil can leave permanent | | | | water temperatures. Silver that touches stainless |
| damage if not washed immediately. | | | | in the dishwasher can also create a chemical |
| Silver Cleaning Tips: | | | | reaction causing the silver to get black spots. |
| Always wash your silver by hand. If there is no | | | | Silver Storage: |
| tarnish on your silver, simply use a | | | | Your silver should be stored in an area that is |
| phosphate-free detergent to clean it. Washing and | | | | free of dust. |
| drying your silver immediately after using it will | | | | You can delay the tarnishing process by using |
| keep you from having to use tarnish removing | | | | silica gel. These can be purchased in packets and |
| tools less often. Be careful when washing in a | | | | will help to keep the humidity low, or you can |
| metal sink as it could scratch your silver. | | | | purchase what is called a silica gel canister. These |
| In the early stages of tarnish, your silver will have | | | | canisters have a built in indicator that lets you |
| a yellowish tint. The darker in color this gets, the | | | | know moisture levels. A second alternative to |
| harder to remove. If left untouched, it will | | | | using silica gel would be to gently wrap your silver |
| eventually turn black. | | | | in soft tissue (preferably acid free) and then store |
| You can find most silver cleaning products at your | | | | it in a Ziploc bag. And a third option would be to |
| local hardware store. Many of these cleaners have | | | | wrap your silver in a special cloth that absorbs |
| abrasives in them. One that we highly recommend | | | | sulfur. Pacific Silvercloth is one brand that can be |
| is 3M's Tarni-Shield Silver Polish as this has the | | | | used. |
| least amount of abrasives and also contains a | | | | Never wrap your silver in newspaper or use |
| tarnish barrier to protect your silver from | | | | rubber bands to bind it. These items react with |
| tarnishing. | | | | silver and causes discoloration to the extent that |
| Do not use polishes that have become hard or | | | | you may have to have your silver professionally |
| dried up. Dried up polishes are more concentrated | | | | cleaned. Using plastic wrap is also not a good idea |
| and can hurt your silver. | | | | as plastic can contain tarnishing producing |
| Use a very soft cloth. Never use steel wool on | | | | materials. When using cardboard boxes, use only |
| silver. Steel wool is too abrasive and sometimes | | | | archival ones. The non-archival ones have acids in |
| little particles from the wool get into the silver | | | | them that will quickly tarnish. |
| which will rust over time. | | | | |