How do you clean silver jewelry with tin foil and hot water?

Sharon Hassett
by Sharon Hassett
  7 answers
  • Linda Sikut Linda Sikut on Jan 14, 2018

    There are several methods of cleaning silver jewelry. I found many for silver items using tin foil, baking soda and water, but if you click on the link below, you'll see that this article is specifically for silver jewelry. You must be careful if there are any stones in your jewelry. Some cannot handle the water because it can loosen the glue that is holding the stones. Wishing you the best.

    https://www.novica.com/blog/how-to-clean-and-care-for-sterling-silver-jewelry/

  • Johnavallance82 Johnavallance82 on Jan 14, 2018

    Add baking soda....

  • Nancy Turner Nancy Turner on Jan 14, 2018

    Use plain white toothpaste. It will not damage the silver or silver plate, or leave residue after it is rinsed. It is also safer for stones. Over time the tinfoil method will remove layers of silver and I have heard there is often a gray residue left on the jewelry. I don't think is safe for plated jewelry, so make sure none of it is plated if you decide to use that method. Make sure you have no soft stones on the jewelry, like opal, turquoise and pearls as they will definitely be harmed by the chemical reaction.

  • Emily Emily on Jan 14, 2018

    I tried the toothpaste thing on some jewelry. It cleaned the sterling earrings o.k. not so much a silver plated teaspoon. I would use Wrights or Gorham silver polish on my silver jewelry. The foil, baking soda thing I also have done but for big pieces like pitchers, tea pots. It is messy, uneven a you still have to use the silver polish afterwards.


  • William William on Jan 14, 2018

    I sell a lot of silver on Ebay. Jewelry, silverware, serving sets. Silver polish and dips tend to remove some of the metal. The foil method doesn't work that great and still leaves a grey film that still needs to be removed. I use white toothpaste (not gel)and a damp toothbrush. For large items I use a damp cloth. Also works on copper, brass, gold, porcelain, ceramics, sneakers, plastics, etc. For my sales I needed one product for cleaning everything.

  • Chloe Crabtree Chloe Crabtree on Oct 02, 2022

    These are many ways to clean your silver, try one of these:

    No more tarnishing with aluminum

    Boil 4 cups of water, a tablespoon of baking soda, and some aluminum foil. Place silverware in for 10 seconds then remove with kitchen tongs.

    Ketchup isn’t just for eating

    Tarnished silver can be polished with ketchup using a paper towel – for silver that has crevices, use a toothbrush.

    Kill two birds with one stone

    When using Windex to clean your windows, spray some on a rag and use it to scrub your silver.

    Brush your silver with toothpaste

    Use circular motions to brush non-gel and non-abrasive toothpaste onto silver. Leave on for five minutes before washing off with water.

    Use soda for tarnished silver

    Fill a plastic bowl with lemon-lime soda and place slightly tarnished silver in it for one hour. Rinse and dry with a paper towel.