Cupronickel ware is a budget option of beautiful cutlery that is outwardly indistinguishable from silver ware. The main noticeable difference is only the marking; otherwise, high-quality Soviet cutlery made of nickel silver was produced using the same models as silver. Needless to say, the cutlery looks incomparable, however, when polished to a shine.
Cupronickel is getting dark, silver, of course, too, but not so fast, and all owners of cupronickel spoons face this problem. In this article, we propose to find out how to clean cupronickel, returning the products to a decent appearance.
Why does cupronickel get dark?
Before we tell you how to clean cupronickel with cheap home remedies, I would like to explain why cupronickel darkens so quickly. The fact is that a metal alloy is prone to form dark oxides by contact with certain substances. Here's a little tip so that dishes, cutlery and other items do not blacken so quickly: after washing, wipe them thoroughly with a dry, soft cloth, bath towel. Each drop of water that has dried on the surface of the product, one way or another, but will leave its mark - a dark spot. May cause dark spots and product debris remaining in inconspicuous recesses on the surface.
Here is the answer to an exciting question: in order to clean nickel silver from blackness, it is necessary to remove the oxide film from the surface of the product. But how to do this?
We bring to your attention a small informative overview of how to clean cutlery from cupronickel and other products with chemistry from the store and improvised tools at home.
Cleaning products
The chemical industry offers a wide range of different products that allow you to properly care for household items, including cleaning products for metal products. Therefore, the first answer to the question of how to clean cupronickel is to use household cleaning products.
The choice of tools that specialize in cleaning metal utensils, including cupronickel, is quite wide. Detergents can be presented in the assortment: liquid soap, gel, powder, soft napkins impregnated with a special composition are also very convenient for cleaning cupronickel products.
In addition, stores with household chemicals can bring to your attention a choice of products not only for cleaning, but also for protection against darkening, which cover the products with a protective layer, protecting nickel silver from oxidation.
Asked how to clean cupronickel and give it shine, pay attention to such tools as:
- Metal Cliner from Bugs;
- cream "Ultra Glitter" from Sanita;
- Cif gel;
- paste "Polymet";
- emulsion "Amethyst".
Most likely, you have already met such tools for cleaning metal products, they cope well with food and grease residues , with dried mud, they are also excellent help in the fight against stains on silver and cupronickel.
Home Cleaning: Product Preparation
You can cope with blackness not only with the help of chemistry, but also armed with home remedies: soda, foil, eggshell or lemon.
But before you clean nickel silver from blackness, it must be properly treated by removing dirt and grease from the products. To do this, pour ordinary detergent for dishes into a large saucepan, pour boiling water and froth.
Put cupronickel products and leave for a day. Stir objects in the water, and if they are very dirty, then heat the water several times with them.
The next day, wipe off all the dirt from them, armed with a soft toothbrush. Rinse the cleaned products under a clean stream of water and dry. Now they are ready for further action.
Foil, salt, soda
Let's start with the simplest and most affordable way, which is able to cope with a raid a century ago, returning the products to their original appearance.
So how to clean cupronickel? To do this, take a pan and cover its bottom with a thick layer of foil. Fold on it cupronickel ware and pour on them three tablespoons of soda and salt. Pour so much water on them so that it covers the products, but no more. Then put on fire and simmer for 15-20 minutes. You don’t have to worry about cutlery, the alloy perfectly tolerates high temperature, which can not be said about the black traces - oxidation. When the appliances have cooled down, wipe them with napkins, rinse with clean water, dry them dry and put them in a closed box.
Eggshell
In order to clean the cutlery, you will need quite a bit of shell, from only 2-3 eggs. How to clean cupronickel with their help? Yes, very simple. Fold the shell into a mortar and grind it into tiny pieces, add a tablespoon of salt there. Stir and pour into the pan. Fill the unusual mixture with a liter of water and bring to a boil. Dip the cupronickel products into this water and boil for 3 minutes. Then drain the water, cool the products, rinse in clean water and wipe dry.
Egg shell can be replaced with garlic husk, it is also effective.
Lemon and Citric Acid
To clean cupronickel, stock up on 100 g of citric acid or juice of 3-4 lemons. Pour a liter of water into the pan, dissolve citric acid in it. Dip in a solution along with cutlery and a piece of copper wire. Boil the products for 20 minutes on low heat, rinse and wipe dry. Citric acid perfectly corrodes traces of oxidation.
Abrasive cleaning
Having wondered how to clean cupronickel, you can turn to abrasive substances such as soda for help. Sanding paper for polishing is, of course, an effective tool, but, unfortunately, after it or other aggressive abrasive substances the product will have to be thrown away, another thing is soda, tooth powder or paste, ammonia, vinegar or alcohol.
Take soda and water in a ratio of 1: 1 and mix them together in one liquid gruel, type it on a soft sponge or cloth. Wipe the product without pressing it hard. If cupronickel products have various patterns, notches, then take an old soft toothbrush to wipe small details of the corrugated surface.
Turpentine, vodka, alcohol, wine vinegar on a cotton pad is what you need to get rid of a small spot on a cupronickel product, but it is not as effective as cleaning cupronickel in the previous ways.
If you are interested in how to clean cupronickel from small spots, then it is better to use ammonia. Just dilute 3 tbsp. l ammonia in a glass of water. Soak the appliances in solution for 2 hours, then wipe thoroughly.
You can get rid of pronounced blackness with the help of concentrated ammonia and a cotton pad, however, few people use it because of an unpleasant persistent smell.
But various carbonated drinks and vinegar also do an excellent job. A cola or sprite is what you need to get rid of blackness. A couple of hours will be enough for them to put your products in order.
How to restore the shine of products
We learned how to clean cupronickel at home, but how can he restore his former shine? This will help tooth powder or paste, which both clean and restore a presentable look. Put a little toothpaste on a cotton pad and rub the product until it shines. Pour it with cold water, dry it and put it in a box.
Replace the means for the oral cavity with chalk, however, it will have to be crushed well before cleaning - large pieces of chalk can greatly scratch the surface of objects.
A slice of raw potatoes can help bring back the shine. Cut the potatoes into thick circles and rub them with cutlery until they sparkle. Of course, wash the potatoes from dirt before doing so.
How to preserve cupronickel cutlery
It is unlikely that the following tips will completely protect your devices from oxidation, but, following them, you will extend your present from nickel silver to a presentable appearance. To cutlery made of cupronickel, served you longer, you should:
- keep products in dry places;
- after using the devices, soak them for 5-7 minutes in a soda solution;
- do not use “White” and other products containing chlorine-based substances for washing;
- do not wash them in dishwashers;
- after washing dry, wipe the items with a clean towel;
- store products in closed boxes, wrapping with cling film or foil.
Such simple measures will help extend the attractiveness of your cupronickel cutlery and other items.
Now you know how to clean cupronickel from blackness at home. As you can see, this is very simple, but it’s much easier to use and care for the products correctly , and if you follow the rules of use, they will serve and please the eye for a long time.