How to clean copper at home?

Often there are situations when it is simply necessary to know how to clean copper at home. Copper alloy is used in many industries: in the manufacture of kitchen utensils, coinage, the manufacture of electronic components, the manufacture of elegant jewelry and other useful items. Given all the variety of products and objects from this alloy that surround us every day, we have to be puzzled by a similar problem from time to time. And in this article we will tell you how to solve it.

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Copper features

Copper has excellent properties, which is why it is so widely used:

1. Copper cookware is characterized by excellent thermal conductivity, allows you to heat and cook food very quickly.
2. Some doctors recommend that jewelry made of this metal be worn for diseases of the cardiovascular system.

   

Thus, products are not only beautiful, but also beneficially affect human health.

During the operation of kitchen appliances or other objects made of this alloy, in contact with oxygen or exposure to heat, a green coating on copper forms. Unfortunately, it is impossible to prevent the appearance of plaque. But there are proven remedies than cleaning copper at home. In this article, you will find effective methods that will help restore objects to their sheen and pristine purity. They will not take much time and "will not fly you a pretty penny."

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Methods for the purification of copper from oxides

There are many ways to restore a beautiful appearance to copper products. The following are the most effective and easy to use. To clean copper from oxide at home, you do not need special tools or solutions. Almost all the ingredients for preparing an effective product you will find at home.

Important! Regardless of which cleaning method you choose, read the instructions for use and test the product on an inconspicuous surface area of ​​the subject.

Soap solution

The most common copper cleaner in most forums and among experienced housewives is a soap solution. Using it, you can easily remove simple contaminants from the surface. For this:

1. Pour warm water into a small container, add detergent to it.
2. Take a dishwashing sponge or a clean piece of cloth, dampen in a solution and wipe the contaminated areas.
3. Rinse off the soap with clean running water.

Important! If you clean oversized items from copper, they can be placed in a soap solution for a while. So you will less rub your own hands on the contaminated surface, wasting your time and energy, and the result will be no less high-quality.

Lemon juice

Many do not know how to clean a copper basin, precisely because of its size. After all, it is very problematic to find a container that is larger than the size of the basin and that allows you to completely place the dish in a cleaning agent. In this case, you need to know the way in which the raw material is applied directly to problem areas. To do this, you can use lemon juice or just a slice of lemon.

Mode of application:

1. Squeeze lemon juice into a small bowl.
2. Moisten a cotton swab or gauze with freshly squeezed juice.
3. Rub the copper basin until the dirt disappears from the surface.
4. Rinse off any remaining product under running water.

Important! If there is no desire to squeeze juice from a lemon, it is enough to treat a contaminated surface with a slice of lemon.

Ketchup

Do not be surprised that it is with the help of ketchup that you can clean copper objects at home. Thanks to the components that make up ketchup, your products will acquire a mirror-like sheen and crystal clearness.

How to apply:

1. Choose a container based on the dimensions of the copper object.
2. Pour the required amount of ketchup into it.
3. Place the product in the liquid and leave for a while.
4. Wash off the rest of the ketchup with warm water.

Important! It is better to use this method to clean small items, such as jewelry.

Vinegar

Looking for an effective way to clean copper from oxide at home? A proven tool by which defects of a similar nature are easily eliminated is table vinegar. If suddenly it was not found in your kitchen, then buying liquid at the grocery store will not be difficult.

Important! This method is suitable for cleaning oversized copper products.

Mode of application:

1. In a small container, prepare a weak acetic-aqueous solution, taking into account the proportions of 1: 1.
2. Add 2 tablespoons of salt to the resulting liquid and mix thoroughly to dissolve all the grains.
3. Put the solution on the fire and bring to a boil.
4. Dip the contaminated object into a boiling agent.
5. Boil for 10-15 minutes.

Important! Depending on the degree of contamination, the boiling time can be increased.

6. Remove the cleaned item and let it cool.
7. Rinse the item in cold water, wipe dry with a soft towel.

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How to clean copper coins?

Probably, at each of us at home you can find old, unattractive, brown-coated coins. Such products can simply be thrown into the trash can, but collectors look at the situation in a completely different way. If the coins have darkened from long-term storage, try the following simple ways to clean the copper to shine. Without much effort on your part, you will restore the crystal purity of expensive coins.

Acetic acid

Often, a yellow coating appears on the coins. Such defects are characteristic of products that are stored in the wrong conditions or near objects made of lead. To clear copper coins from yellow plaque on the surface, you can, by preparing at home light acetic acid:

1. In a small container, prepare acetic acid. To do this, mix vinegar with water in a proportion of 1:10.
2. In the resulting liquid, dip the yellowed copper coins and leave for a while.
3. Once the dirt has cleared, rinse the coins in warm water.
4. Dry with a dishcloth.
   
   

Ammonia

To clean to shine the copper from which the coins are made, ammonia will help you. You can buy it at any pharmacy in the absence of the drug in the home medicine cabinet. This tool will help get rid of the plaque of a red tint that appears on products due to long storage.

Mode of application:

1. In a shallow container, prepare a solution of ammonia. To do this, mix it with water in a ratio of 1: 5.
2. Put coins in the mixture, leave for a while.
3. Once the liquid has a reddish tint, you can get copper products.
4. Rinse the rest of the product with clean water and wipe the coins dry.

Lemon acid

Green plaque on copper is formed during long-term storage of coins in a box or other packaging in which air does not enter well. In this situation, it is best to use citric acid. Under its influence, the plaque right before your eyes will disappear from the surface of the coins:

1. Depending on the number of coins, prepare the required capacity.
2. Stir citric acid in room temperature water at a 1:10 ratio.
3. Dip the copper coins into the mixture, leave for a few minutes.
4. After the liquid has a greenish tint, remove the coins.
5. Rinse items with cold running water.
6. Dry the coins and polish them slightly to give a shine.

Important! Before you clean any old coins yourself, try to find out their value. If the product is valuable, it is impossible to remove the natural patina coating, which appears on this alloy after a certain time, and it testifies to the origin and storage conditions of the numismatic jewelry.

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Shine restoration for copper objects

In the process of using copper objects, they lose their crystal luster and begin to look dull, dull. You already know how to clean a copper basin and other items made from this alloy. And the following methods will help restore the pristine splendor to decorations and pans.

Method number 1:

1. Prepare the product by mixing flour, salt and vinegar in equal proportions.
2. Thoroughly mix the resulting product.
3. Rub the mixture with products that need to add shine.
4. Finally, rinse objects with cold water, wipe them dry.

Method number 2:

1. Take an ordinary newspaper and remember it well so that the paper becomes soft.
2. In a circular motion, polish the surface of copper objects with a newspaper.
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   Stock footage

If the copper products are not cleaned in a timely manner, the metal will be coated with a dark coating, it will lose its luster, and as a result, the surface will become cloudy. Now you know how to clean a copper basin at home, restore the sparkling appearance to coins and return the beautiful look to copper jewelry. All methods are not laborious and not expensive, and the effectiveness of the methods allows them to be used by both housewives and highly qualified specialists in factories.