Cleaning Silver Plates: Tips

By Deepa Ranganathan

Silver looks beautiful only when it shines rather sparkles. As long as silver survives on either the plated or original silver, it will shine. But, for this you need to clean it regularly.

Whether it is plated or original, the method used to clean remains the same. In fact, the materials used for cleaning are also same. So, if you have a mix of these two kinds in your closet, you need to just invest in the basic products.

Cleaning Silver Plates: Tips

But, cleaning silver can be a tedious task. It involves a lot of patience. You need to follow some methods as well. If you think cleaning silver plate is just all about materials, you are mistaken.

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You need to follow those long shot methods. In fact, you cannot clean silver plate in a dishwasher. You will need use dishwashers that allow you to clean silver. But, then they are rare and in most places unavailable.

Another thing about cleaning silver plate is that it requires soft materials. Make sure you don’t use harsh and strong cleaning materials that will ruin the whole silver plate you have. Here are some simple tips for cleaning silver plate.

Regular Cleaning

No, this does not mean you polish silver ware regularly. That would ruin your silver ware completely. What you need to do is clean them using a soft cloth or a brush with soft bristles. You can even wash them in warm soapy water once in a while. This is just so that the stains are removed. After washing make sure you wipe the water off using a soft cloth.

Use of Baking Soda
Another trick is cleaning silver plate with baking soda. Take a handful of baking soda and put it in warm water. Allow this mixture to dissolve for a while. Once its done, take your silver plate and wrap it in a foil. Put this wrapped plate in this mixture and leave it in that manner for 10 minutes or so. Once done, remove it from the foil, wipe it clean with a soft dry cloth.

Sponge Clean the Silver Plate
Cleaning silver plate can be done with minimal materials that are not too harsh. Dip a soft wet sponge in mild soap and rub it across the plate. If you have silverware that’s made of ceramic or glass, you can dip them in hot water mixed with mild soap. After cleaning it with the mild soap, wash it with warm water and then wipe the wet plate with a soft cloth.Make sure the soft cloth is made of cotton. Don’t use cloth made of wool. In case you are planning to wear gloves while cleaning, they should be of plastic or cotton. Rubber gloves can be corrosive.

Polish it Well
Another way to cleaning silver plate is by using a good polish to make it shine. When you are done with cleaning with wet sponge then apply silver polishing cream across the plate. You should apply cream with a soft cloth. Don’t rub the plate too hard. Gently spread the polish across the plate. You can even use cotton or bristled brush to rub the polish. Once polished, you can see that your silver plate is shining.

Remember to remove food stains on the plate made of silver when you put it to wash. It will help in preventing eroding. Regular brushing can save you from cleaning the silverware.

Story first published: Sunday, January 12, 2014, 11:51 [IST]
Read more about: cleaning improvement