how to clean copper pennies without damaging them

Let us move on to how to clean wheat pennies you intend to keep or sell yourself without any type of professional grading service. WATER. Pennis that were made prior to 1982 had more copper in them, which can lead to a more intense reaction chemically while cleaning. Soak your quarters in lemon juice. Start adding your pennies into the solution, but dont throw everything inside at once. They include: As you can see, these materials are very cheap and easy to find anywhere. Some are damaged by contact with other coins, general circulation, or being buried in the ground for many years. Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Then, rub a small amount of vegetable oil onto each side of the coin to loosen stubborn dirt. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. Be gentle: A penny is a delicate coin and you dont want to scratch it up in the process of cleaning it. How do I choose between my boyfriend and my best friend? Level up your tech skills and stay ahead of the curve. Youll be surprised at what works and what doesnt! How to clean green corroded copper coins Mix cup vinegar with 1 teaspoon of salt in a bowl that is non-metallic. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. Easy & Effective Ways to Clean Dirty Coins at Home, 10+ Ways to Clean Your Clipper Blades like a Pro Barber. Soak coins in warm water mixed with liquid dish detergent to clean off light dirt and grime. If the quarter is clean, rinse it off with distilled water. CoinsForSale.com charges a 5 percent selling fee and no listing fee. It is always at the discretion of the buyer whether the minute scratches and damaged caused by cleaning is an issue. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. Wheat pennies were made of different metals during different years depending on the need for metals. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. If necessary, a little bit of gentle soap can be used, with Ivory soap being the preferred brand. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/e\/e9\/Clean-Copper-Coins-Step-1-Version-2.jpg\/v4-460px-Clean-Copper-Coins-Step-1-Version-2.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/e\/e9\/Clean-Copper-Coins-Step-1-Version-2.jpg\/aid5915095-v4-728px-Clean-Copper-Coins-Step-1-Version-2.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":259,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":410,"licensing":"

\u00a9 2023 wikiHow, Inc. All rights reserved. If it's a very thin coin, don't clean it as the vinegar can scorch through it. Alicia holds a CPA designation and a Bachelors degree in Commerce and Finance from the University of Toronto. 290K views 3 years ago In this video you will find a simple but very effective method of cleaning old coins. But we recommend the vinegar or lemon juice approach because the materials are safe for your skin, overall quite very effective, creates little to no mess, and the risk of damaging the pennies is fairly low. Salt and vinegar combinations have been used to clean coins for many yearsthis method is actually on display in one of the earlier videos I shared above. Place your pennies in the vinegar or the lemon juice. Use distilled water because chemicals in tap water may cause discoloration. How to Clean Wheat Pennies Safely and Without Damage, How to Clean Corroded Pennies Safely and Effectively, How to Clean Gold Jewelry With Vinegar Without Any Damage. The acid from the ketchup can help to deal with oxidation as it forms on your coins. Dont leave them in a bowl of water, since the vinegar solution and copper oxide will end up in the bowl and on other coins. 1 How do you clean old copper coins without damaging them? Copper is a soft metal, so copper coins are prone to degrading over time. Soak your pennies for five minutes in vinegar to dissolve any copper oxide . The soap should help keep the coin safe while you gently scrub it. If it works for you, stick with it. These cookies do not store any personal information. This method you will help you to clean old coin properly without any damage to. Pennies are made from highly reactive metals like copper or copper alloys, so it is only normal for them to get corroded with time. What are ultrasonic cleaners when it comes to cleaning copper coins? If youre having trouble getting rid of the tarnish on your copper penny, rubbing alcohol might be the trick you need. How do you clean badly tarnished copper coins? Before you do anything, do your research to know the value of the coin. % of people told us that this article helped them. Dry them off with paper towels. Sell them the way they are (or as is) and you will surely gain more money from your pennieswell, assuming they are actually worth something, of course. They include: Fresh lemon juice Salt White vinegar A toothbrush Baking soda A small container A paper towel. Ketchup can restore the copper glow of a penny. One of the most important aspects of cleaning old coins is to know the value first. To clean a copper penny, squeeze out a small amount of tomato ketchup onto the face and back of the coin. This is the important part: rinse with distilled, not tap water. Drop your coins in a bowl and cover them completely with olive oil. Step 2 Add a teaspoon of salt to the bowl full of vinegar, and stir the mixture until the salt is completely dissolved. It may take a couple of applications, so dont be afraid to try this method a few times to get out those tough stains. For tips on how to shine your coins with baking soda, read on! Those are meant to clean items like antique silver vases and your wedding ring. Cleaning them can be a daunting task. Put the coin in the bowl and slowly rub the coin with your finger from both sides. Should the oil start to look discolored, change it out. You might have to use multiple methods or go back and forth between methods until you find the one that works best for you. Microwaving 2 cups of water for 2-3 minutes should suffice and avoid boiling water. If it doesnt work for you, or somehow has hurt or damaged the penny in your eyes, stop using this method and find one you feel is a bit better. Again, cleaning corrosion off wheat pennies can harm the value significantly. [5] The salt and vinegar in the ketchup will remove tarnish from the penny. The level of water in the container should determine when you stop adding pennies into it because they must all get totally submerged into the solution for this process to work. There are various other methods to clean your pennies. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We use cookies to make wikiHow great. By using our site, you agree to our. Mix cup vinegar with 1 teaspoon of salt in a bowl that is non-metallic. Cheap Metal Detectors Keep in mind that adding more salt to the solution makes it stronger. Be sure to check with a professional before cleaning a corroded coin that may have significant value. The good news is that there is a solution available no matter what type of coin. If you are not worried about damaging the coins as much, you can continue down the list and use some of the more abrasive cleaning methods. Brighten old, dark pennies in seconds! No scrubbing necessary at all. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads. Last Updated: November 9, 2022 If you want to go with something that is both inexpensive and likely already in your home, olive oil is the right choice. Apmex is a well-known auction site for coins. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. Experts can always tell if a coin has been cleaned improperly. Rinse your pennies well with water; otherwise, if any of these cleaning agents remain on the coin, the coin will turn blue-green. To clean softer or more valuable coins, your best bet is to lightly rinse them in warm water, then pat them dry with a microfiber cloth. After youve cleaned off any grime or other contaminants from your coins surface, its time for step two: cleaning out any crevices that could have collected dust or dirt over time. Garret ACE 250 Review They can eliminate or reduce the effects of outside contaminates that have caused issues with your coins. wikiHow, Inc. is the copyright holder of this image under U.S. and international copyright laws. Use a stronger acid like ketchup or cola to strip away the green patina that forms when copper is exposed to salt and water. This website uses cookies to improve your experience, but you may opt out if you wish. If you happen to find one of these while metal detecting, do not attempt to clean them yourself! From there, use your brush to gently get the grime off of the coins before putting them back into the water again. Leave the pennies for around five minutes in the glass of vinegar or lemon juice. These were 95 percent copper and 5 percent zing. Drop the pennies into the mixture for about 5 minutes. Check back on them every few minutes, especially if you use a highly acidic substance like cola, to avoid damaging them. Method 1 Removing Dark Spots with Vinegar Download Article 1 Pour 14 cup (59 mL) of white vinegar into a small bowl. Rubbing or scrubbing a coin (even with non-abrasive liquids) will leave microabrasions on your coin and cause a severe reduction of value or elimination of any collectible value. You can visit a local coin dealer if you have one nearby. Instead, use a soft cloth and a gentle detergent (like dish soap) to clean it. The best way to clean pennies is to never ever clean them. There are coins worth thousands upon thousands of dollars, all contingent on the condition of the coin. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. If you decide to clean your wheat pennies, make sure you start with the least invasive cleaning method first. Overall, cleaning a copper penny is not that difficult most of the time, and any of the methods listed above will be sure to get the job done right. In this video I clean three old worn large cents. Clean them off using distilled water and soap, using an old toothbrush to scour them clean.

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how to clean copper pennies without damaging them