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Silver Cleaning Plate: Is it Worth it?


by DoItYourself Staff

A silver cleaning plate is a bit of metal alloy that has holes in it and is used to remove tarnish from silver through electrolysis. It can take out tarnish without affecting the silver underneath it, which is unlike the traditional method of polish abrasion using chemicals.

How Silver Is cleaned with a Cleaning Plate

Black silver sulfide is the usual composition of tarnish on silverware. A cleaning plate is made from aluminum, which when put in a water solution and in contact with the silver sulfide reacts with it and forms aluminum hydroxide, silver sulfide and hydrogen sulfide. Putting baking soda in the water hastens the process and all you have to do afterwards is to rinse and dry your silverware.

Why Use a Cleaning Plate

One of the best advantages of using a cleaning plate is simplicity. You do not have to do a lot of chores just to be able to clean your precious silver. The precious metal is also not affected by the cleaning process so there is no flaw that will result from the cleaning. And since the cleaning plate comes in various sizes, you will be able to do a thorough cleaning no matter how large or numerous your silverware may be.

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