There is no way to clean a coin without damaging its collectible value, even wiping with a cloth causes scratches that reduce the value in the eyes of professional collectors. What is the formula for calculating solute potential? Get a corrosive resistant container, such as a glass, and soak your wheat pennies in the vinegar for at least 30 minutes. You might have to use multiple methods or go back and forth between methods until you find the one that works best for you. Fill the bowl with enough lemon juice to cover the quarter. This website uses cookies to improve your experience, but you may opt out if you wish. Do I need to add liquid to it? Many professional coin collectors and coin valuers recommend leaving the coins as they are. How To Clean Old Copper Pennies. Vinegar and salt are the best methods of cleaning your pennies. Numismatists and some coin collector organizations may offer these services. NEVER drink the solution that was used to clean the pennies. Fisher F22 Review Gently scrub the coin with an incredibly soft brush. By using this service, some information may be shared with YouTube. Step 5: Rub Away the Tarnish & Grime. So how do you safely store your wheat pennies? 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. Step 2 Add a teaspoon of salt to the bowl full of vinegar, and stir the mixture until the salt is completely dissolved. Try cleaning only a few pennies at a time. Wait a few minutes, then check on the quarter. If the water is not enough, continue down the list and use dish soap. Or in layman's terms, by generating microscopic bubbles between a hard surface and a softer material, and allowing them to catastrophically collapse. If youre having trouble getting rid of the tarnish on your copper penny, rubbing alcohol might be the trick you need. With over 17 years of experience, Alicia specializes in creating a healthier, green alternative to chemical-based cleaning products and services. This article has been viewed 60,522 times. This article may contain affiliate links, How to Paint Concrete [From Preparation to Sealing], 14 Ways to Open a Stuck Jar A Helpful Guide, A Guide to Wood Finishes That Are Food Safe, How to Significantly Improve Your Charcoal Grill, How to Remove Scratches From Stainless Steel, Pickled Cherry Tomatoes are Definitely a Thing You Need to Know About. Copper, silver, nickel, and gold coins should strictly never be cleaned. Vinegar is most effective for cleaning copper. You can clean as many pennies you want with a single pencil eraser. Cheap Metal Detectors Let them soak for a while. This step is basically you leaving the pennies to soak inside the salt and lemon juice solution for 15 minutes. Were committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. It only requires rubbing the penny with a pencil eraser. 6 Can hydrogen peroxide be used to clean coins? Wet the coin with water and roll in baking soda. If you have recently gone metal detecting and found several wheat pennies, what do you do with them now? 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. This, Read More How to Clean Corroded Pennies Safely and EffectivelyContinue, If youve ever discovered gold jewelry in the woods or beach before, then you likely stumbled upon jewelry that was quite dirty and in need, Read More How to Clean Gold Jewelry With Vinegar Without Any DamageContinue, ABOUT|AFFILIATE DISCLOSURE|PRIVACY POLICY|TERMS OF USE. Mix cup vinegar with 1 teaspoon of salt in a bowl that is non-metallic. By using our site, you agree to our. If you dont have ketchup or another acid, try using a metal polish from a general store. Be extremely gentle! Make sure to use small, circular motions. Baking soda and vinegar have proven to be one of the most effective ways to clean tarnished coins. Mix 3 parts baking soda with 1 part vinegar. Dont make the mistake of using something meant for regular coins on something older and more condition sensitive. CoinsForSale.com charges a 5 percent selling fee and no listing fee. Silver dollars, or any collectible silver coin, should only be cleaned under certain conditions. Then dip your coins in the solution and let them soak for an hour or twothe longer they soak, the more oxidation will come off. After 5 minutes, wash the solution off the coins with warm water, since if its left on too long it can damage them. This process only works in fluid. Dish soap is another good cleaning method and is very gentle. Let them air dry the rest of the way. Mix equal parts distilled water and lemon juice into a container. This article was co-authored by Alicia Sokolowski. You may even want to take the same steps you learned from here to help clean other dirty pennies that you come across in the future. Stir the mixture to dissolve the salt. An alternative is to use vinyl erasers, but they do not contain abrasive, which is typically found in pencil erasers. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. Next, mix baking soda and water into a thick paste and rub this paste over the penny using your fingers. You can also try using a damp cloth with baking soda, which will help loosen any stuck-on dirt without damaging the coins surface. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary". Heritage Auctions is an online consignment program with a 10 percent fee. Copper is a soft metal, so copper coins are prone to degrading over time. wikiHow is where trusted research and expert knowledge come together. Do not leave the coin in the ketchup for more than an hour or two as it will leave a green oxidation on the coin. Never rub or scrub coins which have numismatic value. So my suggestion would be to take a random corroded penny that you dont care about, and try this cleaning method. Use a stronger acid like ketchup or cola to strip away the green patina that forms when copper is exposed to salt and water. Repeat this process as many times as necessary before allowing the coins to air dry. If you do not rinse all the vinegar off your wheat pennies, they may turn green or bluish green. Cleaning these will absolutely devalue them if they are not cleaned properlyso just be mindful of this. If you are planning to keep the coins for your own collection, you may certainly clean them as you see fit. Because the effect is achieved only where the mixture has been in contact with the coin, this allows one to get creative with the contrasting features of the coin itself with your choice of different colored copper. 5 How do you remove green corrosion from copper coins? Keep reading below for the best methods for safely cleaning your wheat pennies at home. Patience is key: The best way to clean a copper coin is by using patience and not being afraid to try new methods until one works well enough for you without scratching up your penny too much while doing so. Rinse off the ketchup and inspect the condition of your coins. How to clean green corroded copper coins Mix cup vinegar with 1 teaspoon of salt in a bowl that is non-metallic. Every cleaner is thoroughly vetted and every cleaning is backed by a 100% money-back guarantee. Over time, coins of all sorts can and will collect grime and gunk. Exposure to air leads to the formation of copper oxide. You can use your finger or an exceptionally fine brush to remove any stuck-on dirt. 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. How to clean copper pennies using vinegar and baking soda. The safest way to clean a coin is to send it a professional. Soak your quarters in lemon juice. The Garrett Ace Apex is one of my favorite metal detectors for coin shooting. Removing the copper oxide by cleaning will give your penny a brand-new look. Ammonia works well for removing rust from copper pennies, but it can also damage the surface of the penny if not used properly. If you plan on cleaning off a lot of coins at once, use a bigger bowl and add more vinegar as needed. They can eliminate or reduce the effects of outside contaminates that have caused issues with your coins. Soak the coins for 12 hours. Test the ketchup on a small area of your penny first before applying it in more generous amounts. Pennies are made from highly reactive metals like copper or copper alloys, so it is only normal for them to get corroded with time. No scrubbing necessary at all. The first step to cleaning a copper penny is soaking it in vinegar. If you do not sell your coin, you do not pay. If youre more of a do-it-yourselfer, try using a basic household cleaner to start. Some other options include you can at least look into are: There are many rust removers you can use to clean your coins, and some of them can be very fast and effective, but that is just part of what you need. Collectors actively look for the tiniest flaws in pennies and they have all the necessary tools to find those flaws. Make a bath using a cup of isopropyl alcohol combined with two tablespoons of salt. Beach Metal Detectors This means distilled water. A professional coin valuer will notice these minute scratches on the surface from cleaning. They will not pay you until you have shipped the coins. Drop your coins into the mixture and let them sit for about 5 minutes. As a result, the shiny bright metal develops an external layer having a dull green color. The amount of vinegar used to clean the pennies depends on the number of coins you wish to clean. Alicia holds a CPA designation and a Bachelors degree in Commerce and Finance from the University of Toronto. Use distilled water because chemicals in tap water may cause discoloration. Soak the coins in the lemon solution for up to one hour. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. In 1943, the composition changed to zinc plated steel due to the need for copper during World War II. Instead, use a soft cloth and a gentle detergent (like dish soap) to clean it. 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. Pat the coin dry. Ketchup contains acid that can help remove copper stains. Vinegar will remove any oxides formed on the coin surface. Rinse with freshwater and let air dry. Its also an effective way to remove oxidation from copper and make sure that there are no stains left behind. Mix in extra salt if you wish, but keep a close eye on the coins to avoid damaging them. On average, a quarter-cup should be adequate. Use a small plastic container full of hydrogen peroxide. While you're grasping the coin firmly by its edges, use a clean toothbrush to lightly scrub the flat surfaces of the coin. It may take a couple of applications, so dont be afraid to try this method a few times to get out those tough stains. How do I choose between my boyfriend and my best friend? Follow these steps to make your pennies completely clean: Step 1 Pour a small quantity of vinegar into a bowl. These became known as Lincon wheat pennies. Well, the general rule is if you intend on selling your wheat pennies, you should not clean them. While it is very possible to clean your pennies without damaging them, it is hard to say the same for the market value of the pennies. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. Level up your tech skills and stay ahead of the curve. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This article was co-authored by Elias Weston. Rinse the coins thoroughly with water to remove the baking soda and vinegar solution. Rinse the coin very well under warm water. It can even be used as a metal polishing solution. Method 1 Removing Dark Spots with Vinegar Download Article 1 Pour 14 cup (59 mL) of white vinegar into a small bowl. As an added precaution, you should only mix one tablespoon of ammonia with one gallon of water when using this technique; over-mixed solutions will damage your coins surfaces quickly. Before we go into the process of bringing corroded pennies back to life, let us look at the cleaning materials you must have.