Electrolysis Cleaning

Leave-No-Coins-Behind

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Here is what I use for cleaning coins, etc., via electrolysis method. Use at your own risk. Consider testing with a junk coin first.

Suggested items used:

12 volt trickle battery charger
Baking soda
Small piece of steel
Water (Distilled or Reverse Osmosis)
Glass or plastic container

I mix 1 measured teaspoon of baking soda into 2 cups of water. Attach coin onto the (-) Negative (black) clamp of the charger and (+) Positive (red) clamp onto the scrap piece of steel. (I use a hardened concrete type nail, non coated.) Then place both wire clamps submerged with their appropriate attached objects into water mixture. Then plug charger in wall outlet. Unplug charger prior to inspecting coins, etc.

Check condition of coin after 15 minutes or so. I keep changing/replacing the water solution after each 15 minute interval. Don't go overboard with the cleaning times...check as you go along! Sometimes less is more.
 

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Here is what I use for cleaning coins, etc., via electrolysis method. Use at your own risk. Consider testing with a junk coin first.

Suggested items used:

12 volt trickle battery charger
Baking soda
Small piece of steel
Water (Distilled or Reverse Osmosis)
Glass or plastic container

I mix 1 measured teaspoon of baking soda into 2 cups of water. Attach coin onto the (-) Negative (black) clamp of the charger and (+) Positive (red) clamp onto the scrap piece of steel. (I use a hardened concrete type nail, non coated.) Then place both wire clamps submerged with their appropriate attached objects into water mixture. Then plug charger in wall outlet. Unplug charger prior to inspecting coins, etc.

Check condition of coin after 15 minutes or so. I keep changing/replacing the water solution after each 15 minute interval. Don't go overboard with the cleaning times...check as you go along! Sometimes less is more.

Jak, Thank you so much for posting this. I used it today, exactly as you posted, and it did wonders for the silver coins I cleaned. Check out the before and after pictures on the Barber quarter. The stuff it removed was more than just black staining, the baking soda paste alone would not touch it. The coin looks better than the photo shows. I also used it to clean up a Barber half I found last year. That one looks fantastic.
 

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Cool! I can't wait to try this on all the crusty greenies and blackened silver rings I have tucked away in my finds box.

I have very limited knowledge of electronics so yesterday I ordered a set of alligator clips with a 9v battery attachment ($5.99 on Amazon). I have a bunch of unused 9v batteries laying around so it seemed like a good buy. My decision was between those and the USB clips, which I'm assuming you can plug into the wall with an adapter, like when charging your cell phone.

I wanted to keep things simple and avoid cutting any wires. Hopefully, those 9v clips have enough current to do a good job.
 
Cool! I can't wait to try this on all the crusty greenies and blackened silver rings I have tucked away in my finds box.

I have very limited knowledge of electronics so yesterday I ordered a set of alligator clips with a 9v battery attachment ($5.99 on Amazon). I have a bunch of unused 9v batteries laying around so it seemed like a good buy. My decision was between those and the USB clips, which I'm assuming you can plug into the wall with an adapter, like when charging your cell phone.

I wanted to keep things simple and avoid cutting any wires. Hopefully, those 9v clips have enough current to do a good job.

I used my charger from my Vexilar fish flasher (12v .8 amp). I would unplug and check the coin every 5 minutes to make sure I wasn't negatively affecting how it looked. It was less than 12 minutes total to loosen the worst scaled coin. The others I cleaned were less than 5 minutes. I did it just enough to soften the black residue and then used the baking soda paste rub to clean the remaining stain. If more than a moderate rub method was needed to finish cleaning - then I would hook the coin back up and give it a few more minutes. Worked great for me!
 

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Good to hear

Jak, Thank you so much for posting this. I used it today, exactly as you posted, and it did wonders for the silver coins I cleaned. Check out the before and after pictures on the Barber quarter. The stuff it removed was more than just black staining, the baking soda paste alone would not touch it. The coin looks better than the photo shows. I also used it to clean up a Barber half I found last year. That one looks fantastic.

I am so glad to hear it worked for you. A couple keys factors are to go easy on adding too much of the baking soda, keep the water semi-clean and check it often. I found that solid copper power alligator clips work best as to not rust or corrode too easy or too much.

Cool! I can't wait to try this on all the crusty greenies and blackened silver rings I have tucked away in my finds box.

I have very limited knowledge of electronics so yesterday I ordered a set of alligator clips with a 9v battery attachment ($5.99 on Amazon). I have a bunch of unused 9v batteries laying around so it seemed like a good buy. My decision was between those and the USB clips, which I'm assuming you can plug into the wall with an adapter, like when charging your cell phone.

I wanted to keep things simple and avoid cutting any wires. Hopefully, those 9v clips have enough current to do a good job.

Good luck...I think those 9V batteries should work ok as many others have used them, but I have not. The key is to go easy and not over due it as you can't go back. Practice on a few junkers first.
 
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