How to clean silver jewellery at home

925 sterling silver is 92.5% pure silver and 7.5% other metals, usually copper. That copper is what makes the alloy hard enough to wear every day, and it is also what reacts with sulphur compounds in air, sweat, perfume and humidity to form a dark film on the surface.

Two things follow from that. First, tarnish is not a sign that your silver is fake or low quality — pure silver tarnishes too, it is just too soft to make jewellery from. Second, because the film sits on the surface, it comes off. You are cleaning the piece, not repairing it.

Humid coastal cities tarnish silver faster than dry ones. So do chlorinated pools, hair spray, and sleeping in your jewellery.

Start with the gentlest option and only move down the list if the piece needs it.

• A polishing cloth. The one that ships in your Avira box is treated with a mild cleaning agent. For light tarnish on a plain band or chain, thirty seconds of rubbing is the whole job. This is the safest method and the only one we recommend for pieces with stones.
• Warm water and mild dish soap. A few drops in a bowl of warm — not hot — water. Soak for five minutes, work gently with a soft toothbrush, rinse in clean water, and dry completely with a soft cloth. Best for everyday grime, lotion and sweat rather than heavy tarnish.
• Baking soda paste. Mix baking soda with a little water into a paste, apply with your fingers or a soft cloth, rub along the piece rather than in circles, then rinse and dry. Effective on stubborn tarnish on plain silver. Do not use it on oxidised jewellery: the dark finish there is intentional and the paste will strip it.
• The foil and baking soda bath. Line a bowl with aluminium foil, add a spoon of baking soda, and pour over hot water. Rest the silver on the foil for two to three minutes. This reverses the chemical reaction rather than scrubbing it off, so it reaches detail a cloth cannot. Keep it away from pearls, turquoise and glued settings.
• Toothpaste, carefully. A plain white paste — no gel, no whitening grit, no charcoal — on a soft cloth. It works, but it is abrasive, so treat it as a last resort on plain silver only and never on a polished mirror finish.

Most damaged pieces we see have been cleaned, not worn out. Avoid:

• Bleach, ammonia and any chlorine-based cleaner — these attack the alloy itself.
• Whitening or charcoal toothpaste, scouring powder, and steel wool, which leave fine scratches.
• Hot water on glued settings, which can loosen the adhesive under a stone.
• Ultrasonic cleaners on anything with a soft stone, an enamel finish or an oxidised surface.
• Silver dips on oxidised jewellery. A dip removes every trace of darkening, including the antique finish you paid for.

Cleaning is the cure. Storage is the prevention, and it matters more.

• Put jewellery on last. After perfume, lotion, sunscreen and hair spray have dried, not before.
• Take it off for water. Swimming, bathing and the gym are the three fastest ways to dull a piece.
• Store it dry and airtight. A zip-lock pouch or the box it came in, one piece per pouch so chains do not scratch each other. Squeeze the air out.
• Add something that absorbs moisture. A silica gel sachet or a stick of chalk in the box does more than any polish.
• Wear it. Silver worn regularly tarnishes more slowly than silver left in a drawer, because the friction of normal wear keeps the surface clean.

Send us a message before you try anything at home if the piece has a soft or porous stone (pearl, opal, turquoise, emerald), an enamel or oxidised finish, a loose setting, or visible pitting rather than a surface film. Deep tarnish that has been left for years sometimes needs professional re-polishing, which we do at the studio.

Every Avira piece is 925 sterling silver and BIS hallmarked, and we are happy to look at anything you have bought from us. Write to the studio with a photo and we will tell you honestly whether it is a cloth job or a bench job.