What is the best way to polish metal?
Most types of metals become duller over time. Fortunately, there are ways to polish metal and give them their shine back.
Silver
Silver jewelry can become dull or tarnish over time. There are several ways to polish silver to make it look as good as new.
Silver polish can be purchased at most drugstores or online. Silver polish is a liquid specially made to clean silver objects. You just need to rub it on the object with an old, soft cloth and the silver will regain its shine. However, using this liquid on objects with lots of small details or engravings is tricky, because the liquid can accumulate in the grooves and leave a white residue. Nowadays, you can also buy silver polish cloths, which is the better option for detailed items.
Another way to polish silver is by using toothpaste. Like with silver polish, you'll need a soft cloth to rub the toothpaste over the object. Make sure you've cleaned all the toothpaste and that it doesn't accumulate in the grooves, as this will leave a residue.
Bronze, brass and copper
The oils on your skin, as well as water, will tarnish bronze, brass and copper and make them dull. However, it's fairly easy to polish objects made of these materials.
Most drugstores sell copper polish, which also works for bronze and brass. Copper polish is a liquid that you can rub over objects with an old, soft cloth. This will restore the shine to the object. If you want to polish an item with lots of details or engravings, it's better to use a copper polish cloth instead of the liquid. The liquid is difficult to remove from the grooves and can leave a white residue if not thoroughly rubbed in.
Tomato ketchup (or tomato sauce or paste) can also be used to clean bronze, brass and copper. Tomatoes contain an acid that breaks down the tarnish on these materials. You can simply soak small items in a bowl of ketchup. Rinse off the ketchup after about an hour with warm water and mild soap.
It can be difficult to soak larger objects, so you can simply coat the object with ketchup and let it sit for an hour. After that hour, you can wash the item with warm water and mild soap.
Steel
Rust and small scratches can appear on steel objects when they are used. There are a few quick and easy ways to polish away small imperfections from steel objects.
Just as there is silver and copper polish, there is also steel and metal polish. This polish is a paste that you need to rub in with a soft cloth to remove small amounts of rust and scratches. If a steel object is very rusty, this is not enough. You'll need to remove the rust first, which you can find more information about here: Steel and metal maintenance
A cheap alternative to steel polish is toothpaste. Toothpaste is mildly abrasive, which means it can gently scrape away small amounts of rust and remove surface scratches. It's recommended to try this first on a less visible spot, as some toothpaste brands are more aggressive than others. Use a soft cloth to rub the toothpaste onto the steel. Don't rub the toothpaste too hard, or you might end up with a shinier finish than planned.
When you're done polishing your steel, it's a good idea to oil the steel or use an anti-rust spray, so the polished finish will look good for longer.
