Coins

Cleaning Pennies With Vinegar

Cleaning pennies with vinegar strips away the natural toning (tarnish) that your pennies have taken years to develop.

The deep browns seen on most older pennies are colors that most coin collectors actually desire.

In fact, old, worn pennies with the deep, even brown toning are considered beautiful by penny connoisseurs!

Pennies contain copper, which is a highly reactive metal.

• Swipe a sweaty thumb over a bright and shiny new 1-cent coin, and after a period of days and weeks you will soon see that penny turn shades of brown.
• Humidity, sulfur fumes, even sheer heat will make pennies change color.
• Coating pennies with baby shampoo will turn them orange, blue, and green.

In general, all the toning scenarios mentioned above result in pennies that possess uneven discoloration and, therefore, are generally not considered desirable by the typical collector.

So when a penny with even, brown or chocolate colors comes your way, leave it alone!

Cleaning Pennies With An Eraser

Using a pencil eraser to clean pennies is no better than vinegar.

Erasers wipe away a lot more than just dirt, grime and grease. Erasers literally erase away the metal on the penny (or any other coin).

Rubbing a coin with an eraser usually scratches fine lines in the surface. While to the novice eye, these lines may resemble the luster and shine seen on new coins, the lines actually represent irreparable damage to the coin.

Cleaning Pennies With Baking Soda

Cleaning pennies with baking soda creates much the same type of damage as rubbing a coin with an eraser.

Baking soda basically acts an abrasive, especially when rubbed (and not used only as a dipping solution).

Even as a dipping solution, baking soda still blasts away much of a coin's natural toning and color, thus impairing the coin in the eyes of most coin collectors.

How Do You Clean Pennies Then?

The lesson here is don't clean your coins!

Brightening your pennies amounts to damaging them. Therefore, most types of cleanings should be avoided. Note the word most.

Using clean water to remove surface dirt and debris can be done safely and without damage to the coin. You should then pat dry the coin with a soft cloth after rinsing it with water.