Silver needs to be kept elsewhere. Silver + sulfur = tarnish and corrosion damage.
You can also remove the tarnish in an instant (without removing any silver atoms) by dipping the silver in a pot of hot water with a sheet of aluminum foil on the bottom, and salt and baking soda dissolved (you’ll smell the sulfur steaming away).
Yes, but would you completely clean the guns after every trip to the range or out hunting? If there's any powder residue, that's going to have sulfur and tarnish any silver in the gun safe.
Beelzebubba wrote:
I’d keep the ammo outside the safe.
Silver alloys vary.
Beelzebubba wrote:
And frankly, bullion silver (or coins) isn’t the same alloy as sterling, which is hard and durable, but tarnishes at a harsh word.
Bullion pieces are "fine silver" aka 0.999 fine silver, >99.9% pure silver. Fine silver does tarnish fairly easily in the presence of sulfur. It does not oxidize, but it turns black from any exposure to sulfur.
Sterling silver is .925 fine silver. Usually, the balance is copper. Several issues with sterling silver. First, it's usually plated in bright fine silver (.999 fine plating) so it will be shiny and bright. That does something positive and something negative for tarnishing. It covers the copper, so you don't get any green copper oxides in the tarnish. On the other hand, it presents a bright fine silver finish which will tarnish with sulfur.
There are a few other "Sterling Silver" alloys, some using germanium and/or zinc in place of the copper. Silcon and boron are also sometimes mixed in the alloy. All "Sterling Silver" alloys are 92.5% silver by weight, the differences are in the mix of the other 7.5%
Unplated sterling silver is subject to corrosion of the silver, as well as the other alloying metals.
Sterling coin silver, (used in early British coins, and in a few American coin eras, and some other foreign coins). Same thing as sterling, but generally not plated or finished. This coin silver is nearly always 92.5% silver, 7.5% copper.
Coin silver. Generally this is an alloy of silver and copper. The copper is for strength and wear resistance. Fineness varies by country (and sometimes over time). United States coins 1964 and older are generally .900 fine silver (90%). Canada used .800 fine silver for their silver coins before about 1968. Other places used different amounts. Some British coins are .500 fine silver.
Bullion for bullion is not affected by the tarnish. Bullion for "collectors" can have slightly added value if it remains bright and untarnished or untoned.
Beelzebubba wrote:
Not that tarnish really affects the value of your silver coins or bullion.
"Junk coins" (circulated common dates, very worn examples) aren't affected much by toning or tarnish. Numismatic coins (rare, uncirculated proofs or very lightly worn examples of older rare coins) can be greatly devalued by tarnish or toning. In some cases, a light patina, especially if it has coloration and luster, can enhance the value of a numismatic coin.
And I'll keep your chemical solution in mind for cleaning some of the sterling flatware that I have. Very interesting.