How to clean wheats?

[tanacat]

Since I started MD'ing, I've been adding my wheats to hubby's collection booklet that he started as a boy and lost interest. Mine are not quite as 'nice' as his lol How should I clean them to get the deep set dirt off? I've heard briefly about a hydrogen peroxide/ baking soda method- will someone please give me details or other suggestion?

[coinnut]

Hey Tana, a picture of some of the different types of them would help a lot. I know in some areas, they are in nice shape, but just dirty. Up here, ours can be anywhere from just dirty to extremely green. Different methods for different corrosion.

[randy]

I've used the hydrogen peroxide method to get caked on dirt off (I don't think it is good for other problems), and it seems to work pretty good. I heat some up in the microwave til it is bubbling, and drop the coin in on edge (holding it up with toothpicks or something like that. Every so often I scrape the loose crud off with a q-tip, and repeat. Make sure you DON'T use a 100% solution! I think the stuff you buy at the drugstore is 3%; that's what I've used. The coin will get really hot, so be careful. I also think you can ruin coppers doing this if it is the wrong type of corrosion. I've never tried it with a more valuable copper than a wheat.

[xzlr8n]

I do what Randy does except I put the coins and Peroxide together in a pyrex custard dish and then nuke them together in the microwave for about 40 seconds. I know, I know, I know your not suppose to put metal in microwaves - but this works real nice with no disastrous results. The peroxide really boils/bubbles this way and cleans up the pennies in about 15 minutes soak time. After soaking I use a finger/hand cleaning brush and give each coin a quick scrub. I wouldn't do this with a high value coin like a 1914-d or 1909-s VDB, but I feel most others wheats coming out of the ground are toast anyway, not worth much more than copper value. So with nothing more than something nice to look at once in a while why not clean wheats up as best as possible. Most of the time the Wheats and Memorials end up a nice dark black brown color, most of the green verdigris will come off the mildly green coins. I'd even go as a far to say some of the ones I've cleaned up look better than ones I found over the years in circulation and wouldn't hesitate to put them in my Wheat book's (I'd almost be tempted to try a dug 1912-s or something of that value using this technique and put the sucker in my book). I've tried a lot of other techniques and this has been by far the best.

Side note: you can also heat up your coffe with the spoon still in the cup and end up with coffee hot and the spoon cold, no sparks flying around either. This is where I came up with the idea of nuking both the peroxide and coins all at once.

[tanacat]

I would be too nervous to try that!!! 8/

Thanks for the insight on the cleaning method. Out of 21 I have only 3 that are really green crusty ones, I'll have to soak them longer. The others have a dark grime layer that is very satisfying to get off! I can see the gunk wipe off on white wash cloth after the peroxide soak... I'll try it again with some q-tips to get more detailed.

I'll post some pics later; before and after and my whole wheat collection too lol I know, real exciting!

[xzlr8n]

Trust me nothing bad will happen. Try 10 seconds first to get a feel for it. Boiling / bubbling is key to getting the dirt off. Instead of finger/nail brush a toothbrush also works but takes more effort to get the stuborn dirt out of the crevices.thumbsup01

Like Coinnut implied some wheats might be too far gone as far as corrosion goes. If you see the edges flaking or crumbley green stuff coming of the faces then they are probably too far gone. Be careful with these because they could end up being nothing more than a corroded copper slug with little or no identifiable details!!

[tanacat]

Here's a few pics- typical before and after




I don't think there's any hope for the green ones...






You can tell mine vs hubbies by being so dark!

[coinnut]

The ones that are just dirty, try soaking them in water to soften the dirt and then use a tooth brush to remove the rest of the dirt. On the green and red ones? This is how you will learn to clean coins. Consider them guinea pigs lol. Try the hot hydrogen peroxide method on them and use a sorta stiff brass brush. If you can get a brush that is in block form and not the skinny tooth brush looking kind, it will be easier. I clean a lot of things with that brass brush

[tanacat]

I clean a lot of things with that brass brush

Shame on you! I've been needing a reason to try the new smiley...

Now aren't you the one who told me not to do anything to anything at anytime?
Back when I was wanting to 'oil' my 1833 LC cuz it looked better/more detailed fresh out of a bath? lol

Yes that's a good idea- my little guinea pigs. I'll soak a crusty green one in olive oil for a month. Microwave for uh 15 minutes right? lol sorry still not sure if he's pulling my leg, I can't do it. And I know I've got a brass brush around here somewhere. I used the edge of a knife to no avail. Of course I wouldn't do the latter with a worthy coin 8/

[coinnut]

Microwave (Hydrogen Peroxide?)yes...coin inside microwave no lol 15 minutes? or until golden brown rofl How about 15 seconds!!!!!I told you don't clean anything cause you were a newbie (or so I thought) But the olive oil thing? How long you gonna live?.... that's all I have to say about olive oil lol Oh and this smiley works much better Black eye and all lol

[xzlr8n]

Microwave Peroxide for 15 to 40 seconds tops. Drop coins in and SOAK for 15 minutes.

What I do and why: Put the coins and Peroxide together in a pyrex custard dish and then nuke them together in the microwave for about 40 seconds, by 40 seconds it is really bubbling vigoriously. Microwaving copper coins with the peroxide heats up the coins and liquid together and therefore keeps the peroxide bubbling longer, instead of dumping cold coins into hot peroxide which cools it down quicker and hense less cleaning action. Microwaves work on heating stuff by exciting dipole moments, water is a perfect dipole molecule with its two hydrogens and one oxygen. The microwaves work on the two hydrogens attached to the oxygen and gets them fluttering excitedly thus creating heat. Metal atoms also have dipole moments, along with most other compounds, but they are locked together much more tighly and take longer to get as excited as water does. So making a long story short, microwave ovens heat up food quickly because of their water. Yes, given enough time most other compounds will heat up and eventually burn in a microwave. Microwave popcorn bags have a special thin metal plate at the bottom of the bag that is designed to heat up the butter and corn. When the water in the popcorn kernel steams and causes the corn to pop it will be coated with the hot oil butter. I'm not sure what the properties of the plate are but it definately assists in the heating process, must be something with a good dipole moment, this is why the bag is so darn hot. Side note some microwaves even have metal shelves, and they work just fine. With all microwave ovens you're warned not to turn on the oven with nothing inside, this is so the waves of energy are focused on the item in the oven and not the oven itself which is made of metal and other parts that can eventually heat up or electrically arc. Likewise if you just put the coins in or a spoon with no liquid at all bad things will happen, like arcing because the energy has to be released some how. Microwaves would rather work on water than metal anyday!!

Drugstore Hydrogen peroxide is 3% H2O2 and 97% H2O. When we boil peroxide the one oxygen in H2O2 gets released as pure oxygen and leaves water as the other by-product. The pure oxygen is what reacts with the dirt, grim and light green copper (oxidized cooper) and releases them from the surface of the coin to get to the pure copper that is still in the coin. I'd have to review my chemistry a bit more but the dark brown we end up with is the newly oxidized copper. Verdigris green copper is a step further in the oxidation process I believe, and is a point where no more oxygen can get to the bare copper underneath and provides a protective barrior. This whole process of oxidation gives copper products there long life in the elements. Silver is far more resistant to oxidation and this is the reason why this technicue doesn't work as good as it does on copper. If anything it might tarnish (blacken) silver quicker than otherwise. Gold should be unaffected by this or just about anything else for that matter, and is the reason why it is always bright and lustrious forever.

I stand to be corrected and welcome any critique others might have. Disclaimer: It's your microwave so sometimes its best not to listen to fools on the internet, and do what you feel is safe thumbsup01!!

[tanacat]

Okay you convinced me.... thinking about it, my toddler's food and microwave soups does has a rim of metal that's covered up by the plastic lid. I was nervous about nuking them at first but nothing happened. I had a bit of aluminum foil that sparked and spattered like crazy -freaked me out years ago lol

[coinnut]

lol I was wondering why no arcing? Now I know. Thanks for the update xzlr8n on modern microwaves, I'm from the old days when they told you not to do it! lol 40 seconds? That should be screaming If it ain't clean after that, it never will be.

[Ill Digger]

In my experiences the green and red crusted and cruddy ones are usually toast.
But the black, brown and dirty ones I'll use the brass brush method. Cleans'em right up thumbsup01

[Huntnfind]

If you want to be real slow about it, some olive oil and a soft tooth brush works really well.

Here's what I do -
Just take the coppers and drop em in some olive oil. Let em sit for a day, flip em, sit for another day - then scrub gently under warm running water, repeat as necessary to remove all that crud!

It works really well for that stuck on crud, but you're looking at a good week to get a coin really shining. Also, it turns them pretty dark, just something to keep in mind.

[tanacat]

Thanks HuntnFind! I did that with my 1851 English Half Cent and did wonders...I now have about 20 wheats soaking in olive oil

[Huntnfind]

Great! I can't wait to hear how they all turn out!

[tanacat]

A friend said to leave bad ones in for a month or longer, that slowwwwly takes corrosion off. Have you ever soaked for that long? I'm curious... you see the pics of my green crusty ones above? We'll see how they turn out lol I don't think they have any hope imho.

[coinnut]

A friend said to leave bad ones in for a month or longer, that slowwwwly takes corrosion off. Have you ever soaked for that long? I'm curious... you see the pics of my green crusty ones above? We'll see how they turn out lol I don't think they have any hope imho.

Tana, Olive oil works well for coins that have caked on dirt. Cleaning methods work differently in different parts of the country / soil composition. If your coppers come out of the ground dirty but not really crusty green, then it will work good for you. But up around my neck of the woods, our coppers are shot and no cleaning is gonna help them lol So it's trial and error until you can just look at the coin and say yes it will or nope, it's dogmeat! Olive oil is a slow chemical reaction that may work for you. Try it and see.

[tanacat]

But up around my neck of the woods, our coppers are shot and no cleaning is gonna help them lol

Have you soaked some of your worst coppers just to see if bring out more detail? Handyman (Kevin) says it takes corrosion off, not just dirt...