There are many DIY cleaning products that can help restore or polish antique brass pieces. Before you begin scrubbing, make sure to understand the causes of tarnish so that you don't ruin your metal items.
First, determine how old the brass is. Also, what finish it has. If your brass is lacquered, you will need to remove any varnish. Then you can use a cleaner or anti-tarnish agent to get rid of the tarnish. If it's unlacquered, you can clean it with a mild soap and water solution to remove the tarnish.
Next, you need to find an acidic substance to remove the tarnish from brass. You can use lemons or tomatoes, but vinegar or ketchup are also options. Slathering a thin layer of any one of these over your tarnished brass will allow the acid to loosen the tarnish. Allow the acid to sit for at least an hour and then scrub it with a soft toothbrush or cloth.
Toothpaste is another great DIY tarnish-remover. Sean Parry, Neat Services' cleaning expert, says toothpaste "reacts to the acid in the tarnish."
For antique brass pieces, Bougere recommends dipping a lemon slice or rind in salt and rubbing it on the tarnished item for about 10 minutes. It is possible to remove tarnish using the combination of salt's abrasiveness and lemon's citric Acid, particularly on delicate brass items.
You can even try mixing lemon juice with table salt to create a homemade paste. Make a paste of the salt and the lemon juice. Then apply the paste to your brass items. Let it sit for about an hour before you scrub them.
After you have scrubbed the brass, rinse it and dry it with a microfiber towel or paper towel. This may be repeated several times depending on the amount of tarnish that remains on your brass.
If you want to clean brass or copper that has been exposed, you can combine equal parts of flour and white vinegar. Spread it over the tarnished items. Allow the mixture to sit for at least an hour before you scrub the surface with a toothbrush.
The best way to clean badly tarnished brass is to use a natural, organic salt-based product. Flitz Instant Brass & Copper Tarnish Remover is a safe, fast and effective method to remove any copper tarnish.
Spray-on copper and brass tarnish remover immediately dissolves and lifts heavy deposits of calcium and tarnish. It works on many surfaces and is safer than traditional acid-based cleaners. It's ideal for indoors and outdoors and can be used on copper, brass, aluminum, glass, painted surfaces, fiberglass, stucco and brick.