Silvering of metals by boiling. Rules and various methods of home silvering How to plate metal with silver

03.10.2023

Silvering copper objects or jewelry at home is not very difficult. There are many different and quite simple ways, which do not require rare reagents. The solution for silvering is quite accessible for self-preparation.

Features of the silvering process

Before and after silvering copper

Copper or brass products are usually coated with silver; parts made of aluminum, steel and other metals and alloys can be processed quite well. When in contact with these substances, the silver compound can decompose, releasing metallic silver. This property of the substance is used to treat various surfaces.

Brass objects lend themselves best to silvering, since silvering lighter metal requires less solution. Copper or steel with a dark surface can show through under a thin layer of silver, so to process them you need more than 10-15 microns of solution. Some metals are pre-coated with a layer of copper for better reaction.

Silver plating work at home is carried out in a room that should be well ventilated. Before processing, the copper surface must be degreased using organic solvents or alkaline solutions to remove any impurities (oxides, fat, oil).

During the work, you will need pieces of soft cloth or leather with which the paste is applied to the product, flannel for polishing the surface and rubber gloves.

Chemical silvering method

Adjusted for silvering process chemical composition solution: hyposulfite (1 l) is mixed with formalin (6-10 drops) and ammonia (4-6 ml) is added. Carrying out the adjustment allows you to obtain a silver coating.
Copper products are pre-treated. The part is cleaned until shiny, then it needs to be boiled in a soda solution and rinsed well in water. After preparation, the object is immersed for 1-1.5 hours in a container of photographic solution.
At the end of the procedure, the surface is covered with a silver film, the quality of which is determined by the concentration of silver in the composition. The product is washed in water, dried and polished with a soft cloth to add shine.

In order to silver plate copper, you can simply rub it with matte photographic paper in a hyposulfite solution.

To do this, sheets of photo paper are cut into pieces and immersed in a solution diluted in accordance with the instructions on the package.

The prepared product is dipped into a container and processed (rubbed) using an emulsion layer of paper. Gradually, a silver coating appears on the surface of the product. At the end of the procedure, it is washed and wiped with a soft cloth.

Prepare a solution from hyposulfite (300 ml), 2 ml ammonia, 2-3 drops of formaldehyde, which is then placed in a dark place. The cleaned product is immersed in liquid for 30-90 minutes, then dried and wiped with a rag.

Application of paste

Silvering Copper with Lapis Pencil

The home method of silvering using lapis pencil (silver nitrate) is quite complicated, but gives a denser coating.

To prepare the mixture, 2 g of silver nitrate is dissolved in 300 ml of water.

Hydrochloric acid or a 10 percent solution of table salt is gradually added to the composition until silver chloride flakes stop falling out. The resulting precipitate must be filtered and washed well.

Next, sodium hyposulfite (20 g) is dissolved in 100 ml of water and silver chloride is added there. When the substance stops dissolving, the resulting mixture is filtered and mixed with ground chalk or tooth powder. As a result, it should look like liquid sour cream, which is used for silvering. Copper is rubbed with this mixture until a dense silver film is obtained.

For the second method, you need to mix the following ingredients:

silver chloride 6 g;
table salt 8 g;
potassium tartrate (tartar) 8 g.

The prepared powder is mixed well and ground in a mortar. The mixture is stored in a dark glass container. Immediately before use, it must be diluted in water to form a liquid paste, which is used to rub the previously cleaned part.

The following substances are mixed and dissolved in water to form a liquid slurry:

cream of tartar 4 g;
ammonia 2 g;
lapis pencil (silver nitrate) 1 g.

The finished mixture is applied to the fabric and rubbed onto the metal surface until shiny.

Prepare and carefully filter the composition from the mixture:

silver nitrate 10 g;
potassium cyanide 25 g;
water 100 g.

Lapis pencil (silver nitrate) is dissolved in 50 g of water, a solution of potassium cyanide and 50 g of distilled water are added to the resulting composition.

The resulting substance is mixed with a mixture of 10 g of cream of tartar and 100 g of washed chalk into a liquid slurry. Metal products are treated with the paste, after which they are rinsed cold water and dried.

Using a powder composition at home has advantages over liquid solutions. The powder has a longer shelf life; in a dark room it retains its properties for more than a year. Liquid solutions have a shelf life of several days.

Silver plating using heat

Mix and dilute with water to obtain a creamy consistency:

silver chloride 100 g;
cream of tartar 600 g;
table salt 600 g.

The finished composition is tightly sealed in a brown glass vessel and placed in a dark place.

To carry out silvering, a small amount of the resulting mixture is dissolved in water and brought to a boil, where the copper parts are processed for 15-20 minutes. The silvering process is carried out in a copper cauldron, into which objects are placed in a porcelain sieve. The solution is prepared at the rate of 3 tbsp. spoons of mixture per 5 liters of water.

The silver coating turns out matte and to add shine, a composition is prepared from the following ingredients:

water 4.8 l;
sodium sulfide salt 300 g;
vinegar-lead salt 100 g.

When the solution is heated to 70-80 degrees, lead sulfide is released. The parts are lowered into the boiler for 10-15 minutes and upon completion the metal surface becomes shiny.

Silver chloride, obtained from 25 g of silver nitrate, is mixed with cream of tartar (150 g), table salt and water to a liquid slurry. The finished mixture is kept in a dark container.

Silvering is done in a five-liter enamel cauldron, into which water is poured and brought to a boil. Add 2-3 tbsp to the container. spoons of a mixture that does not completely dissolve. Copper parts are treated in a boiling solution in a clay or porcelain sieve, while stirring them with a glass or wooden rod. To repeat the procedure, a new mixture is added to the boiler.

Silver plating by immersion in solution.

To obtain a denser film of silver at home, prepare the following solution.

ammonia 70 g;
silver chloride 10 g;
crystalline soda 40 g;
potassium cyanide 40 g;
table salt 15 g.

All these substances are mixed and distilled water is added to a volume of 1 liter. Metal parts are lowered into the container at the same time as a piece of zinc or mounted on a zinc plate.

To prepare the solution, a composition is made from the mixture:

silver nitrogen salt 11 g;
potassium cyanide 60 g;
exhausted chalk 750 g;
water 60 g.

Take one part of the mixture and add two parts of distilled water, and immerse the metal part in the resulting paste. Large objects can be wiped with a sponge or rag soaked in the solution. Upon completion, the product is rubbed with chalk and polished with a piece of leather.

Contact silvering method

carbon-silver salt 10 g;
sodium sulfide salt 100 g;
water 100 g.

The substances are mixed and dissolved in water, stirring constantly during the process. The finished solution is drained, filtering off the precipitate. The products are lowered into a container with a solution, where they come into contact with a zinc stick.

Video: Silver plating in solution

Spent hyposulfite (fixer), used in photography, and no longer suitable for fixing photographic film, can be used for silvering copper parts. This process is simple and can be easily done at home. To do this, the copper part must be cleaned to a shine, then boiled in a soda solution and rinsed generously with water. After this, the part is lowered into a container with hyposulfite. The quality of home silvering directly depends on the concentration of silver in the solution. After a while you will notice a silver residue on the part. At the end of the process, the part is removed from the container, washed with water, dried and polished with a dry soft cloth.

Chemical silver plating methods:

1. Sheets of Unibrom matte photographic paper are cut into pieces and dipped into a solution of fixing salt diluted in the volume of water indicated on the package.

The part, cleaned to a shine and degreased, is dipped into this solution and rubbed with an emulsion layer of paper, during which a dense layer of silver is formed on the surface of the part. The part is washed with warm water and wiped with a dry cloth.

2. To 300 ml of spent hyposulfite, add 1-2 ml of ammonia and 2-3 drops of formaldehyde (this solution is stored and worked with only in the dark).

The part, cleaned to a shine and degreased, is dipped into the solution for 30-90 minutes, after which it is washed in warm water, dried and wiped with a soft cloth.

Paste for silvering

Copper, bronze, brass, and copper-plated iron parts can be plated with silver using pastes. Here are some of their recipes:

1. To 300 ml of distilled water or water obtained from ice in household refrigerators, add 2 g of silver nitrate (lapis) and add a 10% solution of table salt to the solution until the precipitation of silver chloride stops. This precipitate is washed several times in running water.

Separately, 20 g of hyposulfite and 2 g of ammonium chloride (ammonia) are dissolved in 100 ml of distilled water. Then silver chloride is added to the resulting solution in small doses until it stops dissolving. The resulting solution is filtered and mixed with finely ground chalk to form a thick sour cream.

The degreased part is rubbed with a paste using cotton wool or gauze until a layer of silver forms on its surface, after which the part is washed with water and wiped with a rag.

2. The polished and degreased part is rubbed with a cloth onto which a paste of the following composition has previously been applied:

Silver chloride - 6 g.
Table salt - 8 g.
Sour potassium tartrate (tartar) - 8 g.

These substances are ground in a mortar and stored in a dark container. Before use, the mixture is diluted with distilled water to obtain a liquid paste. When the part is covered with a layer of silver, it is washed in water and rubbed until shiny with a soft flannel cloth.

3. 2 g of ammonia, 4 g of tartar and 1 g of silver nitrate (lapis) are poured into a container, diluted with distilled water to obtain a semi-liquid slurry, after which the polished and degreased part is rubbed with a cloth with a paste applied to it until a silver shine is obtained.

How to carry out silvering at home. Features of the silvering procedure for copper and brass. Galvanic and chemical coating technology. Composition of the solution. Safety precautions.

Silvering of metals as a process of coating products made of various alloys with an additional decorative and protective layer is very popular among craftsmen of various levels. It is not necessary to have special skills or run a chemical laboratory to carry out the silver plating process at home. There are a lot of simple technologies for self-silvering of various metals; these methods are described in detail in the article.

Silvering of metals, produced under any conditions, has not only decorative, but also practical purposes:

silver has high hardness (up to 90 kg/mm²);
conducts electricity well;
resistant to the formation of oxides and rust.

The advantages of metal also include thermal conductivity and light reflection.

Silver is resistant to alkaline solutions and acids of organic origin. Even strong concentrations of sulfuric acid can only dissolve silver plating at 100 °C.

In a word, silvering of metals prevents premature destruction of the material, and under a layer of silver, alloys are less susceptible to various environmental influences.

Coating methods

There are a large number of ways to apply silver to the surface of metal parts at home, but it is worth understanding that the silvering method should be chosen depending on the purpose and practical purpose of the product being processed. Popular silvering technologies include:

galvanic silvering;
chemical treatment;
immersion technology;
silvering using special pastes;
by heating the metal.

All these methods are suitable for performing the operation yourself at home.

Galvanic method

Electroplating involves electrochemical action on the workpiece. The essence of the method is the uneven sedimentation of silver molecules, during which a crystalline pattern is formed on the surface of the processed part.

To galvanize at home you need to prepare:

containers made of glass or plastic, the dimensions of which allow you to immerse a metal product in it;
electrolyte with which the container is filled;
stands or holders that fix parts in electrolytic liquid;
silver;
source of electric current.

In scientific terms, galvanization is the transfer of molecules when an electrical circuit is closed.

The product that needs coating is connected to the “-” charge (cathode), and the silver product, the molecules from which must move to the cathode, is connected to the “+” charge. In the electrolytic bath, under the influence of current, silver molecules begin to settle on the cathode, turning into a protective layer.

Chemical method

The chemical method involves the use of reagents that interact with a particular metal and form silver molecules.

Chemical silvering can be carried out using antichlor, also known as sodium thiosulfate, as a basis. This reagent is used in the field of photo development, but if it can no longer be used for its intended purpose (for fixing film), it can be used as a solution for silvering. The procedure will also require:

sodium thiosulfate – 1 l;
formalin – 6–10 drops;
ammonia - 5-6 drops.

The process of silvering at home looks like this:

Formaldehyde and alcohol (ammonia) are added to the antichlorine in the indicated proportions.
The metal product is prepared for the procedure: it is necessary to clean the surface, dip it in a soda solution brought to a boil, and then rinse with water.
The workpiece is immersed in antichlorine for 1.5–2 hours.
After completing the procedure, the product is washed and dried naturally.

Immersion method

The name of the method speaks for itself. Metal alloys are immersed in a silvering solution, which, depending on its components, can be subsequently galvanized. As a result, a dense protective layer of silver coating is formed. The mixture for immersion silvering at home can be of different consistencies and have different compositions.

Dip with galvanization

Mixture components:

water-based ammonium hydroxide solution – 70 ml;
crystalline soda – 40 g;
silver chloride – 10 g;
potassium cyanide – 40 g;
table salt– 15 years

Distilled water is added to the mixture until the total volume of the solution reaches 1 liter. Not only the product, but also the zinc part is immersed in the liquid, after which the composition is subjected to galvanic action.

Regular dive

Composition of the paste for silvering:

lapis – 11 g;
chalk (powder) – 750 g;
potassium cyanide – 60 g;
water – 60 ml.

The mixture is diluted with water in a ratio of 1:2 (1 part mixture to 2 parts water), and the metal alloy is placed in a paste-like composition. Large parts can simply be rubbed with this composition.

Using special pastes

Preparing pastes for silvering at home involves the use of caustic reagents and chemicals, so the procedure should be carried out in a room with good ventilation. The recipe must be selected depending on the metal being processed. Using copper as an example, the list of reagents would be as follows:

Argentum chloride – 6 g;
table salt – 8 g;
cream of tartar - 8 g;
distilled water.

The procedure will also require glass or plastic utensils, protective gloves and a mask, as well as rags.

The alloy is thoroughly cleaned from traces of rust. You can keep it in a medium concentration soda solution for some time.

All reagents are crushed and mixed to a paste-like consistency. The copper part must be completely covered with the composition using a piece of rag. As soon as a silver layer forms on the product, the part must be washed and polished with a dry soft cloth.

By heating the product

Silvering at home can be done using special solutions that need to be heated together with the products immersed in them. As an example, we will give one of the heating methods.

Composition of the mixture for silvering:

silver chloride – 100 g;
table salt – 600 g;
potassium bitartrate – 600 g.

The result is a dry multi-component powder that can be stored for a long time in a dark glass container.

The solution is prepared using a large amount of water (3 tablespoons of dry mixture per 5 liters of water), after which it must be boiled. A metal alloy part is immersed in a boiling composition and remains in it for 25–30 minutes.

After boiling in a solution, the metal receives a matte coating, which can be removed using another composition:

water – 5 l;
sulfide sodium salt – 300 g;
vinegar-lead salt – 100 g.

The composition is heated to 75–90 °C and the product is placed in it for a quarter of an hour, after which the coating acquires a corresponding silver shine.

Features of silver coating of different metals

Many metals can be silvered: brass, aluminum, steel and other alloys. During the process, reactions occur that provoke the release of metallic silver, which is responsible for the creation of the characteristic silver coating.

There are a number of features of the silvering process under different conditions:

The composition of the mixture must be selected based not only on the quality of the product, but also on its further practical purpose.
Light metals are easier to plating. The coating thickness for parts made of dark material must be at least 15 microns.
The surface of any alloy must be thoroughly cleaned and degreased before the silvering procedure.

Silvering of copper and copper alloys

Silvering of copper is no different from silver plating of other types of products. Copper is not a capricious metal and can be easily processed. However, it is this type of metal that is most susceptible to the formation of oxides and corrosion, and therefore additional preparatory measures in the form of polishing may be necessary before silvering.

Safety precautions

If silvering of metal is carried out at home, it is recommended to pay special attention to safety precautions:

All processes chemical properties must take place in a well-ventilated area.
During the procedure, you must use protective glasses and gloves. It is recommended to wear special clothing.
During silvering, it is necessary to isolate yourself from children and pets so as not to endanger their life and health.
Chemical waste should be disposed of according to safety regulations.

If you have experience in silvering metal products at home, you can tell us about it in the comments.

Some silver compounds decompose when they come into contact with zinc, iron, copper and other metals, releasing metallic silver. This property of silver salts can be used to coat any metal surface with a layer of silver.

The following recipes for silvering metals are suitable for zinc, copper and brass. If it is desirable to silver plate another metal, then it must first be coated with a thin layer of copper.

Recipe 1

silver chloride 300 g;
table salt 300 gr;
exhausted chalk 200 g;
potash 600 gr.

Step 1. Mix these substances.

Step 2. Clean the item completely from dirt and traces of fats or oils.

Step 3. Rub with a raw piece of the above mixture.

Step 4. Rinse with water and polish.

Recipe 2

silver nitrogen salt 100 g;
potassium cyanide 300 gr.

Step 1. Both compositions are mixed.

Step 2. Spread the resulting dough-like mass onto a woolen cloth. They rub the object with it.

Step 3. The item is washed with water and rubbed with a piece of leather until it shines. The result is an even, beautiful layer of silver.

When using this recipe, we strongly recommend wearing rubber gloves and generally working with extreme caution, since potassium cyanide is one of the strongest poisons and you need to be extremely careful when working with it.

Recipe 3

silver chloride 300 g;
table salt 600 gr;
cream of tartar 600 gr.

Step 1. Mix silver chloride, cream of tartar and table salt in enough water to form a dough-like mass.

Step 2. The resulting composition is rubbed onto the object. This mixture is usually used for silvering buttons.

Recipe 4

silver nitrogen salt 20 g;
distilled water 10 ml;
cyanide 50 g;
water 100 ml.
cream of tartar.

Step 1. 20 g of silver nitrate salt are dissolved in 100 g of distilled water and a solution of 50 g of potassium cyanide in 100 g of water is added.

Step 2. Both solutions are mixed well and filtered.

Step 3. Separately mix 10 wt. tsp chalk with 1 wt. parts of cream of tartar and the resulting powder is mixed with the appropriate amount of the above filtered solution to obtain a not very thick mass suitable for application to objects.

Step 4. After silvering, the object is washed, dried and polished.

Silver plating by wet method (immersion)

Well-pre-cleaned items are dipped into a liquid prepared according to one of the following recipes:

Recipe 1

silver plating liquid;
carbon-silver salt 10 g;
sodium sulfide salt 100 g;
water 100 ml

Step 1. Dissolve salts in water with frequent stirring.

Step 2. Drain the saturated solution from the undissolved sediment of carbon-silver salt remaining at the bottom.

Step 3. Objects immersed in this solution are touched with a zinc stick (contact method of silvering).

Recipe 2

"Argentin" (liquid for silvering);
Nitrogen-silver salt 5.5 g;
Potassium cyanide 60 g;
Sodium sulfide salt 10 g;
Ammonia 6 g;
Exhausted chalk 10 g;
Water 100 ml.

Recipe 3

silver chloride 10 g;
ammonia 70 ml;
potassium cyanide 40 g;
crystalline soda 40 g;
table salt 15 gr.

Step 1. To obtain thicker layers of silver, a mixture of these components is made. Add distilled water so that the total volume is 1 liter.

Step 2. Objects are immersed together with a piece of zinc or placed on a zinc plate.

Recipe 4

"Argentina";
silver nitrogen salt 11 g;
potassium cyanide 60 g;
exhausted chalk 750 g;
water 60 gr.

Step 1. A mixture is prepared from these components. Store it in a dark glass vessel.

Step 2. When used, mix one part of the mixture with two parts of rain or distilled water and dip the object intended for silvering into it. Large objects are rubbed with a sponge or rag soaked in this mixture.

After silvering, the objects are rubbed with seasoned chalk and polished with a soft piece of leather.

Silvering when heated

Recipe 1

cream of tartar powder 600 g;
table salt 600 gr;
silver chloride 100 gr.

Step 1. Silver chloride is mixed with cream of tartar and table salt, a little water is added to form a liquid paste.

Step 2. Store in a dark place in a well-sealed dark glass container.

Step 3. Items to be silvered are immersed in a solution of the above components and boiled for 15-20 minutes. For 5 liters of water take 3 tablespoons of the composition for silvering. Silver plating is produced in a copper boiler. The objects are placed in a clay sieve, lowered into the cauldron with strong stirring, after which the object is immediately coated with a thin layer of silver.

Step 4. The resulting silver layer is beautiful and durable, but lacks shine. To add shine, objects removed from the solution are heated to 70-80° in the next solution.

Silvering of metal products can also be done at home. This procedure can be carried out qualitatively in various ways, and for the practical implementation of many of them you do not need to look for and buy expensive chemical reagents. You can prepare a solution for silvering copper products using available products, even at home.

Products coated with a layer of silver, like gold-plated metal, look very presentable, which explains the high popularity of this technological operation.

How silvering of copper and copper alloys is performed

The silvering process has a number of features that must be taken into account when performing it. These features are as follows.

Silvering, as a rule, is applied to products made of copper, brass, aluminum, steel and a number of other alloys. Metallic silver is released from the solution for silvering upon contact with these metals and alloys, which makes it possible to effectively carry out such a technological process.
The easiest way to plating silver is light metal. To prevent the darker surface of the base metal from showing through from under the applied silver layer, the thickness of such a layer should be at least 10–15 micrometers.
Silvering at home or at a production site must be done in well-ventilated areas.
To make the silver plating of brass, copper or any other metal different high quality, the surface to be treated must first be degreased.
The paste used for silvering is applied using a piece of soft cloth or leather.

Chemical method

One of the ways in which chemical silver plating is performed is that the metal surface is treated with antichlor (sodium thiosulfate) - a solution for fixing photographs. The essence of the silvering method using such a solution is as follows.

To one liter of antichlorine, which is no longer suitable for fixing photographic film, add six to ten drops of formaldehyde and 4-6 ml of ammonia.
The copper product to be silvered is carefully prepared: the surface is cleaned to a metallic shine, then the part is boiled in a soda solution and thoroughly washed with water. After such preparation, the product to be treated is immersed in a photo solution for an hour and a half.
After exposure to a photo solution, the metal is coated with a thin layer of silver. The final stages of the silvering procedure using this technology are washing the product with water, drying and polishing.
Silver plating of copper products can also be done using ordinary photographic paper.
Photographic paper is cut into separate pieces and immersed in a solution, the composition of which is indicated on its packaging.
The product on the surface of which it is necessary to apply a layer of silver is carefully prepared and dipped into a solution with photographic paper.
The surface to be treated is rubbed with an emulsion layer of photographic paper, resulting in the formation of a silver coating.
After completing the procedure, the product is thoroughly washed with water, dried, and then rubbed with a soft cloth.

You can also silver plate copper in the following way.

To 300 ml of antichlor add 2 ml of an aqueous solution of ammonium hydroxide and 2-3 drops of formaldehyde.
The resulting solution is placed in a dark place and the product being treated is immersed in it for 30 minutes (or even an hour and a half).
After soaking in the solution, the product is dried and wiped with a soft cloth.

Using special pastes

In order to silver plate metal, you can use special pastes that are easy to prepare at home. Silvering of metal products using special paste-like compositions is carried out using various methods.

Method No. 1

The first of these methods involves the use of silver nitrate, which is often called a lapis pencil. Although this method silvering and is characterized by a fairly high complexity; it allows the formation of a dense silver coating on the metal surface.

The lapis pencil is also used as a “tester” for silver and other metals.

To implement this silvering method, prepare water solution, consisting of 300 ml of water and 2 grams of silver nitrate. Hydrochloric acid or a 10% aqueous solution of table salt is gradually added to the resulting solution. This process is carried out until the sediment, which is silver chloride, stops falling to the bottom of the container. The resulting precipitate, which appears in the form of flakes, must be collected, filtered and washed thoroughly.

Filtered and washed silver chloride is mixed with a solution consisting of 100 ml of water and 20 grams of sodium hyposulfite. The mixture thus obtained is filtered and mixed with tooth powder or ground chalk, bringing its consistency to a creamy state. This mixture is already ready for use; it is rubbed onto the surface of the copper product, as a result of which a thin film of silver is formed on it.

Method No. 2

To silver plate copper products using the second method, you need to mix the following components:

6 grams of silver chloride;
8 grams of table salt;
the same amount of potassium tartrate.

All of the above components are mixed dry and thoroughly ground in a mortar. The resulting mixture can be stored in dark glass containers for sufficient long time. Immediately before use, this powder is diluted in water to a paste-like state and the surface of the product being treated is rubbed with this product.

Method No. 3

The following silvering method involves the use of a mixture containing the following components:

4 grams potassium bitartrate;
2 ml of ammonia;
1 gram lapis pencil.

The resulting mixture is dissolved in water to a paste-like state, applied to a soft cloth, with which the surface to be treated is rubbed until a silver shine is obtained.

Method No. 4

To silver plate a metal using this method, prepare a mixture of the following composition:

10 grams of silver nitrate;
25 grams of potassium cyanide;
100 ml water.

The technology for preparing silver paste using this method is as follows:

Silver nitrate is dissolved in 50 ml of water.
Potassium cyanide and another 50 ml of distilled water are added to the resulting solution.
Add 10 grams of potassium bitartrate and 100 grams of powdered chalk into the solution, bringing the consistency of the mixture to a paste-like state.

The surface of the product is treated with the paste, which is obtained by mixing all the components, after which it is washed with water and dried thoroughly.

The powders from which such pastes for silvering are prepared can be stored in dry form for quite a long time (a year or more), while liquid for silvering has a shelf life limited to just a few days.

Silvering with heating of the workpiece

To prepare a set for silvering, during which the product being processed will be heated along with the solution used, several techniques are used.

First way

To implement the first method, a mixture of the following composition is prepared:

100 grams of silver chloride;
600 grams of potassium bitartrate;
the same amount of table salt.

The resulting dry mixture, which can be stored for a long time in a dark glass container, is dissolved in water (at the rate of 3 tablespoons of dry mixture per five liters of water) and the resulting solution is brought to a boil. The metal to be silvered is boiled in this solution for a quarter of an hour.

As a result of this treatment, the metal is coated with a matte layer of silver. To give the coating shine, it is necessary to additionally treat the product in a solution of the following composition:

4.8 liters of water;
300 grams of sulfide sodium salt;
100 grams of vinegar-lead salt.

This solution is brought to a temperature of 70–80° and the product is kept in it for 10–15 minutes. As a result of this treatment, the metal surface acquires a characteristic silver shine.

Second way

You can also silver plate a metal using the following composition:

silver chloride, obtained from 25 grams of silver nitrate;
150 grams of potassium bitartrate;
table salt;
water.

2-3 tablespoons of this mixture are added to five liters of water, which is brought to a boil. The products being processed are immersed in such a solution in a clay or porcelain sieve, while the boiling mixture is continuously stirred with a glass or wooden stick.

Immersion silvering method

This galvanic silvering makes it possible to obtain silver-plated wire or any other type of product with a more dense coating. Silver plating can also be done using different techniques.

Method No. 1

To implement the first method of silvering, which involves electroplating, prepare a solution of the following composition:

70 ml of aqueous ammonium hydroxide solution;
10 grams of silver chloride;
40 grams of crystalline soda;
the same amount of potassium cyanide;
15 grams of table salt.

By mixing the components of this solution with distilled water, bring its volume to one liter. Galvanization of the workpiece occurs due to the fact that pieces of zinc or a plate of this metal are added to the container in which silvering is carried out.

Method No. 2

The paste mixture for silvering using this method is prepared from the following components

11 grams of lapis;
60 grams of potassium cyanide;
750 grams of powdered chalk;
60 ml water.

Small products are immersed in a paste-like mass obtained by mixing such a mixture with two parts of water, and larger parts are simply rubbed with it.

Method No. 3

This method, which is called contact, also refers to galvanic-chemical methods of silver plating. To implement it, prepare a mixture of the following composition:

10 grams of carbon-silver salt;
100 grams of sulfide sodium salt;
100 ml water.

The essence of this method of silvering, which is reminiscent of galvanizing, is that the product being processed is placed in an aqueous solution of this mixture. In this case, a zinc stick or wire is also immersed in the solution, which comes into contact with the surface of the part.