Does Lemon Juice Clean Pennies? - Fixanswer

This method is the best way to clean your pennies, and it will produce a very bright orangey-copper color on your pennies. It does this by using the low levels of acids that are contained naturally in vinegar and lemon juice to remove the patina (brown oxidation) on the penny.

Does lemon juice or vinegar clean pennies better?

Ultimately,

lemon juice will clean pennies better than vinegar

, though both liquids are viable cleaning options for copper. … This means that lemon juice is a slightly stronger acid than vinegar. The stronger the acid, the better it will clean copper pennies.

Which juice will clean pennies the best?

Those tart little lemons work to remove copper oxide because they contain citric acid. Since

lemon juice

has the highest concentration of citric acid of any fruit, it works the best. Other juices that rank highly include lime, grapefruit, and orange juice.

Does lemon juice or vinegar clean better?

Lemon juice and vinegar are common kitchen items, but they're also relatively strong acids. They're not strong enough to burn your skin, of course, but they're

sufficient to clean surfaces in your home

. Distilled white vinegar has a pH of about 2.4 and a strength of about 5%. Lemon juice has around the same pH.

How can you make a dull penny shiny again?

The

vinegar

made its penny shiny. Pennies become dull over time as copper on the surface reacts with oxygen from the air. The two elements combine to form dark chemicals called copper oxides. The acetic acid in vinegar dissolves these chemicals and leaves the copper surface of the penny looking shiny.

Does Coke really clean coins?

Coke and off-brand colas

will quickly remove the tarnish

. Just don't drink the coke afterward. Coke contains phosphoric acid that cleans the oxides. Try a variety of citrus juices to see which works best or simply let your pennies soak in lemon juice.

Why does vinegar and salt clean pennies?

The combination of vinegar (a weak solution of acetic acid), and table salt (sodium chloride)

helps to dissolve the copper oxide

, and also forms the blue copper(II) ion, which is soluble in water. The penny becomes shiny again!

Does orange juice clean pennies?

Copper oxide dissolves in a mixture of weak acid and table salt-and vinegar is an acid. You could also clean your pennies with salt and lemon juice or orange juice, because those juices

are acids

, too.

Can I mix vinegar and lemon?

Try mixing in

lemon juice

—it'll help tone down the smell a little bit, and still give you all the cleaning power you need. Plus, that lemon-vinegar mixture can come in particularly handy for certain cleaning tasks, but we'll get to that in a sec.

What happens when you mix vinegar and dish soap?

The combination of dish soap and vinegar is highly effective for a few different reasons. … However, vinegar alone will simply run off of most surfaces, while dish soap is too thick to use as a spray. But when you mix them together, you

get an effective, sprayable cleaner that sticks to any surface!

What is cleaning product made by mixing vinegar lemon and baking soda?

Lemon juice

is another natural substance that can be used to clean your home. … Mix lemon juice with vinegar or baking soda to make a cleaning paste. Cut a lemon in half and sprinkle baking soda on the cut section of the lemon. Use the lemon to scrub dishes, surfaces, and stains.

What causes shiny pennies to turn dull?

The negatively charged oxygen atoms in our air are attracted to the positively charged copper atoms in the penny. When oxygen binds with copper, they form a new molecule known as

copper oxide

. … This is why most pennies you see look dirty or tarnished—it's not actually dirt but copper oxide that makes them look so dull.

How long do you soak pennies in vinegar?

A common ingredient in DIY eco-friendly cleaners, the acetic acid in white vinegar can help wear away the contamination on your coins. Soak your coins in a glass or other non-corrosive container for

at least 30 minutes, up to overnight

, and then wipe with a clean cloth or scrub gently with an old toothbrush.

How do you clean old pennies without devaluing them?

In a jar, combine one cup vinegar (or lemon juice) and 1 tablespoon salt. …
Pour the solution into the plastic container. …
Add the coins in a single layer, so none of the coins are touching. …
When you remove the coins and wipe them with a cloth or paper towel, they should look shiny.