Clean Verdigris Off Pennies Lol This Works

If the verdigris has already pitted the surface of the coin, the damage of which cannot be fixed, I guess that cleaning with degreaser may be worth experimenting with on some of less valuable coins.

Show us some 'before and 'after' pictures, if you are happy with your results.

I am much more amenable to the idea of cleaned coins, in the case of ancient coins recovered from direct ground burial.


Nevertheless, potentially valuable ancient coins recovered from direct ground burial are usually cleaned by museum professionals, with a range and combination of methods using a wealth of experience.
Some of these cleaning techniques can be found with a Google search.

I don't like the scrubbing part.

Scrub...brrrr.....scrub - that single word just makes me run.

Several problems with that. And the big one is not all such items are the same. And since your in Australia, might be completely different solution. If you would go to the average auto parts store or even the auto section at Walmart, you would see several different brands of that. Some may do more damage than good. Some may leave a residue that is difficult to remove too. It is sort of like people saying use water. Not all waters are the same.

Will try to reply to all at once. Yes have seen verdi care and seen many pics of its before and after and some to considerable verdigris or at least verdigris residue is left in most pics I have seen. Degreaser leaves NONE.

No unfortunately cannot post pics as have no mobile or digital camera at present.

On the points mebbe different conditions depend on coins and degreaser, well ok there is for coins and I've only tried one degreaser.

I didnt mention it because I figured anyone interested and doing it would spot those obvious subdivisions and cope that easily in their own right with them. So without being able to post pics the situs as known are -

- light verdigris on australian cleanish otherwise pennies, - verdigris totally gone and a wonderful natural patina total coin.

-pennies literally encased in the "black dirt" as you probably know of coins - verdigris totally gone, some black dirt gone and coin sheen a bit like a coin cleaned in vinegar or such as you may know. Not very much because you are only leaving in the degreaser for half an hour but a tinge of that vinegaar clean sheen.

- heavily black spotted coins with residual individual spots looking like they are verdigris emanators - verdigris gone but several cycles more not much black spot lessening, and not very noticeable coin cleaned by vinegar sheens.

Hope that is some help. best I can offer at the moment. Cheers.

EDIT - sorry, forgot the antiscrubbing - well if you dont scrub, just use washing and wiping with wet tissue or rage.

Ty for reply Buddy. Neither gel or foam Buddy as I know them, just the ordinary spray can engine degreaser you get at any auto parts store and many other dept stores. More sprays a petrolly liquid here in australia. I just sprayed either one or both sides of the coin and left them on an aluminium surface in the laundry.

Interesting to note the greem verdigris removed is on the aluminium of course, but after you wipe that and it looks clean, if you use a wet tissue to really hard wipe again, it comes up with green residue on the tissue.

There are two basically different types of chemistries for engine degreasers:
1. Strongly alkaline based, where greases are converted into non organic detergents, and
2. Solvent based hydrocarbon degreasers which organically dissolve greases into lighter fractions. Kerosene is a good example of this type.

Note Never use a chlorinated hydrocarbon such as trichlorethylene. All chlorinated hydrocarbons are to greater or lesser extent, carcinogenic and threaten the liver.

My question is:- What type of degreaser was used in this case?

In any case, the remaining verdigris still has to be passivated, or the bronze disease will simply continue.

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Has anybody experimented with WD40?