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Antiques & Collectibles

Cleaning silver off mirror?

18 years ago

My son is refurbishing an old mirror frame that has a beveled mirror. Before removing the mirror from the frame he said a large piece of the silver backing on the mirror had de-laminated. Since the mirror quality was so very poor and the one piece had come loose he decided to scrape the rest of it off, thinking he would try to put another mirror behind the beveled glass....

well, cleaning off the old silver is not working so well. Most of it has come off with a razor blade scraper but there is residue that won't come off. Does anyone know what can be used to get the rest of it off? It's probably from 1910-20 era.

Thanks in advance,

Mary

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Comments (3)

lindac
18 years ago
I am sure you don't want to hear this at this point....but he should never have tried removing the ole silver from the mirror.
The absence of a bit of the silver is not a terribly serious detrement, but a messed up removal is.
Ever been to Venice? Ever seen really old mirrors with so little silver left you can see the wall behind?
Now that the process has started, finish stripper will complete the task.....but take the mirror out of the frame so it doesn't ruin that too.
Linda C
Marisha
Original Author
18 years ago
Thanks Linda ; )
He already took the mirror out of the frame so he could work on the frame, cleaning and repairing it.
I also would have advised him not to remove the silver but it was too late by the time he told me of the project. He has tried paint stripper to no avail...that's why he asked me if I knew what to use...What is "finish" stripper? Most of the silver came off, there is just little spots/speckles of it left, stubborn little speckles!
Any other ideas?
Thanks,
Mary
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maddielee
18 years ago
I hope this isn't too late. I had great success using Muriatic Acid to remove old silver from a beveled mirror. Do it outdoors with lot's of protection (including eyes). This acid can be purchased at a swimming pool supply store.

Good luck

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