Using Ketchup to Shine Silver

Ketchup on Silver

The Experiment

For this post to really make sense, you should probably read Cleaning With Condiments first. Anyway, I had just published the article to the site and I had a few minutes, so I decided to test ketchup’s ability to shine silver. Surely this wouldn’t really work, I told myself. But, what the heck, it’s only a 10 minute test, I’ll give it a shot. I took pictures of each of the steps. See my test results below.

Step 1: Find Something Silver

Ok, so this took a little longer than I expected. I used to have a number of silver utensils, serving pieces, candle holders, tea service, etc. I think I might have tossed most of them. Eventually, I found a cake server that worked. It had some tarnish.

Silver Server With Tarnish
Step 1: Find Something Silver That’s Tarnished

Step 2: Put Ketchup on the Server and Rub It On the Silver

I found some ketchup and squirted it on the silver part of the server. Following that I spent about 5 seconds spreading the ketchup with the tip of my finger.

Step 2: Put Ketchup on the Server
Step 2: I Squirted the Ketchup on the Silver
Spread Ketchup Around
Step 2: I Spread the Ketchup Around With My Finger

Step 3: Set a Timer For 10 Minutes

10 Minute Timer

I set the timer to go off in 10 minutes. Then I paid no attention to the ketchup covered silver server.

Step 4: Polish Off the Ketchup With an Old Soft Cloth

Ok, so I didn’t actually polish the ketchup off with a cloth. I wiped it off with a paper towel. I took my time and wiped it all off. After I wiped off the ketchup, I rinsed the server in warm water and dried it.

Step 4: Clean Silver Server
Step 4: The Polished Silver Server

I have to say I was really surprised. I put no effort into this experiment, yet the tarnish came off!

Well, this was fun. You’ll have to try this yourself…if you can find something silver with tarnish on it.