How do i clean a coin?

[Yeyo Morete]

Can old coins with high economic and historical value be cleaned? Or will they lose some of their value? If they can be cleaned, how should it be done?

 

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[ARC]

Can old coins with high economic and historical value be cleaned? Or will they lose some of their value? If they can be cleaned, how should it be done?

The short answer and correct answer would be No... but in certain instances can be done for some coins.... each has its own circumstance.

Coins of little to no value can be cleaned ....... correctly.

 

[l.cutler]

Cleaning is the fastest way to damage a coin. Even rinsing in water and wiping with a cloth will leave permanent damage. Unless you really know what you are doing, don't do it!

 

[Gare]

Cleaning is the fastest way to damage a coin. Even rinsing in water and wiping with a cloth will leave permanent damage. Unless you really know what you are doing, don't do it!

Just how much will it damage a coin if you clean it. What would the value of a uncleaned coin then the value after you cleaned it ?

 

[ToddsPoint]

Hi value coins need to be sent to a place like NCG for conservation. They will “clean” it as good as possible without damaging it.

 

[BennyV]

Me personally.

I wouldn’t clean a coin if it could be of historical importance or of potentially great numismatic value.

Luckily there are many resources available (such as this site) to find out if a coin might be historical or of value. If it has potential I’d then send it out to be conserved and graded.

 

[ARC]

Post some pictures here of your coins and perhaps we can assert a real opinion to them.

 

[pepperj]

Coin Conservation | NCS | Numismatic Conservation Services | NGC

Founded in 2001, NCS is the world’s first and foremost professional coin conservation service.

www.ngccoin.com

 

[l.cutler]

Just how much will it damage a coin if you clean it. What would the value of a uncleaned coin then the value after you cleaned it ?

There's really no set answer, it depends on the coin and how much damage was done. Could be a substantial amount though.

 

[FreeBirdTim]

Nothing wrong with lightly cleaning silver coins. I cleaned this 1878 cc seated dime with Dawn dish soap and warm water. I think it came out really nice and added value to the coin.

 

[ToddsPoint]

That’s so cool that one of your dug coins graded. Many won’t grade due to “environmental damage”. Can I ask what ANACS charged you to grade it? About how long did it take?

 

[FreeBirdTim]

I was actually shocked that it came back without a "cleaned" or "environmental damage" designation. I'm not complaining, though!

I went with the five business day service, which costs $30 a coin. Then I had to pay $26 for insured shipping, plus the $10 I spent to ship it to them via priority mail. Total cost was $66, which isn't bad. PCGS and NGC would have charged me $125 to $150 to get it graded.

The total turnaround time was two weeks, which was very fast, considering that I live in Rhode Island and they're based in Colorado....