Has anyone ever cleaned old paper money?

No, you shouldn't @Kick back, you'd severely undermine any numismatic value of your note. Collectors, dealers, and third-party grading services would only look upon it as a problem note and would treat it as such.

 

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Technically, yes. There are things you can do to a note to make it unwrinkle and appear crisper. Examples include steam ironing and spraying the note with starch. However, while the note may look okay with a passing glance, it will always look tinkered and doctored to experienced eyes. And with ironing you take a risk of leaving browning marks from the heat.

I would say the consensus on this forum would be to leave the note alone in its present state. If you really feel compelled to "do" something, the most I would do is place the note in a heavy book (heavy like a large encyclopedia) for a few weeks. I have had good success with this method although purists would advise against doing even this.

 

No!

 

If you try to clean it, it's almost 100% you are going to ruin it and the value.