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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;gsimonel, post: 2972213, member: 82549&quot;]The rap against tap water is that in many localities--not all in Michigan--tap water contains traces of chlorine. Some coin cleaners have expressed concern that in these areas the combination of tap water and fresh coin surfaces might trigger bronze disease. Considering that distilled water (DW) is available in most grocery stores for around $1-2 gallon and that a gallon will usually last for several months, it seems like a small price to pay for the extra peace of mind. I will sometimes rinse a coin off with tap water, but for long-term soaks I use distilled.</p><p><br /></p><p>I agree with your assessment of olive oil. When I first started cleaning coins, soaking in olive oil was the most commonly recommended method. So that&#039;s what I started off doing. Seemed to work okay on many coins, but I was curious why, after soaking for a week or so, the con turned black and the oil changed color from yellow-green to light blue. Turns out that olive oil is slightly acidic, and the blue color was from the copper that leached out from the coin. So when I heard someone suggest using distilled water, I gave it a try--much cheaper, less messy, less damage to the coin surface--and have used that ever since. If DW soaks didn&#039;t work, then it was time to escalate: brass bristle brushes, brass tools under a stereo microscope, or, in extreme, apparently hopeless cases, electrolysis.</p><p><br /></p><p>If you do try soaking in other oils, your last step will be to remove the oil film from the coin surface. I remember several people recommending using tri-sodium phophate (TSP, available in most department store) to remove oil film, but by then I&#039;d switched to DW, so I can&#039;t vouch for it.</p><p><br /></p><p>Basically, there are two types of liquids, polar (electrically unbalanced) and non-polar (balanced). Polar liquids, like water, will dissolve polar deposits, non-polar liquids, like oils, will dissolve non-polar deposits. Soaps, like dish-washing liquid, help to break down non-polar deposits, so the combination of repeated DW soaks and gentle scrubbing with dish-washing liquid should break down both types of deposit. I don&#039;t know of anything that you can combine with oil to help it break down polar deposits--not saying there isn&#039;t, I just don&#039;t know of anything--so that&#039;s another reason to try DW soaks.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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