I have several U.S. Silver Dollars that were in house fire. They were in a plastic bag and the bag melted over the coins. What cemical or substance can I use to remove the plastic from the coins? Thanks.
melting the rest off might also be an option. Or mabey boiling it off if the water would get hot enough. Hopefully someone might have a better idea for you.
I don't think boiling it in water will do as the melting point of plastics depend variably on the types of plastic. Perhaps acetone will be the best choice but proceed with caution.
First, be sure you have pure acetone. DO NOT use acetone-based nail polish remover, or any other acetone-based product with perfumes and other additives. Pour enough to cover the coin in a glass dish. Gently place the coin in the acetone. Swish it around a couple of times and discard the acetone. Rinse the coins repeatedly in either distilled or deionized water, and discard the water. Air dry. If the gunk isn't completely gone, repeat.
Will acetone do anything to the coin other than remove gunk? Will it harm or change the surface of, say, a morgan dollar? Thanks.
well boiling in water would be no help at all, most platics used in bags melt well over that temperature... if your bag was a polyethylene bag (the cheap bags you get at supermarkets), then you are in trouble, that stuff dissolves in very few solvents and that too only after heating... hope you are lucky and its the type that comes off in acetone! if the plastic is rather thick and not charred, you could probably actually carefully peel it off without nicking the coin surface with the tweezers...
