Q&A for How to Clean Pennies

Yes it will remove most dirt and oils. A good first step in cleaning.

Combine it with apple cider and scrub it clean. An old toothbrush works great.

It takes about 5 minutes for lemon juice to react to the penny.

Soak pennies in vinegar for about 10-30 minutes, depending on how dirty it is.

In the USA, in 1982 and before pennies were made of copper. Since 1982, the pennies have been made of zinc.

They usually stay the same. However, if you put zinc pennies in a wash for too long, they might start to lose their print.

Acetone or xylene. They will remove organic matter only and will not damage the coin.

Get a large bin and add warm soapy water, then let the pennies soak before drying them.

No, none of these methods should be damaging to the penny.

Yes, but vinegar and salt is cheaper.

Because of their small worth, not many bother counterfeiting pennies.

You could, but this method works and is safer than the chemicals found in metal cleaners.

Yes, there is a penny called a Indian penny that can sell for a thousand dollars or so if it is in good condition.

Yes, that is the correct type, I used it and it worked. Pretty much any type will work, I believe, besides sweet vinegar.

Use the salt and vinegar method, and scrub well with a toothbrush. If the spots don't come off, use Bar Keeper's Friend.

You could let them soak for a couple of hours, but it probably won't be very effective. If the detergent method does not work, you could try any of these methods. Bar Keeper's Friend works the best for me.

Yes, but preferably not your own since it will get dirty after the scrubbing process.

The year is listed on the front of the coin.

Yes, as long as it is highly carbonated.

Wash it with soap and water, then put hand sanitizer on it; rub that all around. Repeat a few times.

Yes, it should. The spicier hot sauces tend to work better than the mild. A spicy salsa might even work.

Yes, depending on the chemicals. Some are listed in this article, like metal cleaners.

Water is helpful, but be sure to use soap if you need to clean pennies.

Silver polish is used for cleaning metals. It will not work great on dark metals.

It may ruin the print of pennies from before 1982, which were made of mild to weak copper.

The tarnishing of pennies is the result of a chemical reaction. Cleaning said tarnish is reversing that initial reaction using various solutions.

Vinegar in the ketchup cleans the pennies and takes of the oxidation and oils.

Any sodas that contain phosphoric acid (that's the ingredient that lets cola clean pennies) will work. Many sports drinks, bottled teas, punches, and fruit-flavored beverages contain phosphoric acid as well.

No. The acid in ketchup will only clean the penny, not damage it. Their value will not change.

It depends on the condition of the penny. The dirtier the penny, the longer (5 minutes) it needs to soak. But if it's not that dirty, then it should work instantly when using the salt and vinegar method.