Protective silver cloth - Pacific Silvercloth

Silvercloth protective cloth guarantees a safe protection of silver objects and copper parts.

Pacific Silvercloth is made of 100% cotton impregnated with silver particles. It is more effective than cloth embedded with zinc or other metals.

This silver cloth is produced by impregnating it with silver nitrate. The silver is deposited on the cloth, coating it with pure colloidal silver and providing a very large reaction surface for polluting gases. In this way, copper and silver objects surrounded by this fabric are perfectly protected, as the harmful gases react with the silver in the fabric before they reach the object.

Pacific Silvercloth does not release any chemicals and therefore has no harmful effect on other art objects.

The protective fabric is shaggy in appearance and its brown colour is due to the colloidal silver in the fibres. The change in colour of the cloth indicates its effectiveness, as the absorption of contaminants changes from brown to black. To handle it, the use of a dust mask is recommended.

Some of the qualities of this fabric are:

• It is more effective than fabrics with zinc or other similar metals.
• High durability, it can last for decades, depending on the environment.
• Ideal for protection both on display and in storage

It can be placed directly on the silver or copper piece, or glued to display cabinets, drawers or cabinet walls. Protective bags can also be made.

It is important to know where to place Silvercloth to protect silver objects against contaminated air. It is recommended to place it close to areas where polluted air enters, such as joints in display cabinets or doors. For perfect protection, make sure that contaminants have to pass through the silvercloth before reaching the object.

We recommend covering vertical seals with 3M Type 850 tape to prevent contaminated air from entering.

If using the silver cloth to line drawers, we recommend an additional lap to completely surround the objects.

If it cannot be used near doors, try to provide a maximum area of Silvercloth so that contaminants are more likely to react on the cloth and not with the part.

Supplied in rolls of 1170 mm, by lineal meters. Tailored bags are also available on request.

Additional information on protection against tarnishing of silver and copper

The compounds responsible for silver tarnishing are hydrogen sulphide, some harmful gases such as sulphur oxides, nitrogen oxides and chlorine. Relative humidity is also important. Methods used so far to protect silver - such as paints, coatings or volatile chemicals (VCI) - have shown adverse effects. Because of this, the use of contaminant absorbers works well and prevents tarnishing of silver without affecting or modifying its surface.

General contaminant adsorbents, such as Purafil or activated carbon, are able to significantly delay silver tarnish. However, comparative tests have shown that special sorbents based on modified zinc oxide or wipes with silver particles work even better.

Oddy test of the product is available on request.