Gringotts ? Any danger?

[superflex]

Hi everyone,

This may be quite a stupid question, but bear with me.

I have some of the gringott mixture for cleaning hard dirt, with instructions to boil and so on.

My question is what is in this mix? Is it a poisonous mixture , is using kitchen utensils appropriate ? I don't have any spare pots lying around.  Obviously providing I thoroughly wash up.

Do I need a well ventilated place to do the procedure?

Thanks in advance for sharing.

[Sosius]

I wouldn't worry too much about the Gringotts.  Treat it like you would treat a strong household cleaner like TSP.  Make sure the room is ventilated and wear gloves. 

I would NOT use the same pots or utensils that you use for cooking.  Ancient coins, including late Roman bronzes, contain varying amounts of lead.  I know someone who experienced lead poisoning as a kid, and someone who experienced it as an adult.  I can assure you that the risks are real and the effects on your family's health can be serious.  Just not worth the risk of using your "regular" kitchen utensils.  I use an old pot for boiling coins, which I keep away from the kitchen, with "NOT FOR FOOD" written on the handle in paint pen. 

Not trying to be alarmist here.  Always better to safe than sorry.

Have fun and be safe!
Sosius

[superflex]

Thank you,

unfortunately already used the kitchen pot!

I did scrub it quite a few times straight after boiling to prevent any sediment sticking to the pot. I think it will be fine, but i will give it another few scrubs to be sure.

I did a 'beat around the bush' question in regards to the price tag of this pot after i used it and found out  it's quite expensive.So since i stupidly couldn't wait i am in a corner. Plus the women in my household will have my head if i tell them its not usable anymore.

If i had used it a few times i would take it on the chin and file an early guilty plea but i think in the circumstances it should be okay.

I was worried about something being poisonous  but lead never crossed my mind, so thanks.

I will just go buy another pot for future boils, as you say  definitely not worth the risk.

[Sosius]

You're probably ok. Just make sure it's as clean as possible and buy a cheap pot for future use. Some might think I'm being alarmist, but a cheap pot is a small price to pay for piece of mind. Good luck with your coin cleaning endeavors!  FYI, TSP is what's generally used to clean up lead dust after sanding exterior paint, so you might want to use it for cleaning the pot.

[SC]

I use an old set of kitchen pots, but the lead in from LRBs should not continue to exist in pots after they have been cleaned.  Certainly not stainless steel pots in decent condition.

In fact the GG mixes alone make an excellent pot cleaner.  I have used them several times to clean our cooking pots after food stuff has been burned on - yes I am that good a cook. 

So you could always do a GG boil in your pot after all coin cleaning is done to ensure last traces of any PB is removed.

I have fished around in all the mixes with my bare hands but I wash my hands right after and mine don't get irritated easily.  Other people use gloves.  I tried kitchen wash up gloves once but they are too thick.

I also keep the oven-hood fan going or open a window.

Shawn

[superflex]

Thanks for the tips otlichnik,

After i tried the boiling process, i left the coins in the mixture for around 13 hours (in a separate container).

I took them out, scrubbed them in DW, allot of dirt came off.

In regards to the actual process - I had placed the coins in the mixture, waited until boiling and then timed 3 minutes.


Mixed results though, some of the coin surface's feel more rough now, so i hope i didn't do anything wrong. Perhaps i will post a picture of the bunch to see what you guys think about any general damage done.


I think i may be over exaggerating since it could simply be a case that some coins are  not as nice without the dirt as i had thought.   

[Joe Sermarini]

Don't eat it. Try not to get it in your eyes. Wear gloves because it will really dry your skin. 

[superflex]

Thanks Joe, i will make sure i wear gloves also next time. The powder wasn't appealing enough to sprinkle on my food so luckily i avoided the other issue   

My dog does have a habit of eternally begging for food so i must be careful he doesn't eat any that may fall on the floor.




Here is a sample of what came out of the pot, some coins seem darker, so i hope it i didn't screw anything up.

I think overall some features starting to show, now i might soak all of them for a couple of months in DW.

Anyone think i may have over boiled these ones? 

[Sosius]

I don't think they are over-boiled. It's been a while since I cleaned coins, but I don't think over-boiling is much of a risk. Over-cleaning is where the damage occurs.

Good luck and keep us posted on the results!

Sosius

[SC]

Unless the coins had a really lousy surface under the dirt the darkening and roughness are not real changes to the surface but just to the dirt on them.

Scrubbing - toothbrush, sofft brash brush under water or silver brush will eventually get rid of that.

Shawn

[superflex]

Thanks for your replies,

Good to hear its probably just the dirt !

I will keep you posted but it will be a long process. I don't want to rush and damage any.

I may choose a few that i think are ready for more manual cleaning and focus on these, while the rest soak in DW for a couple of months.