When you pick up shells on the beach, they need to be cleaned as soon as possible. Remove the clam sitting inside, otherwise it will decompose, smell bad, discolor and destroy the shell. Many beautiful types of shells were thrown out of the collection because the collector did not know that they needed to be cleaned. TECHNIQUE OF PERFORMANCE. The easiest way to clean your sink is to freeze it. But you have to be patient as freezing and thawing are lengthy processes. “You need to keep the sink in the refrigerator for 4 days to effectively clean it without damaging it,” advises R. Tucker Abbott in his book “The Kingdom of the Sea Shells”. Place the clams in a plastic bag and tie it tightly. Put the bag on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator for several hours, then put it in the freezer for 2-3 days. To defrost the clams, put the bag back on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator for about 12 hours, then place them in cold water to soak. Once the clams are completely thawed, which usually takes about 24 hours, you can remove them from the single-shell shells by pulling them out like you're twisting a corkscrew, using a fork or a bent safety pin. After removing the clams, wash the shells with a brush in warm soapy water. You can also clean the surface of the shell by soaking it overnight in bleach. To make the shell shine, apply baby lube to it. ADVICE IN PASSING. YOU will clean freshly harvested shells faster if you boil them in fresh or salt water. Since rapid temperature changes will cause the shell to crack immediately, start with lukewarm water, not hot water. Boil bivalve shells, such as edible sea clams, for 1-2 minutes, and single-shell shells, such as snails, for 6-10 minutes. Let the pot of shells sit for about an hour to allow the temperature to drop slowly. You can add a small amount of cold water to speed up the cooling process. When the water is cool enough, follow the above procedure to remove the clam. Merchants selling shells put live molluscs, not removed from shells, in a solution in which mollusks are dissolved - water and chlorine bleach in a 1: 1 ratio. IN EXTREME CASE. If you find an interesting shell on a remote island where you don't have a freezer or stove, place the shell in a bucket of dry sand with the opening facing down. The decomposing mollusk will flow out without damaging the shell. ATTENTION! Don't put shells in fresh water to clean them, as decaying shellfish will float in the water and discolor the shell. It is not recommended to use hydrochloric acid for cleaning. Even a weak 10% solution is quite corrosive and can damage the sink.
Shells can serve as a wonderful reminder of warm days at the beach, or used to brighten up your home interior or an upcoming decor project. If you collect shells scattered on the beach, then for better storage it is very important to clean and polish their surface, both from the outside and from the inside.
Steps
Part 1
Collect shells- Understanding whether there is animal tissue inside the shell or not will influence the choice of how to clean it. For example, if there is animal tissue in the sink, then you will need to get rid of it.
Collect shells in the place you like. It can be a city beach or a place where you were during your vacation. Seashells can be purchased at a craft store or online.
Do not pick up shells that contain living marine life. Be respectful of nature and do not use shells with living beings inside. A shell is considered still alive if there is any living thing inside it.
Determine if the shell is alive. A living shell is a shell with animal tissue attached to it. This differs from a shell with a living being inside in that the being in the living shell is dead. A dead shell is dead if it does not contain animal tissue.
Part 2
Removal of organic tissue from shells-
Boil the shell to get rid of the animal tissue. Boiling or boiling the shells will soften the organic matter and make it easier to remove. You will need a saucepan and tweezers, or any other tool used by dentists, to get rid of animal tissue. To clean sinks by boiling, you must:
Bury the shell in the ground. This method of cleaning may take longer, but many choose it because it reduces the risk of damage to the shell. Boiling and freezing, as well as mechanical removal of organic matter, can damage the shell. You can bury the shell in a safe place where it will be protected from damage and will be cleaned of animal tissue in a natural way. Ants, beetles, and other insects will eat the animal tissue, thus cleaning the shell. To clean the shell by instillation, you need:
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Freeze shells. Freezing kills any remaining animal tissue inside the shell, making it easier to remove. To clean the sink by freezing, you will need:
- Place the shells in a bag or zip-lock bag. You may need several bags if you have a lot of shells.
- Pour enough water into the bag to completely submerge all the shells.
- Place the bag in the freezer.
- Leave the bag in the freezer for a few days.
- Remove the bag from the freezer and let it completely defrost.
- Remove organic tissue from shells.
Part 3
Cleaning dead shells-
Soak the shells in water for a week. Water will dissolve all the dirt on the surface of the sink, and by the end of the week it will shine with cleanliness.
- Change the water every day. Changing the water regularly will keep the shells even cleaner.
- You can also boil the shells after a week of soaking to ensure that all animal tissue has been removed from the shell.
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Use bleach to clean shells. Bleach will remove any dirt, growths, and animal tissue from your shell. But some shell collectors warn that bleach can affect its color, and the smell can be permanently absorbed into its porous structure. To clean shells with bleach:
- In a saucepan, mix water and bleach in equal proportions. The resulting liquid should completely cover all the shells.
- Soak the shells in this solution. You may notice a flaky, skin-like film peel off the shell. This is the periostracum, or organic shell cover.
- Immediately after peeling off this coating, you can remove the shells from the solution. With a toothbrush, you can remove its remnants.
- Rinse the shells well and dry them thoroughly.
- Rub the shells with baby oil to restore their shine.
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Use toothpaste to clean the surface of the shells. Toothpaste is a less aggressive alternative to bleach. To clean seashells with toothpaste, you will need:
- Apply a thin layer of toothpaste to each side of the shell.
- Leave the shells like this for at least 5 hours so that the paste is properly absorbed into the surface. You can leave the shells like this for the whole night to be sure that the paste will do its job.
- Once the paste has become sticky or hard, depending on the thickness of the layer you applied, take an old toothbrush and a glass of warm water. Then carefully clean the shells. Make sure you clean out any small cracks and get to any hard to reach places.
- Rinse all the toothpaste off the surface of the shells thoroughly, even if you have to rinse them thoroughly under running water after brushing. This will help get rid of grains of sand and other particles in the paste, as well as roughness and sharp fragments, leaving the surface smooth and with a minimum of imperfections.
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Warnings
- Some shells (especially kauri) can be ruined rather than preserved if bleach or other cleaning agents are used to clean them. If you have found a shell that is special to you, then before starting treatment, you should determine its type in order to choose the right approach for cleaning it. You can also experiment with shells of the same species that you don't like so much.
- Some shells do not tolerate boiling. This is especially true for soft and fragile shells. If you are afraid of damaging the shells, then you should give preference to boiling rather than boiling.
- Don't burn yourself when pulling the shells out of the boiling water. Always wear protective gloves.
- Bleaching sometimes discolors shells. So if you don't want to "bleach" the shells, you can adjust the amount of bleach in the solution (you can always add more bleach if needed).
- Always wear safety goggles and gloves when handling bleach.
Which of the people who wandered along the seashore did not collect beautiful shells? They are so attractive and exotic that there is a completely natural desire to keep this beauty for yourself and enjoy the long winter evenings, remembering the sea. But, unfortunately, if the shell is not old and scorched by the sun, but also contains a live mollusk, then, over time, without proper processing, it darkens and emits a bad smell.
Any found or caught shell must be prepared, that is, the mollusk must be removed and cleaned of plaque. And this process is not as simple as it seems. There are also certain tricks here that will allow you to keep the sink in all its glory.
The shells of marine mollusks are very diverse, and therefore cleaning is quite individual for each of the species. Bivalves must first be opened, for which the muscle fibers that tighten them from both sides are cut with a knife. The opened shell is cleaned, closed again and pulled together with a thread to dry. But it is much more difficult to clean snails or mollusks that are in a single-leaf twisted shell.
There are two main methods - boiling and freezing. The shell is boiled for several minutes, and then removed with a hook from the inside of the mollusk, after which it is dried in the sun. But many shells with this method of processing can darken or crumble. Therefore, this method is only suitable for large and strong mollusks.
Small and tender shells are kept for several days in a jar of clean cold water, periodically changing it. As a result, the living mollusk dies and, rotting, is easily removed. Also, snails can be frozen in the freezer, and after thawing the mollusk, it is easy to remove with tweezers and dry the shell.
But knowing how to get a clam out of its shell is not enough. It is also necessary to properly clean the lime shell from algae and other formed plaque. To do this, the sink is placed for several hours in a solution of chlorine bleach, and then washed with water. To improve the color, the shell should be lubricated with mineral oil.
It is curious that in exotic countries there is no need to resort to such tricks. Mollusks are simply hung in the hot sun, and they themselves come out of the shell. They are immediately picked up and removed. And the shells are dried in the sun and varnished.
All of the above methods are not particularly complicated. They are worth it to make quite a bit of effort and prepare an exotic souvenir with your own hands, which will bring pleasant memories of the days spent on the seashore to the owner.
They brought shells from vacation, but they have an unsightly look and smell? Do not worry, all these imperfections can be removed at home without damaging the shells themselves.
How to wash shells from limescale
- Place the shell for several hours in a 25% solution of acetic acid (1 part essence, 2 parts water), then remove the remaining plaque with a soft brush. Small limescale can be cleaned with citric acid. To do this, it is enough to rub the place of plaque with a small slice of lemon, then rinse with warm water.
- You can also use Silit Bank to remove rust and lime deposits.
How to clean shells and get rid of the smell
Even the most beautiful sea shells smell disgusting if there are rotting remains of a mollusk inside. Shells are extremely diverse in size, shape, color, but in terms of cleaning they are divided into living and dead. The dead have nothing left inside. And the living have not yet been completely cleansed of animal tissues, even if they are long dead.
When cleaning dead shells, immerse them in an aqueous solution of bleach (1:1). How much to keep in it depends on the type of mollusk and the number of shells. The minimum time is 30 minutes, but if the shells are very dirty or you want to bleach them white, keep longer. Before removing them from the solution, make sure that the periostracum, the leathery exfoliating covering of some shells, has come off. Then rinse well with clean warm water.
- If sea acorns or the like remain on the surface, scrape it off with a knife.
- If the lip of the sink is chipped, round off the sharp edges with a file or sanding disc.
- If you want the shell to shine, grease it with a thin layer of mineral or baby oil.
Cleaning live shells, you can use any of the following methods to get rid of residues rotting inside.
- Bury shells in the yard. Dig up after one or two months. Insects, bacteria, worms, larvae and other living creatures will eat everything that needs to be got rid of during this time.
- Do a deep freeze. Put the shells in a plastic bag, fill them with water and put them in the freezer for several days. Then let it thaw room temperature. After that, it will be easy to pick up the remnants of the flesh and pull them out.
- Put the shells in boiling water for 5 minutes. Take out one at a time with tongs, take it with gloves or a towel so as not to burn yourself and pull out everything superfluous from the inside.
- smelly, but effective method cleaning shells - "frying" them in the microwave. The time depends on its power and the size of the shells. Start with 30 seconds and add 10 if the initial time is not enough. When removing shells from the oven and removing the soft remains of shellfish from them, use tongs and be careful not to burn yourself.
If something still remains inside, put the shell in the yard - let the flies, ants and other insects feast on it. When the rotting flesh is done with, treat as described above for dead shells. Soak in bleach and rinse thoroughly.
At the end of the processing, the shells are oiled or varnished.
An amazing time of the year has come - summer - the time for vacations and travel. In memory of carefree days, vacationers take away stones found on the beach or in the process of sea hunting with beautiful bizarre patterns, incredible beauty and unusual shapes, polished glass and many other valuable things. Putting the sea "trophy" in a bag and taking it out after a few days, an unpleasant picture appears before your eyes: the shells are covered with mold, an unpleasant smell hovers in the air.
To prevent this from happening, prepare the sea shells for storage. There are several ways, choose the one that suits you.
Freeze. This “trick” is useful for those who do not have time to immediately clean up. Taking a lasting plastic bag and filling it with water and shells - freeze. As soon as you have time to clean the sinks, defrost the contents. Using tongs or tweezers, toothbrushes or wire, a sharp knife or fork, clean each shell, gutting everything from the inside. Wear gloves to avoid injury and infection.
Boiling. Fill a saucepan with water, place shells in it. Bring to a boil and continue to "boil" for a few minutes. Drain the water. Rinse thoroughly. Let cool. Remove the insides of the sink.
Heating in the microwave. Cool down and clean up. Plus such cleaning - dry processing. The disadvantage is a pungent odor.
"Dead" shells are much easier to clean. It is enough to wash them thoroughly, clean or bleach the top layer.
Processing with chemicals. The technology is simple and convenient. Soak the shells in the prepared chlorine solution (1:1). The duration of cleaning depends on the contamination of the shells and their shape. The method is suitable for bleaching shells to white.
Also at home, use bleach, fine sand or tooth powder.
Dry the peeled shells on a paper towel and leave them outdoors for several days. It is recommended to lubricate the treated surface with vegetable or baby oil, then cover with a transparent varnish, thereby extending their shelf life. Don't keep seashells in the sun for too long, they become brittle and break easily.
Shells are an environmentally friendly natural material and therefore are often used as decor for various interior items. Frames for mirrors and photographs, toys, flowers, paintings, panels, caskets, decoration of pots and vases - this is not the whole list of shell products. A beautiful seashell will decorate a shelf or chest of drawers, inspire a romantic sea mood, and serve as an original souvenir for friends. will transform the interior of your home and prolong the memories of your vacation.
