A silver teapot can be a thing of beauty, but only when it's clean, shiny and free of stains and tarnish. Silver is susceptible to such marring, especially if you use the teapot for its intended purpose or clean or store it improperly. Maintaining and rehabbing silver teapots isn't difficult, but you need to know the appropriate techniques and cleaning products. Whether you have an antique teapot or a new one, take a gentle approach, avoid harsh cleaners, and always dry the teapot thoroughly.
If your silver teapot is on display but not regularly used, dust it often with a soft cloth. Wash the pot with mild, bleach-free dish soap and warm water only when you see stains or tarnishing starting to develop. Use a kitchen sponge or cotton cloth to wash the teapot; abrasive cloths and brushes can scratch the silver. Rinse the teapot and dry it with a soft towel immediately after washing. If you can't reach all the nooks and crannies of the teapot with the towel, use a hairdryer at a low temperature to finish drying it. This is especially useful for drying the inside of the spout. When storing a silver teapot, wrap it in acid-free tissue paper and put it inside a plastic zip-top bag; keeping moisture and dust off the silver is the best way to prevent tarnishing.
Tarnish -- yellow, brown or black marks that gradually appear on the surface of silver -- usually requires a more than soapy water to remove. Wash a tarnished teapot in soapy water first to remove any surface dirt and dust; then proceed with a time-tested soaking method. Line a pot that's large enough to contain the teapot with aluminum foil. Boil enough water to cover the teapot at least halfway up its sides. Add 1/4 cup of baking soda and 2 tablespoons of salt for every quart of water to the pot; then pour the boiling water into the pot. Dip the silver teapot into the solution, cover it with a lid or another sheet of foil, and let it soak for up to 5 minutes. Turn the teapot over so the other side is submerged and let it soak again. The tarnishing should lift, leaving the teapot gleaming. Rinse and dry it as soon as you remove it from the pot.
The insides of silver teapots are awkward to clean; fine antiques dealers John Fiske and Lisa Freeman recommend 5-minute denture cleaning tablets for this purpose. The method calls for one denture tablet per 2 cups of water. Fill the teapot with warm water and drop in the tablet or tablets. After about 10 minutes, pour out the solution and rinse the teapot with clean water. You might need to remove loosened residue with a cloth or sponge while you rinse. Dry the teapot thoroughly, using a hairdryer as well as a towel if necessary.
If other, easier methods don't remove all the tarnish from your silver teapot or don't bring it to a satisfactory shine, turn to commercial silver polish or DIY alternatives. A thick paste of baking soda and water -- try 1/4 cup of baking soda with 2 tablespoons of water -- should work well. If you buy a commercial silver polish, follow the manufacturer's recommendations. Apply your choice of polish with a soft, damp cloth or sponge. The outside of a teapot is generally easy enough to polish, but you might want to use a damp cotton swab to polish detailing and other crevices. For awkward spots on the inside of the teapot, try wrapping a cloth around the handle of a wooden spoon or around the bristles of a bottle brush. Rinse the polish off under running water and dry the teapot after polishing it.