Polishing Old Copper Fire Extinguishers

A. They are good looking units aren't they. I have one hanging on my living room wall for many years now.

These were baking soda, acid fire extinguishers. To activate you turned them upside down, dumping the baking soda into the acid water. You can easily see this effect by putting baking soda [in bulk on eBay or Amazon [affil link] into vinegar ⇦ in bulk on eBay or Amazon [affil link] in your kitchen. The results of the mixing were the production of Carbon dioxide gas, and pressure to propel the liquid at the fire, and some extinguishing through the production of the carbon dioxide.

Many of these old copper and brass extinguishers were coated with lacquer to retain their brightness as they hung in both the office and shop areas of businesses.

Try first washing the outside with either lacquer thinner ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil link] Flammable! , Methyl Ethyl Ketone, or acetone ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil link] Flammable! . BE EXTREMELY CAREFUL, as all of these are highly flammable solvents. Be sure to remove the hose as these solvents will eat the rubber hose alive. Then, after removal of the lacquer coating, polish with a good quality copper & brass cleaner. To keep it looking nice for many years thereafter, re-apply the clear coat brass lacquer ⇨

Hope that helps!

Adv: For larger quantities of brass lacquer, please try G.J. Nikolas [a finishing.com supporting advertiser].

Do not use Methyl Ethyl Ketone (MEK). This solvent though very good is highly hazardous, you need to use a protective mask, goggles ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil link] , and rubber gloves ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil link] . You can use a very mild acid to clean off highly tarnished areas. Again follow directions carefully.

Howard Richards
- Ingleside, Illinois
2007

"Top Brite" Memorabilia

on eBay
(affil link)

Yes, MEK is absorbed through the skin and can cause liver failure... nasty stuff. When I polished mine I used Top Brite; it's non abrasive and works wonders on brass, copper, silver, gold pretty much anything.

Brian James
- Boston, Massachusetts

Ed. update: Top Brite seems to be very much a niche product today. You can try hunting for it at lamp shops.or choose a different metal polish

A. The best way to get a great shine on those brass or chrome extinguishers is to take them to a metal polishing shop. Just make sure to tell them that the wheel has to turn AWAY from the edges of any of the labels. Then have them dip them in the clear coat that they use. Should cost you about $60.00 tops, but you will have an unbelievable finish that will last for years.

A. Vinegar is an acid and fairly mild. That is used for acetic mild reactions (about 20%). A stronger acid would produce a larger reaction, causing more pressure.

Two safe ways to clean brass, copper, gold, or most tarnished items, start with pepper sauce. Yes, Tabasco! it cleans it very well (it has vinegar in it) and follow up with mayonnaise, which has vinegar too. The oil in it will leave a gloss. This will protect the finish. it is a regular item, need to polish often, after all, it is copper and/or brass.

A. To help clear up the operation of this type of extinguisher.

The extinguisher holds the soda water and the acid is contained in a bottle that is held in a bracket; when the extinguisher is inverted a weight inside the extinguisher breaks the bottle releasing the acid and activating the extinguisher.They have not been manufactured since early 60's because if the hose is stopped up the pressure could cause the extinguisher to explode. I used a cleaner called Tarn-X tarnish remover ⇨
and it did wonders.

A. I have cleaned up several of them and they were very tarnished I just used a cleanser polish the one I used was called Barkeepers Friend ⇨

It is specifically for copper brass stainless It is a powder form. I used this to take the heavy tarnish off then I followed up with a liquid polish called Brasso ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil link] and yes you will have to rub and rub and rub a lot just takes a little time if you have patience I'm sure you can do it

A. When I was in the Navy we used Nevr-Dull ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil link] and bug juice (kool aid) usually yellow or orange color due to the color. It worked well for Navy copper and brass. Never used it on fire extinguishers.

Good luck.

A. I have the same one almost. It had a green paint on it that I thought was tarnish, so I wheeled it like I would do a truck aluminum fuel tank. I put my 2 vector variable speed angle grinder-polishers in 2 vises. one with a yellow united pacific 8" airway pad ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil link] the other with a united white pad, I use a 2 lb block of brown tripoli buffing compound ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil link] with the yellow pad which is course to get the heavy stuff off, then a jackson-lea green 2 lb block to take the swirl marks out, then wipe polish with my Brooklyn Ball Busters Best aluminum polish and a terry cloth rag, when it's cool /damp out it take a few minutes to dry, a old timer showed me a shortcut, I get a coffee can and fill it with flour, I dip a dry rag in the flour and wipe it off.
The flour pulls the oxidation out a little better, dries it off faster and keeps your hands cleaner.
DON'T BUFF TOO HARD, I found out that they're not really copper, mine is copper coated.
Happy polishing.
Rick

Ed. update 2026: Sorry, we don't believe Ball Busters Best polish exists anymore.

Dremel Tools

on Amazon or eBay
(affil link)

A. I just picked up 5 of these copper extinguishers to clean up and hang in my Fire Station. I've been using Brasso ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil link] , a Dremel ⇨
with polishing pads, and towels for a combo of power and hand polish. Works Great

Copper
Weather Vanes

on eBay
(affil link)

A. Hi,
I used a bottle of ketchup on a very tarnished large copper cow weather vane. I wasn't even sure it was copper, it was so tarnished. Brush the ketchup on and let it stand for about 30 mins, rinse, then polish it up! No gloves or goggles necessary.

A. I've cleaned many of these extinguishers with a mixture that is quite simple. Find a container large enough to submerge the extinguisher. Fill container with equal parts coke and ammonia ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil link] . Submerge extinguisher and let stand. The longer you let it sit, the better it works. Hope this helps.

A. TO CLEAN YOUR EXTINGUISHERS, USE OLD COTTON SOCKS, LIKE CREW SOCKS, AND Brasso ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil link] . PUT Brasso ON THE SOCK AND RUB THE EXTINGUISHER. THE SOCK WILL TURN BLACK AND GREENISH.
DO A SECTION AT A TIME. LET THE BRASSO DRY EACH TIME AND RUB THE AREA WITH A CLEAN SOCK, CONTINUE UNTIL YOU GET THE SHINE YOU WANT.

A. Hi, Jacklyn. It will not stay bright if it's not lacquered, so you won't have to wait long for it to lose the luster. You could just leave it be for a few months. But you can accelerate the tarnishing by spritzing with vinegar and salt, or even a very dilute washing with liver of sulfur ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil link] (this can turn it brown-black very quickly).

If this were a a priceless civil war artifact, removing the tarnish could devalue it. But these fire extinguishers, while cute old collectible items, are far from precious; I'm sure no one considers the natural tarnish to be of historic value. Maybe in another two hundred years. For now, some people prefer bright and some people prefer tarnished.

Regards,

A. Hi, Tony. We've linked to a book on Firefighting Collectibles. But look for similar stuff on eBay and Etsy and other used/collectible sites to get a feel for it.

Antique Brass & Copper Fire Extinquishers on eBay (affil link)

It seems to me there is a market for attractively refurbished extinguishers as decorations, but not as antiquities. There are on-line appraisal sites, but unless your extinguisher is truly unique and you have some reason to feel that it's valuable to someone, the cost of the appraisal may not be justified.

Good luck.

Regards,

A. I have polished a number of these from total junk to a bright shine. I have found you can put every chemical known to man but it just removes the top layer. You have to bite the bullet go out and get a bench grinder or preferably a polisher from Harbor Freight. Get a buffing kit comprising three different buffing wheels. Purchase two grades of polishing compound and start getting filthy. On a piece like yours it will take about eight hours of actual work but when it is done you will be extremely satisfied. To purchase these items is very inexpensive.

I save these pieces up over the summer from estate sales and spend hours upon hours polishing. You will kill an extreme amount of time but the satisfaction factor is well worth it.

A. I have polished "many" brass extinguishers over the past several years. The conditions ranged from minor to severe. I've used Brasso ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil link] on the easy ones but for the severe cases believe it or not use Lysol Toilet Bowel cleaner. Step one- You pour the cleaner onto soft brass wool ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil link] or fine grade 00 steel wool ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil link] and begin to buff lightly until the color returns. The copper will turn a "salmon" color. Step two, use a buffing wheel and a product called Tripoli (Ace Hardware) brown tripoli buffing compound ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil link] . Finally step 3 I use a product called Flitz ⇦[this on eBay or Amazon affil links] to complete the polishing process. You can also use Brasso ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil link] . The very final step is to seal it with a clear gloss finish. A few coats are sufficient. I have taken a $15.00 extinguisher and sold it for up to $150.00

I have also placed the extinguisher in a PVC pipe ... fill the pipe with water until it covers the extinguisher then remove the extinguisher. Add the Lysol, stir and replace the extinguisher. Let it sit for several hours or more and remove it. It should be a salmon color. Then follow the above steps (two and three) . Here are before and after pics. Good Luck!

Brasso

on Amazon or eBay
(affil link)

A. I am now a retired firefighter. One of my duties as a rookie was to polish brass on the fire equipment as well as the poles and extinguishers.

The best thing we found to clean the copper and brass was Brasso ⇨
I also slightly remember about using a lemon juice on the copper. So maybe try these tricks and see if it helps, just don't yell "Movie" in a firehouse, gets everybody in a panic! :), firefighters don't like missing movies.

Some of the small extinguishers that have a push rod in the end are very dangerous if chemicals come out of them, they were primarily black and silver or black and gold, I don't remember the name of the chemical but it's not to be touched, inhaled absorbed , etc. -- so be careful; they are small about 12-16 inches in length and about as round as a soda can.

Thanks,

A. I do not recommend any of the brass polishes that are sold; they attack the copper and brass and leave red spots because brass is made of zinc and copper and this polish attacks the zinc and leaves red spots and please do not use vinegar, for it is an acidic base. I have been a professional polisher for over 35-40 years. I have hi-speed buffing machines with cotton buffing wheels that I have buffing compounds that are compatible to the brass and copper and is very clean. This is not a job for an amateur because you can get hurt. Once it is polished do not use this store bought lacquer that is sold by Walmart but a professional lacquer from Agate lacquer Co; this lacquer is made for toughness and outdoor use it will give you years use of bright clean brass or copper without polishing. I hope I helped and saved you some disastrous results on such beautiful and collectible items. By the way if you ever find one with the Elkhart stag on the front grab it; it's worth over 200 apiece now. Thanks for letting me share.

A. Hi, Jim. We can't do estimates or appraisals on this free site or we'd be swamped under requests in short order -- there are dozens of paid appraisal sites, and who would go to any of those dozens and pay for an appraisal if there were a free site offering the same service  🙂
But try asking a local antique dealer for an evaluation, or start by simply seeing what people want for similar stuff on eBay

Antique Brass & Copper Fire Extinquishers on eBay (affil link)

Then if you're still not confident -- as mentioned -- there are lots of pay sites offering appraisals. Good luck!

Regards,

A. I'm really not sure why some of the postings describe such efforts to polish these copper extinguishers. I have collected a few of these in my time and simply use Brasso ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil link] and a roll of paper towels. Paper towels work well because of their very slight abrasive effect from the wood pulp. Cotton socks, etc, will also work but I have found not quite as well. It takes about an hour of work and they always come up really nice and shiny, except where they are dinged up or have scratches. It's not hard and I don't have to submerge it into any containers of weirdly named chemicals (Liver of sulfur? LOL).

Now some of them may be lacquered and those DO require a bit of work to remove the lacquer. Just some good quality paint stripper works fine for that, but if they are tarnished then they probably aren't lacquered anyway.

As I said, I have done several of these now, in their typically tarnished condition, and they all polish up very nicely. Just sit on your porch for an hour and get it done. Easy stuff. :)

Ed. note: Liver of sulfur wasn't suggested as a polish, but as a way to instantly re-darken an old fire extinguisher which the owner regretted polishing.

A. I have restored numerous fire extinguishers and have found that a long piece of thick/stout wood that fits through the lid rings is a safe way to get the lid off. If you can find a piece that is just small enough to barely fit into the rings on the lid you can put a pipe on the wood as leverage or use a hammer to tap the wood. the wood does not damage the lid. hope this helps

A. I have been in the firefighting equipment business for 41 years (and still am today). The Soda / Acid fire extinguishers were filled with approximately 2.5 gallons of Water with dissolved Sodium Bicarbonate. We filled thousands of them back in the day ...we mixed batches in 55 gallon drums of warm water with 2 propellers on a shaft attached to a motor to mix the 40 pounds of Baking Soda slowly dumped in the drum. It mixed for at least 15 minutes or more. Then there was a glass bottle approx. 3 inch diameter by 6" tall "half" filled with 66 degree Sulfuric Acid (very, very nasty stuff). The clear glass acid bottle had a narrowed neck. In the top was a "lead" stopple or stopper. It was about 1.5" tall with a flat bottom... kinda looked like a mushroom. It loosely sat on top of the glass bottle. The extinguisher hung on the wall this way...but when needed, the user would invert the fire extinguisher, allowing the stopple to come out and the Sulfuric acid mixed with the Soda Water and a chemical reaction occurred creating carbon dioxide (and who knows what else) gas to be generated "pressurizing" the cylinder and pushing the diluted soda water onto the fire. Note that Soda Acid fire extinguishers were for class A ordinary combustibles like paper, trash, wood, anything that leaves an ash. They had to be emptied and refilled with fresh Soda Water and Sulfuric Acid every year. They came in Brass, Copper, and eventually Stainless Steel. I believe the Stainless Steel units were last sold in 1969.
They were prone to burst because spiders and wasps would plug up the nozzle tip and when used on a fire, the nozzle tip would not let the agent to escape and the cylinder had no way to relieve the pressure generated, so it would burst. Many people were hurt over the years. Kids in school would jam their pencils in the end of the nozzle and break it off. Same result...the tank would rupture.

Anyway, the easiest way to remove the cap is to get a pipe, or bar, or long wrench or breaker bar and put in the top cap crossways. Assuming the tank is empty of any contents, stand over the top of the extinguisher and hold the tank with your two feet squeezing the tank. Bang the wrench in a counter clockwise motion until it comes loose. If it is tough to get off, try penetrating oil. Be persistent...give the penetrating oil to do its job... It should eventually come off. Be sure to rinse the inside with cool or cold water several times to be safe. Wear protective gear ...

To clean...that's a tough one if you are not familiar with the properties of some acids. If the extinguisher is down to bare metal...great! If not...you have some work ahead of you. I have used both sulfuric acid and muriatic acid on the outside of the tank to cut through the black / brown ugly lacquer. It takes several coats to do it. I put one extinguisher in one 5 gallon bucket. First, do this somewhere that has great positive ventilation...the fumes are bad for you! I would slowly, precisely, and gently pour the acid directly on the extinguisher, allow the thick syrup-like acid to run down the sides into the bottom of the bucket. Then I would slowly and gently move the extinguisher to another clean 5 gallon bucket and gently repeat the process, each time trying to cover areas not yet touched by the acid. The extinguisher will foam a little and turn kind of pinkish. That's good! When finished dispose of the acid mixture properly... Remember this stuff is really, really, really bad stuff. It will eat a shirt, or pants, or rags up in a matter of minutes! No kidding!! Next rinse the acid /crud off the extinguisher WITH SLIGHTLY COOL WATER. NOT COLD, NOT WARM, AND DEFINITELY NOT HOT WATER. Warm or hot water will stain the brass / copper. Not good. Use slightly cool water. Then wash extinguishers with any gentle dish washing liquid and slightly cool water and a soft brush. Right side up, upside down, on it's side, on it's other side. Then when you think it is acid free...rinse, rinse, rinse with slightly cool water. Let dry... use a soft cloth or whatever you have. Folks, this is only one way to do this....don't do this unless you can dress appropriately with all necessary PPE... Acid is a very unforgiving agent.

Now for the rewarding part. Go to a gun store, or to a sporting goods store, or order on-line some Simichrome ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil link] polish... Great stuff,,,better than any of the products I have ever used...and I have used them ALL! Rub with a soft cloth in a circular motion 4" square sections at a time. Let dry to a haze and then buff. Caution: the rag and Simichrome will turn black...don't be alarmed! It is supposed to do that. When done you may wish to clear coat it to keeping the air and moisture to get to it and make it lose it's luster and shine. Worse thing, you will have to polish it again with the Simichrome. Enjoy. Be safe.

A. Hello fellow restoration fans. Me and my partner Jonathan did a small web episode on restoring a brass and copper Pyrene Soda/Acid fire extinguisher. In the video is a walkthrough of the process that we used to get an extremely nice finish.

Hope this helps!

Davis Hack
- Traverse City, Michigan, United States
January 8, 2013

Flitz
Metal Polish

on Amazon or eBay
(affil link)

A. I've been in the marine industry for many years; plus my dad had my a$$ polishing boat metal since I was a kid....from Boston Whalers to yachts. I noticed most boaters had Flitz on hand. Salt water can be cruel.

Flitz is the standard in my world. I'm not hanging around marinas that much anymore, or I just pay someone to clean my boat. However, I collect and polish antique nautical lights/fresnel lens and Flitz has never let me down even on some spots I thought would never come clean.

Takes a bit of elbow grease, patience, a $%#$ load of dremel tool buffers and 6 inch polishers.

It's cheaper then therapy!

-S

Hi Pat. I imagine the procedures would be very similar to restoring old brass fire extinguishers, so we appended your question to a thread on that subject to get you started. Good luck.

Regards,

Visit the Citrisurf /
/ Stellar Solutions Store

on Amazon
(affil link)

A. There have been numerous threads here over the years on cleaning up/removing tarnish from various brass items. Brass beds seem to have been a popular one. We've seen a lot of good brass cleaning done with our citric acid based products. Obviously it depends a bit on what condition things are in to begin with. But if it were me, I would spend some time with non-hazardous cleaning materials before resorting to the more dangerous stuff.

"A lot of old dirt, dust, grease etc." should be cleanable by a good soak in hot soapy water I would think, maybe a good blasting with a garden hose or pressure washer. Once that's taken care of, citric or some other mild acid will likely get you at least most of the way to where you want to be.

A. Good day Pat.

Ray offers some good advice.
I would disassemble as many components as possible to clean parts in "hot soapy water", and polish them to remove any imperfections. Perhaps a local plating/polishing shop can assist with "restoring this scale to a beautiful solid brass finish."

Regards,

A. Hi Etta. Yes, if they are solid brass there is no reason they can't be brush finished (if plated, the depth of the brush marks could easily be thicker than the plating though).

Brush finishing is probably more commonly and easily actually done with sandpaper than a wire brush.

Regards,

A. I have 3 extinguishers that really looked rough when I got them. I bought some of the cheapest catsup I could find and smeared it all over them. Leave it on a few hours and wash it off. Then take fine steel wool and polish. It takes some elbow grease but looks nice in the end.

A. Hi Matt,

On thread 351/45, Goran Budija tells us how to make and use ammonium citrate to turn pink brass back to yellow.

Luck & Regards,


Ted Mooney, P.E. RET
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey

Blue Magic Metal Polish

on Amazon or eBay
(affil link)

A. I use a product from the parts store called Blue Magic ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil link] . It's with the metal polish. It's blue and works great on brass.
I have a lot of brass and it does not tarnish hardly at all. I've been using it for years.

A. There are plenty of brass polishes in tubes or cans, typically a paste. This can all be done by hand with time and patience.
Hand drill with polishing wheel can also help.