Hand Cleaning Clay Chips ? (1 Viewer)

[BigSlick4523]

I clean - Horseshoe Clevelands, HSI, Jack Cinci & IG's

I got a method from someone on here a while back using the following

75-80% Arm & Hammer Oxi Clean Laundry Detergent / 20-25% Warm Water let them Soak for 30-60mins

take them out put them in my sink with warm water and dawn dish soap

and just scrub each chip with a medium toothbrush

my thing is it seems to dry the chips out alot - is there a better method out there people use ?

anyone here have a different method for hand cleaning ?

I bought a Ultrasonic like a year ago and still never used it

thanks for the help in advance - I will prob never use this ultrasonic I bought a huge one waste of money lol

side note - after cleaning alot of chips my wrists hurt like a Mother not cool

 

[K ALL IN 9]

I had some spare wood laying around and made a frame that went over my cutting board. After the chips soaked in soapy water I put chips inside the frame in a single layer and used a nail brush and scrubbed. I was able to do about 60-70 chips (36mm) at a time. Flip them over and repeat.

I’ve also seen using a thin piece of plastic or wood (slightly thinner than a chip) with 40mm holes in it. Put it on another flat surface with chips in the holes and run a nail brush over them.

Both methods are so you don’t have to hold the chips in your hand while you scrub.

Hope these examples make sense

 

[BigSlick4523]

That sounds like an awesome Idea would love to know where to get a piece of wood like that cause my wrists & fingers are killing me

 

[LeLe]

Toothbrush

Magic easer

Toothpick

Those 3 will be your armoury for cleaning dirty chips using hands

 

[BigSlick4523]

Toothbrush

Magic easer

Toothpick

Those 3 will be your armoury for cleaning dirty chips using hands

What do you use to soak your chips ?

 

[LeLe]

Soapy water and I add Degreaser for cleaning dirtier chips

https://www.pokerchipforum.com/threads/just-spend-my-off-day-….84407/

The brand that I used can be found in the link above, U/S is not a must for dirted chips but will make your job much easier

 

[allforcharity]

Use your ultrasonic.

 

[BigSlick4523]

I bought a 1 15l lol cause I wanted to be able to do 100 chips at a time I shouldnt have bought such a big one

 

[PlayerADK]

Electric toothbrush with a throwaway attachment brush is excellent at getting all the gunk out after a nice oxy soak. I lay them all out on a cookie pan after soaking + hold the chip down with one finger, electric toothbrush cleaning the chip with the other hand. I do all the chips in the pan, then flip them all, repeat for the other side. Then magic eraser for the rolling edges (also depends if they are sharp/excellent condition - this is how I clean chips that aren't in great shape. I'd be gentler with nicer chips.
(definitely use the ultrasonic first, I don't have one but definitely should be your first step if you already have one)

 

[upNdown]

Unless you’re working on hot stamps (which you’d want to avoid damaging with a brush) there’s no reason to use something as small as a toothbrush. I think it’s insanity to use a brush smaller than a chip. It’s like mowing the lawn with a nail clipper.
Most chips don’t need a lot of detail work after a good soak, but obviously you bring in the specialty tools with horribly soiled chips.

I’ve had great results with warm water, dawn, and a little TSP substitute. I’ve also had great results with warm water, dawn, and straight Oxi, but that 100% fades colors sop I’ll only use it on solid whites.

As far as not drying out the chips, the only method I’ve found so far that doesn’t dry them to any degree is cleaning them with this stuff (but this is pretty time consuming):

 

[HaRDHouSeiNC]

I use that detergent all the time
I’ve never noticed it dries them out

After I clean them though I rinse them down right away and wipe them down with an oiled cloth too

 

[BigSlick4523]

I mean it doesnt dry them out like crazy but any type of cleaning will dry them out Ive just never oiled chips im scared lol

 

[Colquhoun]

I mean it doesnt dry them out like crazy but any type of cleaning will dry them out Ive just never oiled chips im scared lol

Skip the oil if you like your chips chalky.
I do.

 

[BigSlick4523]

Yeah I dont think I will ever oil any of my chips

 

[imblonde919]

What does the oil do for the chips? Is that actually necessary?

 

[drawingdead]

What does the oil do for the chips? Is that actually necessary?

From what I've seen, it makes the colors on the chip more vibrant. And they're easier to shuffle and play.
I am a newb though, so I'm curious if there are longevity benefits to the chips, like you have with oiling wood.

 

[allforcharity]

What does the oil do for the chips? Is that actually necessary?

Sometimes chips can appear dry or slightly faded depending on the detergent used. A little bit of mineral oil restores the colour nicely. It also tends to smooth out the colour differences between various chip batches

 

[Gurkenhobel]

Just cleaned my chips with this toothbrush and I can definetly recommend it! Only used some soapy water. An ultrasonic toothbrush should work even better, will try this method next time.

 

[OfficerLovejoy]

Just cleaned my chips with this toothbrush and I can definetly recommend it! Only used some soapy water. An ultrasonic toothbrush should work even better, will try this method next time.

View attachment 1009884

Any before/after pictures? Love those.

 

[w00zie]

For very dirty chips I use Oxy and warm water (not too hot as it can damage the chips!)

It does fade the colors but mineral oil will bring them back.
Dirty - cleaned - oiled

 

[Gurkenhobel]

Any before/after pictures? Love those.

Nope sorry, I missed that chance, but I would compare them to @w00zie's results.

 

[erichazen]

Good topic. I like to keep things clean and cleaning is the one thing that concerns me about buying quality clay chips. Although I prefer clay chips the ceramics seem like you’d be able to clean them after every night if you wanted without any problems. Decisions, decisions….

 

[surfik]

Use your ultrasonic.

Agreed. If you have just a few chips to clean you may use your ony-hands methode.
But if you have full racks of dirty chips ultrasonic is a must.

Remember... Casino is never wrong

 

[upNdown]

Good topic. I like to keep things clean and cleaning is the one thing that concerns me about buying quality clay chips. Although I prefer clay chips the ceramics seem like you’d be able to clean them after every night if you wanted without any problems. Decisions, decisions….

Wow, that’s an extreme I’ve never considered. Yeah I don’t imagine any chips are designed to withstand constant cleaning. But I would guess ceramics would handle it better than any chips with inlays or labels. I’d have to think the porous nature of clay would leave it susceptible to damage too. Not to mention the whole issue of oiling - they wouldn’t accumulate any hand oils, so you’d want yo hit them with mineral oil every time or else you’d have sad, dried out chips.

 

[erichazen]

Wow, that’s an extreme I’ve never considered. Yeah I don’t imagine any chips are designed to withstand constant cleaning. But I would guess ceramics would handle it better than any chips with inlays or labels. I’d have to think the porous nature of clay would leave it susceptible to damage too. Not to mention the whole issue of oiling - they wouldn’t accumulate any hand oils, so you’d want yo hit them with mineral oil every time or else you’d have sad, dried out chips.

I have cheap clays right now and I only clean them after they start looking a little dirty so about every six months. It’s only a consideration if I were to move to ceramics.