Hi Donna, I have two dark coloured dots on a finger. Looks almost
like a tatoo. I was told they are caused by minute particles of
silver getting under the skin and oxidising. It is not dangerous.
Kathy.
Kathy, I don’t know about this. They must be bigger particles
than minute. We would all be sporting black hands if this were
the case. The only places I have skin discoloration aside from
the permanent tripoli/rouge fingers is where I accidently kneeled
on a pencil (circa 1972) and my tattoo (circa 1979).
Hi Donna, I have two dark coloured dots on a finger. Looks almost like a tatoo. I was told they are caused by minute particles of silver getting under the skin and oxidising.
G’day; silver nitrate causes black staining on flesh too.
Here’s how to remove it - if it isn’t too deep; Rub a little
tincture of iodine over the discoloured places. This converts the
various silver compounds to mostly silver iodide, which a whitish
grey. Now rub over the places a fairly strong solution of
photographic hypo (sodium thiosulphate) This converts the iodide
to the thiosulphate, and that’s all there is to it.
I have a little story about a certain little boy who couldn’t
keep his fingers out of anything. His mother was treating his
brother’s warts with silver nitrate and the younger one was in
the way so was sent out to play - and came home with face and
hands covered in black patches much to the consternation of his
mates. He’d got silver nitrate over his hands, rubbed his face
and the strong NZ sunlight caused the black compounds to form in
the skin. Well, little boys of 8 get a bit stroppy if one
attempts to use pumice on their face (the only other way to get
the black off!!) So my wife shot his elder brother to the
village chemist shop a few doors away to buy the necessary
ingredients given above, and after a careful application of same,
all was well. However, he did look a bit red and got a bit of
stick off his mates, though.
So now you know how to get silver stains off people. That
particular ‘people’ is now 50!! Cheers and in your spare time,
learn the company anthem below.
/\ John Burgess
/ /
/ / Johnb@ts.co.nz
/ /__|\
(_______) Modern Corporate Song:-
In this life one thing counts;
in the bank large amounts.
Money you see, don't grow on trees,
You gotta pick a pocket or two. Yoy!
You gotta pick a pocket or two boys;
you gotta pick a pocket or two.
Chorus: Money doesn’t grow on trees; you gotta pick a pocket or two.
(Fagin)
Kathy I too have two black spots, situated on my left index
finger. I don’t know how they have come there, but they bave
developed after I started working with sterling. They are on that
part of the finger, which most often come into contact with
buffer wheels etc., and I think it could be minute particles
rubbed off a piece and then flung into my finger. They have been
there for at least the last two to three years and don’t develop
further. Being precious metal I don’t consider them dangerous in
any way. And John B. Your advise on how to remove silver spots on
skin is very good, but mine is sitting at least 1 mm deep som I
figure I just have to live with them.
Kind regards from sunny and rainy Denmark
Niels Loevschal,