How do you clean shells?

[kidspot]

When I've gotten large Helmet Shells (look like Conch) I sit them in a 50-50 bleach-water solution and rinse after a few days. If there is still much odor I repeat. Sitting near an ant hill can also work really well I've been told by friends, it just takes a while, but is quite effective. If you don't have a dental pick you can also carefully use an Exacto knife or tiny jewelers screwdriver in that order. A dental pick is better IMHO, and I've found them at the local hardware store.

As to what's the difference between buying one and collecting one... both came out of the ocean ... but one is a personal discovery. Out of 700 dives I've found 2 empty helmet shells, one was uncovered following a bad storm, it had been buried for a long time. Mostly I collect empty coweries and find one about every 30-40 dives.

Have fun with your treasures - Shells are amazing and are such a wonderful way to share the diving experience with non-diving friends and family.

Aloha, Tim

 

[MichaelBaranows]

I clean by placing in a bucket of water and then pour muriatic acid (you can pick this up at an auto parts store). When the shell starts bubbling stop pouring. When the starts looking close to what you like take out of water/acid and put shell in a bucket water to stop the acid from working. You can place in acid again if the shell isn't cleaned as much as you want.

It only take a matter of seconds to clean. Be sure you use in well ventaited area and use proper protective clothing. I use a part of thongs to remove shell for acid solution.

 

[Thadmn]

What is an alternative to the dental tool for us non-dentists?

Some auto parts stores sell them too.

 

[cmburch]

I have tried cleaning shells. No need to look for old nasty dental tools. I got brand new dental type tools from the school bookstore when I was a student also the pet supply store for dog dental scrapers. Harbor Freight tools and automotive tool places also have some picks. There are so many shells where I live. I have eaten lunch on shell sandbars at low tide in the middle of the San Francisco Bay. For abalone shells, I tend to toss them outside after eating the abalone because they smell so much. One time it attracted ants and they did a pretty good job of cleaning the residual muscle, worms, algae, etc. It seems like bleach was the best, but I still got dull shells. I also tried HCl - muriatic acid - hydrochloric acid without luck. I got a very dull shell and could not control the shell from dissolving in areas I did not want dissolved. It dissolved evenly while I only wanted the growth on the outside removed. We also have scallops, sea urchin tests, mussels, clams, etc. After eating the shells tend to build up. We also used to do blue crab carapaces from the Chesapeake Bay. There are many sand dollars on the beach in front of Golden Gate Park. One time I found a beautiful abalone shell that was either partially digested or sand cleaned where both sides looked like mother of pearl. I do have to be careful though. I found a baby abalone inside a larger shell. It is a misdemeanor to remove from ocean. Hefty fine and maybe time in court. I have seen people do the freezer on conch. I have never eaten them though so I would not take a shell if it was not dead or the mollusc was not edible.

I collected fossils also. There are quarries used for road fill and limestone in the Santa Cruz range with nice seashell fossils. I used to live where oyster shells were used instead of gravel for roads and made things out of those seashells when I was a kid.

I do not agree with buying them already cleaned. I know where I got them from and that the animal was already dead or that I ate it.

I can see not taking them from tourist areas.

 

[NOVIZWHIZ]

I was gonna suggest Harbor Freight (those stores are all over NC) for the dental picks - just don't go in and ask for "dental" picks - guy prob won't know what you're talking about - mechanics use them for cleaning in small areas, snagging tiny objects - Harbor Freight sells them in a kit - think it's 5 or 6 to a pack, all kinds of different tips and sizes. and they're stainless - doubt any dentist would have any 'rusty" ones (LOL). If you have never handled muriatic acid - it's some wicked stuff - gloves and safety glasses and watch the fumes - I use it to burn calcium deposits, barnacles, shells, etc. off the bottles I've found - if the bottle is loaded it looks like a giant alka seltzer when you drop it in - seems to me it would dissolve a seashell - i know it ruined the finish on a nice little ceramic jug I found. Got some on a tiny scrape i had on my thumb and I thought it was going to eat my thumb off - took about six months to heal....BE CAREFUL!

 

[Andy077]

I was gonna suggest Harbor Freight (those stores are all over NC) for the dental picks - just don't go in and ask for "dental" picks - guy prob won't know what you're talking about - mechanics use them for cleaning in small areas, snagging tiny objects - Harbor Freight sells them in a kit - think it's 5 or 6 to a pack, all kinds of different tips and sizes. and they're stainless - doubt any dentist would have any 'rusty" ones (LOL). If you have never handled muriatic acid - it's some wicked stuff - gloves and safety glasses and watch the fumes - I use it to burn calcium deposits, barnacles, shells, etc. off the bottles I've found - if the bottle is loaded it looks like a giant alka seltzer when you drop it in - seems to me it would dissolve a seashell - i know it ruined the finish on a nice little ceramic jug I found. Got some on a tiny scrape i had on my thumb and I thought it was going to eat my thumb off - took about six months to heal....BE CAREFUL!

Agreed, don't clean any shells, but am a chemist. AT ALL COSTS, avoid mixing muriatic acid with anything containing bleach. Bleach contains Sodium hypochlorite and Sodium Hydroxide, when muriatic acid (Hydrogen Chloride Solution) mixes with that, you'll get big green clouds of pure chlorine gas.

 

[SkipperJohn]

Ants and insects are great for removing most forms of bio matter form anything. Just be sure to put it in a cage of some sort to prevent the local felines from walking off with your prize.
Also, before scraping with anything metal or pointy that can scratch the shell or whatever you are cleaning, try a piece of wood (like an ice-cream stick) or plastic. Any material softer then the item being cleaned. I have used clam shells to clean other shells. When using an ice cream stick, it has to be a fresh one (at least that's what I tell myself... oh, chocolate too)

Lastly, watch the bleach. More is not better. The instructions above worked fine for me. I had a friend who decided to leave something he was cleaning in the 50/50 solution for around a week. There was little left when he returned.

 

[alaity47]

Also, don't forget that you may not be able to tell if a shell is occupied. My shell-collecting career is over after I went 3-for-3 on discovering too late that there was actually a small hermit crab hiding in the back of a shell.

Know what's disgusting? Picking wet, bleached, dead hermit crabs out of shells after soaking them and then noticing they smell like dead crab.

Also disgusting: forgetting the shell in your dive bag for a week before discovering it was occupied..

Disgusting #3: leaving the shell in your car in the sun for a few hours and returning to a baked, crispy hermit crab dangling out of it.

Each time I was POSITIVE the darn things were empty - no sand plugging them up, nothing rattling inside, nothing sticking its head out when I carried it around for a while. Turns out those suckers can hide really well...

 

[cmburch]

Well, there are many beautiful iridescent purple turban shells as well as many other snail shells inhabited by hermit crabs. I got a little laugh from your post. There are thousands of hermit crabs on our coast. I assume they are against the law to take by CA DFG. If every child grabs some out of the tide pools, I could see there would be a problem. But a few by mistake? I would not be surprised at divers climbing out on the rocks in Monterey squishing them during entry and exit and many other invertebrates unknowingly.

 

[SkipperJohn]

lord, nothing smells like a ripe crab.