old stinky glass bottles, how do I clean them?

[yukoneer]

at a recent dive @ Canandaigua Lake in cananadaigua, new york I discovered 3 glass bottles that appear to be old. Needless to say, I was excited because those 3 bottles were the first stuff I ever brought out of a dive. However, They really stink bad, and i was wondering what is the best method to clean them up and the stink so I can display them?

also, how do I know whether if the bottles are old as in collectors value, or old as in trash? (I can take digital pictures and post them here if anyone wants to have a look...)

 

[gfisher4792]

Not sure if this has help with smelly bottles, but it may be a good start:

http://www.antiquebottles.com/cleaning.html

 

[Desa]

I know nothing about the value of the bottles, but a bleach water solution left to soak a few hours should do the trick on the smell

 

[DA Aquamaster]

A mild acidic solution will do the job on both the dirt and grime and the smell.

You can find muratic acid at the local hardware store. Carefully dilute it from it's normal 30% HCL solution to around 3& to 5% and then soak the bottle in it. It is non fuming in those concentrations and will leave a pleasant fresh smell.

The best part is no elbow grease is required although rubber gloves are needed as a precaution and soaking the bottles in a soda bath or at least rinsing thouroughly to remove any remaining acid will be needed once they are clean.

 

[redacted]

also, how do I know whether if the bottles are old as in collectors value, or old as in trash? (I can take digital pictures and post them here if anyone wants to have a look...)

I just use an overnight soak in a bleach solution. It seems to do a pretty good job. And it is easy for me to tell the difference between the good ones and trash. I just ask my wife and she tells me they are trash. If you like it keep it. Many can be researched on the internet like my "McELREE'S WINE OF CARDUI". Others like a "Neulic's Herpicide - Kills the Danruff Germ" look like they will remain a mystry treasure.

 

[diverrick]

I collected bottles for some years, and we found that if you mix a cleaning agent, with a handfull of shotgun shot, and shake the bottle, the shot really helps knock the gunk out of the inside of the bottle. you can recycle the shot for another day, just be careful you don't drop any of the shot down your drain or disposal.