If you are a poker player, then you have seen what a dirty and grimy chip looks like. Many of us have gone to a casino and waited our turn for the next available seat at the table, only to see a pile of dirty poker chips. Maybe you slowed down your friend’s game of poker and he kept it up for a month or two. When your friend finally returns your tiles, you notice the dirt on the surface of each tile and how they stick together. Although there is no way to prevent the chips from getting dirty, there are ways to clean them without damaging the chip itself. You don’t need a fancy gadget to clean your chips, just simple household items you can find around your home.
This is what you will need:
- 1 soft bristle toothbrush
- mild dish soap (Palmolive) in a bowl mixed with water
- 2 small hand towels
- time (the more detailed, the better the result)
There are things you should never do when trying to wash your poker chips:
- NEVER immerse your chips in water – This will cause the labels to eventually come off the water that seeps under the design label.
- NEVER use abrasive cleaners that can ruin your clay chips, etc.
- NEVER throw poker chips in a dishwasher / washing machine to speed up the cleaning process.
- NEVER dry or throw the fries in the microwave to dry them faster.
Cleaning instructions:
Mix about 1 teaspoon of mild dishwashing liquid in a bowl with 1/2 cup of water. Place the first poker chip on the small hand towel. Lightly dip the toothbrush in the cleaning solution and gently brush the first side of the poker chip. Make sure you get the cracks, nooks and crannies of each chip. Using a corner of the hand towel, quickly wipe the clean side of the poker chip, then turn the chip over and repeat the cleaning step with the toothbrush. The reason we want to dry the chips immediately is to prevent water from getting under the design labels, if any. Once both sides of the chip have been cleaned, place them somewhere to naturally dry on their own. Continue this process until all of your chips are clean and nice!
When there is no hope
There may be some of you chronic poker players where there is not enough soap in the world to clean your poker game. It is at that point where buying a new set of poker chips would be more beneficial than trying to clean up your old dirty set with missing chips.
