• The brown color on this chain is a type of patina.Stahlkette image by MoniP from Fotolia.com
  
  If your favorite metal statue or pan has obtained a patina you just can't adore, you can remove the patina with a variety of simple household items. Exposure to air and moisture causes most metals to get a patina, or discoloration, which is often green or brown in color. If your metal object is old or could be an antique, do not remove the patina. It can decrease the value of the object.
  
  

Household Ammonia

• If you're trying to remove small spots of patina on a basic metal object, try using basic household ammonia from under your kitchen sink and a soft cloth to clean the piece. Do not mix ammonia with other substances, or use ammonia products that contain a lot of other ingredients. The other ingredients could cause the metal to pit. For the same reason, it's best not to use abrasive ammonia products.
  
  

Salt, Vinegar and Flour

• To remove the patina from bronze and most other hard metals, create a general purpose cleaner from salt, vinegar and flour. Mix 1 tsp. salt in 1 cup of white vinegar. Add flour until it forms a thick paste. Spread the paste over the metal object from which you want to remove the patina. Leave the paste mixture on for 15 minutes to 1 hour. Then remove the paste with a soft cloth.
  
  

Orange Juice

• If you have a metal piece with a light patina, you can remove it using a simple acidic substance like orange juice. Orange juice will remove the patina from a number of softer metals, like copper. Pour orange juice on the metal, leave it for a few minutes, and wipe it clean with a soft cloth. If you have a copper sink that you want to keep the patina on, make sure your orange juice stays far away from it. Spilled orange juice can remove the patina.
  
  

Steel Wool

• If your old baking sheets, pie pans and muffin pans have a brownish-orange patina from butter and grease over the years, you can use steel wool to scrub it away. Although steel wool is recommended for removing the patina off pans, it is not recommended for patina removal on most other metal objects, since the abrasiveness of the metal can cause pitting.