Cleaning old bills

[shadroch]

I picked up three Black Eagle large dollar bills. They are very beat up, quite soiled and many folds, ect, ect. Very low grade stuff but the bills are intact..

One bill was obviously folded in half for many years as the left side of the bill is filthy and the right side is much cleaner.

Is it acceptable to dry erase currency? In this case, it can't hurt, but how about a bill that was in better shape, but slightly soiled?

BTW- I paid $70 for the three, and $65 for one that was in much better shape.

Is that around market value?

[jtryka]

I am not a fan of washing or cleaning notes, but I know it's done. As for the price, $70 for 3 notes is a good deal, even if they are really dirty and beat up.

[GW]

Repaired, Restored, and Doctored Notes - some notes have been washed, bleached, and pressed and no longer have their original surfaces. alterations to these notes may not be noted on a holder, but experienced collectors will notice that the note was cleaned. personnal i prefer that the note be left alone, there is a difference between professional repaired/restored notes and abuse. doing this would not be acceptable to me. same as cleaning a VF coin, to make it look like BU. may actually decrease its value.

 

[shadroch]

I'm talking about using a dry erasure to try to rub off some of the soiling, not actually cleaning the bills.

[mintcollector]

I wouldn't do it. Honestly, if these are in any kind of resellable condition (and I am assuming they are); you may be better off sending them to PMG for grading then selling them and obtaining high grade notes. The problem I see is that once you try any form of cleaning on these notes (even dry erase) you risk losing the coveted EPQ moniker...

 

This will devalue your notes on today's market...

[shadroch]

Excuse my ignorance but what is EPQ?

[SouthFlorida guy]

Exceptional paper quality.

[shadroch]

Thanks.

[johnny9434]

its not a good idea to clean any type of bill or coin. you got a good deal on it, dont knock it

[JIM F.]

If you feel compelled to clean it, fill a bowl with distilled water and dawn dish soap. Let it soak a while then lightly rub it with your fingers until it is cleaned to your satisfaction, then rinse in distilled water and let it dry. You may want to try this with an ordinary note first to get the feel for it.