Colloidal silver is an all-natural antibiotic that has been used to treat various illnesses and infections in animals and humans for thousands of years. Nowadays, colloidal silver is readily available for purchase in health stores, or it can be made at home with a few common household items. The basic process of making colloidal silver requires the use of a specialized generator, pure silver, and distilled water. While some recipes say it's acceptable to use items such as silver dollars to make colloidal silver, this isn't recommended because silver dollars also contain other metals. Another tip for making colloidal silver is to avoid recipes that call for adding salt to the solution because the addition of salt has an adverse effect on the healing properties of the colloidal silver.
The easiest way to start making colloidal silver is to purchase a ready-made colloidal silver generator. These generators come with detailed instructions and can help produce high-quality colloidal silver. For those who are are handy, it's also possible to build a generator. The problem with homemade generators is that they are apt to produce colloidal silver of varying quality. Those who choose to build their own generators will need to conduct thorough research beforehand to obtain optimal results.
Only pure silver should be used when making colloidal silver. The best way to guarantee good-quality silver is to purchase a 12 or 14 gauge wire that's between 99.95 and 99.99 percent pure silver. Sterling silver, silver dollars, and other items of this nature should never be used because they also contain other elements such as copper. The presence of copper and other metals can make the colloidal silver toxic when consumed. Jewelers and silversmiths are good places to obtain the best silver for making colloidal silver.
For the most part, distilled water is recommended for making colloidal silver, although some also recommend using reverse-osmosis filtered water. In addition, while some colloidal silver recipes recommend that salt be added to the solution, many advise against this practice. Salt combines with some silver ions to form silver chloride, which is believed to be far less effective against bacteria. It should also be noted that colloidal silver solutions are light sensitive and need to be stored in dark glass bottles, and kept away from the sun or fluorescent lights. Bottles of colloidal silver are best stored in dark cabinets and should never be placed in the refrigerator.