We get this question a lot: "I've got a little pot of silver offcuts and broken bits, can I melt them down myself?" The answer is usually yes. You don't need a foundry, but you do need the right handful of tools and a bit of respect for molten metal. Here's what we'd tell you if you rang the shop.

Start with a proper crucible

A crucible is simply the dish you melt the metal in. For bench work, ceramic melting dishes are the usual choice because they handle torch heat well and have a little spout for pouring.

Size matters more than people expect. A small 2" dish is handy for a few offcuts or test melts. A 3" dish is the all-rounder most people end up using. If you're melting larger batches, our 4" ceramic crucible holds up to around 155g. Pick a dish that suits the amount you normally melt, as a big dish takes longer to heat and a tiny one overflows.

One tip that saves a lot of frustration: glaze a new crucible with borax before the first melt. Warm the dish gently, sprinkle in borax and heat it until it forms a glassy coating. This helps the metal flow cleanly and stops it sticking to the ceramic, and it helps the dish last longer too.

Get a whip handle, not just any tongs

Holding a dish of molten silver with ordinary pliers is asking for trouble. A whip handle is a sprung wire holder made for the job. It works the opposite way to most tools: you squeeze to open it, and when you let go it clamps the dish firmly. That means you can tilt and pour without worrying about your grip slipping halfway.

Our whip tong handle with ceramic crucible fits the 2" and 3" dishes, so it's a good place to start if you're buying one piece at a time.

A torch with enough heat

Sterling silver melts at somewhere around 890°C, and you need to get the whole puddle hot enough to pour, not just the top. A small handheld butane torch is great for soldering but often struggles to melt more than a little silver. Most people step up to a larger propane torch once they start melting regularly. We don't sell torches, so check with your supplier that the one you're considering is rated for melting, not just soldering.

Long tongs for anything big and hot

If you're moving a larger crucible or getting into lost wax casting, you'll want tongs that keep your hands well away from the heat. Our casting flask and crucible tongs have 15" handles and hold flasks and crucibles up to 4" across. They're one of those tools you don't think you need until the moment you really do.

Brass tongs for the pickle

After melting, soldering or annealing, your metal will be covered in oxides and flux. A pickle bath cleans that off. The catch is that you must never put steel tools in pickle, because it can leave a coppery plating on your silver. Brass pickling tongs avoid that problem, and the bent, grooved tips make it easy to fish out small pieces.

The safety bits that really matter

• Protect yourself. Wear eye protection and heat-resistant gloves, tie back long hair and avoid loose synthetic clothing.
• Work on a heat-proof surface with nothing flammable nearby, and keep the area well ventilated.
• Keep everything bone dry. Moisture in a mould or on your scrap can make molten metal spit violently. Warm your mould before pouring.
• Know what you're melting. Plated items, or scrap with solder and mystery metals in it, can give off unpleasant fumes and give you a poor result. Clean, known silver is best.
• Have somewhere safe to put things down. Plan where the hot crucible goes before you start, not while you're holding it.

Want it all in one go?

If you'd rather not piece it together, our Melting & Casting Starter Kit puts the 3" crucible with whip handle, the long flask tongs and the brass pickling tongs together. It costs the same as buying the three separately, it just saves you the hunting about. You'll still need your own torch.

You can see everything we stock for melting and pouring in our Casting and Melting Tools collection. If you're not sure which crucible size suits what you're doing, just drop us an email or give us a ring. We're always happy to talk it through.