how can I clean copper and brass fittings for use in plumbing applications?

Can you still use the fittings,after they are cleaned, in a potable water system. In other words we have a lot of copper and brass fittings that need to be cleaned so we can use them in the plumbing systems of new houses and not be a health risk because of what they have been cleaned with.

Public Comments

1. What were they cleaned with that is worrying you? Washing them off with water and detergent should do it. If you are talking about getting the connections clean enough for soldering you usually rub them with emery cloth to scrape off oxidation, wipe any grit off with a dirty rag, and then apply flux which is heated by the torch before the solder is applied. Any harmful material on those soldered edges is destroyed by the heat of the torch. When water mains are installed they are rinsed out and some chlorine added. They are not pampered and made immaculate even though they touch all the water that is going into a lot of homes. The same idea applies to your fittings. Clean them and don't make a big deal of it.
2. you can clean it chemically by closed loop system & add a special chemical for this loop or using a softener system