Electroplating

[TheNiceGuy]

I was thinking of fiddling around with the hydrogen peroxide method listed here:
http://m.wikihow.com/Electroplate-Household-Metals
Rather than a battery, I have a bunch of wall warts that can produce low voltage low amps (i.e. 12v 1a), so I thought to just bare the wires and use those.
Is the hydrogen released in the process minuscule, or is it something to be worried about? Also, can I experiment with different metals, or am I going to be creating some toxic gas?

 

[Paperdoc]

Using "wall warts" means you need to consider two questions:

(a) The power from them MUST be DC. While it may be a DC with some ripple in it, that won't matter. But it cannot be a low-voltage AC designed to feed into a device with its own rectifier to convert to DC.
(b) The voltage DOES matter. The higher to voltage from your supply, the higher the voltage pushing current through the solution, and the faster the metal deposition will go. Faster plating usually means uneven coverage and often poor bonding leading to flaking off the resulting plating. Although we all like quick results, better plating quality normally requires moderate to slow plating rate. But it you're "playing around" to find out these details, you can experiment with what voltage (and hence plating rate) works best for different situations.

Yes, you can use other metals. For the most part they all will work similarly, although quality, speed, etc. will vary. Finding a good clean source of some metals can be tricky.

Adding a later thought. Hydrogen Peroxide is sold in two very different strengths, and the link you posted does not specify. The more common form is used for first aid and wound treatment, and contains 3% Hydrogen Peroxide (H2O2). The form used for bleaching (most commonly, for bleaching hair) contains 10% H2O2. My guess is that the linked item expected you to use the 3% commonly-available version.

 

[TheNiceGuy]

Alright cheers .
Just wanted to make sure no explosions or poison gas etc.