09/08/201605/17/2017 Maria Ivanova
Many beautiful ladies prefer gold jewelry to costume jewelry. But such products require extremely careful handling and care. For example, one of the popular women’s questions is: how to purify gold from iodine.
Even a drop of this popular antiseptic can ruin the appearance of a precious ring or ring. When iodine interacts with a gold item, it leaves dark, unsightly spots that are difficult to remove using conventional means. How to restore the beauty and shine of jewelry?
Reasons for iodine getting into gold
Iodine can get onto a gold surface completely by accident. When treating a small cut on your hand, it is easy to drip the solution onto the ring.
Expert opinion
Vsevolod Kozlovsky
6 years in jewelry making. Knows everything about samples and can identify a fake in 12 seconds
By the way, iodine is used as an indicator of the authenticity of the metal. Samples 585 and 583 are checked more often, since the alloy contains a high concentration of alloy - the surface acquires a reddish tint. A cotton swab soaked in iodine is brought to the inside of the ring.
In addition to iodine, vinegar, a magnet, ceramics and even bread are used to authenticate.
Instructions
Probably everyone has such a drug as iodine at home. If not, then it can easily be purchased at a pharmacy, since it does not require a doctor's prescription and is cheap. In medicine, iodine is considered an antiseptic. However, it is also used for other purposes. For example, a widely known method for testing gold is iodine, where it is used as an indicator to determine the authenticity of the metal. However, the drug will only help in recognizing gold. For other metal products it will not show the true result. So, having decided to try this method, you need to do the following.
- They take gold jewelry. Usually, doubts arise in samples 583 and 585, since their tint may be slightly reddish, which can raise doubts. But it may also be associated with the presence of an alloy in the metal composition.
- Then the product is lightly sanded on the inside. This is necessary for the reaction with iodine to occur. Most often, sandpaper is used for this, although you can use another abrasive.
- After soaking a cotton swab in iodine, apply it to the gold item in the place of wear. It doesn’t matter whether a small or large amount of iodine will participate in the reaction. Therefore, you need to try to apply only a small, unnoticeable spot. The reaction will not increase depending on the size of the abrasion area, but then you will have to spend more effort to wash it, and a trace of abrasion may remain.
- It remains to monitor the reaction. If a dark color stain appears, then the jewelry is genuine. It is precisely made of precious metal. But if the color remains the same, then the product is not gold, but bronze, copper or brass. The chemical reaction occurs because gold is able to react with halogens. And iodine is exactly that.
What happens if you drop iodine on gold?
If the solution gets on a precious item, bluish stains will form. The volume depends on the amount of iodine. Gold is considered an inert substance that does not react when interacting with the environment or aggressive environments. The metal does not react to acids unless it is “regia vodka” (a concentrated compound of hydrochloric and sulfuric acids). However, there are exceptions to this rule.
Gold reacts to substances:
- mercury;
- bromine;
- liquid cyanide;
- iodine.
Iodine is one of the halogens, an exclusive group of substances with which gold reacts. White gold is a soft metal that requires different care.
White gold
White gold looks especially luxurious. But it is precisely this that is the most capricious and requires individual care. It's all about his alloy.
The original color of the metal appears due to nickel, and the surface is pollinated with rhodium. But rhodium changes its original appearance over time; To preserve it, it is recommended to clean the product with a napkin.
To clean this metal, you cannot use tooth powder, paste, or hard brushes. Soap products and ammonia are effective.
There is a traditional method that has proven itself well. You will need half a glass of beer and an egg yolk. Mix the ingredients well. Dip the fabric into the resulting mixture and rub. Rinse and dry. Moisture has a negative effect on this metal.
Cleaning methods
The first way is time. You will have to wait a long time, but the result will not disappoint. If you need to solve the problem quickly, soap or washing powder will be powerless.
Kitchen method
The “old-fashioned” method allows you to prepare a solution using improvised means, which in an hour and a half will return gold to its rightful, even shine. Mix (one tablespoon at a time) into a liter of water: soda, salt and lime. The jewelry is then placed in the solution until completely clean.
Ammonia
Ammonia helps in cleaning silver from blackening. To do this, use a mixture of the substance with hydrogen peroxide or tooth powder. When working with gold, results are not guaranteed.
Hyposulfite cleaning
Another way to effectively clean a gold ring is to place it in a solution used to develop photographic film. It is called a “fixer”, the scientific name is “hyposulfite”. It is sold at the pharmacy. The solution in which the product is placed is prepared in the following proportions: one tablespoon of the substance per 250 ml of heated water. After an hour and a half, the gold is cleared to a shine.
Which way is better?
Hyposulfite is an affordable and effective way to purify gold from iodine. It will not leave a specific smell for three days, like ammonia, and guarantees a renewed appearance of the jewelry. If you use the “kitchen” method, the effect may not appear the first time. Then the jewelry is placed in the solution again. Abrasives and mechanical stress will leave scratches on the product.
Preparing Jewelry for Cleaning
There are a great many variations of cleansing, even with the help of products available in literally every home. One of the methods will suit someone, and the lucky person will advertise it to his friends.
Our goal is to become familiar with all known methods. Why? The fact is that precious products are produced with varying degrees of purity, that is, with different samples, so the result may be different.
For example, Turkish gold and silver contain alloys and impurities, and may be easier to clean. The silver chain is easy to clean; you can simply clean it with tooth powder. Possible damage to the links of the jewelry will not be noticeable.
But, first of all, the jewelry should be washed thoroughly to soften the dirt. This is especially true if the products have thin holes, filigree patterns, ligature, etc.
The stages of necessary preparation of products consist of two parts.
- The washing up. Prepare a soap solution from water and detergent. Regular powder is ineffective; it is better to use traditional laundry or tar soap. The soap is grated and dissolved in very hot water. Dip the contaminated product into the resulting solution and leave for 2-3 hours.
- Mechanical cleaning. If the chain has simply darkened in several places, perhaps it just needs to be thoroughly cleaned with a toothbrush in the same solution. You will still have to tinker with jewelry that has been damaged by iodine.
How to properly purify gold from iodine at home
Cleaning gold is a simple process, but it also has its own nuances. The procedure will be completed successfully if you follow the step-by-step instructions.
Preparing Jewelry for Cleaning
At home, metal is coated with thin layers of substances that prevent the removal of contamination or delay the cleaning process. Therefore, the surface is degreased. To do this, wipe it with alcohol or acetone. If there is foreign dirt on the gold, it is removed.
Cleaning process
With rough mechanical action of abrasives or needles, there is an increased risk of damaging the smooth surface of the jewelry. Therefore, it is customary to clean products in solutions.
The cleaning process itself is limited to placing the jewelry in a container with a cleaner. After removal, wipe it with a soft cloth. The described means remove the first microlayer of metal with a stain that does not penetrate deeper.
Silver
Silver jewelry also needs cleaning. There are several methods that are used for this metal.
Starch will save your item. You just need to fill the decoration with it, and if there is none, finely chop the potatoes, put the product there and leave it for a while. It will not be possible to remove the stain - it will only be disguised, the dirt will acquire a bluish tint.
Toothpaste and baking soda work well for cleaning.
You can get rid of iodine stains using peroxide and soap. You need to mix soap with peroxide and place the jewelry there for at least 30 minutes. Afterwards you need to rinse the product.
How to clean jewelry with stones
Cleaning inlaid gold is a process that takes into account the type of stone and the method of its attachment. There are soft stones: amber, pearls. And hard ones - diamonds, sapphires, topazes.
Soft stones cannot withstand the aggressive environment created by ammonia and vinegar. The best cleaning option is water and alcohol. After exposure, wipe the product dry, because soft stones are hydrophobic.
If the inlay is held on by glue, the acidic environment will corrode it. In this case, wipe the contaminated area with a cloth soaked in the solution. Gloves must be used here. Products with hard stones can more easily withstand aggressive environments, so you don’t have to be “gentle” with them.
How to check authenticity in a store
People do not always have the opportunity to use home testing methods or take it to a jeweler. For example, you need to know exactly how to identify gold when purchasing it in a store. If a product is purchased on the territory of Russia, then it must have a sample and the letter of the person who puts the stamp on it. If this is not the case, then there is no need to talk about legal gold. Most likely it's costume jewelry. The quality of gold jewelry varies from country to country. Therefore, when it is bought in other countries, in addition to the sample, you must pay attention to other characteristics.
- The polish should be shiny.
- The coating and spraying are done evenly, and the color is the same.
- If the product contains a stone, it is firmly inserted.
- All units have their own tag made of white thick paper, in which there is a hole with a stretched thread. Here you can find information about the product: its weight, sample, manufacturer, name, legal address.
The presence of impurities can be determined visually by the color of the product. White color is formed with the help of silver and platinum, yellow - with silver and copper, red indicates that copper predominates in the alloy, green is obtained by combining silver, copper and cadmium, and a gray tint is acquired with the presence of steel. It is not recommended to purchase such a product over the Internet, as in this case there is a high risk of counterfeiting.
Rules for wearing, caring for and storing gold jewelry
Gold jewelry should be worn carefully. Accessories designed to decorate the external image are recommended to be removed if there is likely exposure to foreign objects or kitchen fumes. A negative factor will be sudden temperature changes. In addition, the danger to jewelry is posed by:
- eau de toilette and deodorants;
- humid environment;
- contact with cutting, abrasive objects.
Places where jewelry is taken off:
- gyms;
- spa centers, beauty salons;
- baths and saunas, etc.
It is better to store your personal jewelry collection separately. When they come into contact, they leave scratches and become deformed. For this purpose, special velvet bags and cases have been created, similar to those found in jewelry stores. Jewelry accessories do not interact well in plastic, so it is better to avoid cases made of this material.
Excessive exposure to direct sunlight spoils jewelry. Therefore, they must be kept in a closed, dark space.
Question-answer section
How to wash a ring with cubic zirconia from iodine?
Expert opinion
Grishanov Mikhail Petrovich
Jeweler, director of the Grishanov and Co. workshop
Different types of stones can behave in special ways when in contact with an aggressive environment. The risk of ring damage increases if it contains natural stone inserts. Moreover, cubic zirconia requires special attention. To remove traces of iodine, prepare an aqueous solution of ammonia (1:1). It is applied carefully using a cotton swab.
Is it necessary to do sputtering after testing gold with iodine?
Expert opinion
Pribrezhny Gennady Valentinovich
Jeweler 6th category
If the ring is coated with a protective material, then when testing in one of the areas it will have to be damaged to ensure contact between the reagent and the gold. In addition, such actions will lead to the appearance of purple marks on the product. This means that it will take more effort and money to restore the original properties of the metal. First of all, the product is sanded; sometimes it is necessary to completely remove the old coating. After this, the ring is cleaned and prepared for re-application of the protective layer.
Gold jewelry and iodine
Is it necessary to test gold with iodine if it was purchased at a salon?
Expert opinion
Grishanov Mikhail Petrovich
Jeweler, director of the Grishanov and Co. workshop
You can pay attention to the parameters of gold jewelry in the store. The ring should have a characteristic shine, weight, and when it falls on a glass display case, it should produce a special ringing sound, like crystal. But if you still have doubts about the authenticity of the gold, you can ask for a certificate for the product. Most often, jewelry sold in salons is of high quality and corresponds to the stated parameters. This means that gold testing is not mandatory, especially since the procedure can ruin the appearance of the ring. It is carried out when the need arises, if there is a suspicion of low quality jewelry.
The most powerful cleaning products, or How to avoid a trip to the workshop
There is an even more sophisticated way to clean gold from iodine without resorting to the help of professionals, whose services are expensive and the results are unpredictable. We are preparing a real “hellish mixture”!
Don't be afraid of its ingredients; they are all individually quite harmless, at least for metals. You need to take regular soda - 2-3 tablespoons, 50-70 g of quicklime, a couple of tablespoons of sodium chloride (ordinary table salt) and one spoon of 9% vinegar.
Dissolve all components in hot water and bring to a boil. Then turn off the stove and lower our gold or silver into the hot mixture. We take it out and carefully examine our jewelry, repeating the process until it is completely restored.
