Sooner or later, the time comes when darkened and tarnished gold jewelry ceases to please the eye. I would like to put the products in order, restore their attractiveness, and even without unnecessary financial investments. Below we will describe life hacks that will help you clean gold at home using improvised means, without giving it into the wrong hands.
Gold jewelry
The most common reasons why gold darkens or turns black:
- the share of gold
in the jewelry: with a standard of 585 and below, the products will darken faster; - the decoration is new
and the top polishing layer applied by the manufacturer for a better presentation is darkening - the problem is temporary and will disappear as this layer wears off; - wearing conditions
: exposure to aggressive environments, mercury, iodine, pollution.
In any case, if gold items have turned black, they can and should be cleaned.
More time and attention will be needed if the decoration has a complex design or is made with inlay
How to clean gold: effective ways
It never hurts to know how to quickly clean gold at home. For example, in case there are literally a few minutes before leaving, and the only pair of earrings or pendant that matches the look looks, to put it mildly, unmarketable. There are always suitable means for cleaning gold at home - don’t waste time and restore the attractiveness of your jewelry.
Ammonia
Cleaning gold at home with ammonia or ammonia is the easiest way to get rid of cloudiness of the precious metal and stains on jewelry. To effectively clean gold from blackness, you need to make a solution of water and ammonia with the addition of shampoo. Recommended proportions for a small container of warm water: 0.5 tsp. ammonia and 1 tsp. shampoo. Completely immerse the jewelry that requires cleaning into the resulting solution and mix; after removing the dirt, rinse the gold thoroughly in running water.
Gold rings in ammonia solution
In this way, you can soak gold with some stones: the ammonia solution perfectly removes dirt and oxides from hard-to-reach places. To dry, simply place the jewelry on a paper napkin or towel.
In particularly difficult cases, it is allowed to use ammonia with a high concentration, without dilution with water
Hydrogen peroxide
Hydrogen peroxide is also an effective and affordable liquid for cleaning gold. For minor stains, it is enough to wipe the jewelry with a cloth soaked in peroxide. In other cases, a more aggressive method is recommended:
- Make a solution: 1 glass of warm water, 30 mg of hydrogen peroxide (3%), 1 tsp. ammonia, a small amount of liquid soap (by eye).
- Mix the ingredients thoroughly.
- Immerse gold items in a container with the solution and leave for 3-5 hours.
- Rinse the jewelry with plain water and dry it on a napkin.
Vinegar
You can clean a gold chain, bracelet or ring using regular white 9% or apple cider vinegar, with the addition of soda or lemon. Please note that only yellow and red gold can be cleaned with vinegar; this method is unacceptable for white, matte or inlaid with stones.
You can use a toothbrush to clean gold.
In some cases, it is enough to simply soak the products in vinegar for 10-15 minutes, then rinse with water; in others, you will need to brush the surface with a toothbrush.
Soda
Baking soda will help clean gold from dirt, but it does not always cope with difficult stains. Most often, boiling with soda is used for cleaning:
- Place foil at the bottom of a small container of water and place gold on it.
- Heat water and add soda - 1 tbsp. water 1 tbsp. soda
- Boil for a few minutes.
- Clean with a brush.
- Rinse with plain water and dry.
Baking soda is not used to clean jewelry with inserts.
: it can cause tarnishing of stones, and the soda solution can also remain in hard-to-reach places of fastenings with a whitish coating.
Salt
Salt is typically used as an addition to vinegar or baking soda cleaning solutions. Due to the strong abrasive nature of salt, we do not recommend mechanical cleaning of soft gold items.
Lemon acid
To dissolve plaque, you can clean gold in citric acid:
- Dilute citric acid in boiling water;
- immerse the products in the solution for 5-6 minutes;
- rinse and dry jewelry.
Toothpaste
You can clean darkened gold at home even with the most ordinary toothpaste. Using a soft brush, evenly distribute the paste over the surface of the decoration and remove dirt with gentle movements.
You can clean gold with toothpaste
Important: the paste should only be white, without additives or whitening properties, preferably gel. Tooth powder cannot be used!
Paste GOI
GOI paste
This is a special composition for cleaning gold from impurities and giving it shine, developed by the State Optical Institute. There are 4 types of paste; you should choose a specific option based on the expected result:
- №1, №2
– polishing to a mirror effect; - №3
– cleaning of medium difficulty to an even matte shine; - №4
– rough cleaning with surface grinding and scratch removal.
Method of use: as with toothpaste. GOI paste is not used for white gold
.
Salt
Saline solution is the simplest, most affordable and fairly gentle means for cleaning gold jewelry. Pour a couple of tablespoons of fine salt into a glass and leave the gold in the concentrated solution overnight, and in the morning just rinse with water. The method is not suitable for soft stones that do not tolerate long soaking.
Photo: vk.com
Cleaning gold with stones: advice from a jeweler
There is a fundamental difference in cleaning a smooth ring or a complex piece of jewelry inlaid with stones. To effectively clean gold jewelry with stones at home, it is recommended to use the cleaning methods described above with ammonia alcohol, paste, and liquid soap. As a rule, using a soft brush to clean hard-to-reach areas is indispensable.
Cleaning gold with stones
When cleaning such jewelry, you should take care not only of the condition of the gold, but also of the jewelry inserts. Jewelers recommend using different products for different types of gemstones:
- a ring with topaz or any other gold jewelry with this stone will shine after soaking for 20 minutes in water with a couple of drops of dishwashing detergent diluted in it;
- acids should not be used to clean jewelry with chrysolite;
- earrings with stones such as emerald, ruby or sapphire can be easily cleaned in warm soapy water - hot water is contraindicated for these stones;
- Cleaning gold items with cubic zirconia is done using ammonia, toothpaste without abrasives or any washing powder.
Prevention measures
Caring for gold jewelry involves three components.
- Take breaks. It is especially important to remove jewelry before cleaning, as well as before using body cosmetics. Don't wear gold if you're going to the gym, pool, beach or sauna. Remove during manicure to prevent nail polish remover from getting on your jewelry.
- Use gloves. To protect your wedding band, get into the habit of using rubber gloves for various chores.
- Do prevention. At least once a month, carry out routine cleaning with soapy water or alcohol.
Video on the topic
Store your jewelry in a box lined with soft, velvety fabric. Cardboard is not suitable for these purposes. Protect jewelry from moisture. And be sure to make a note in your notebook about how to clean the gold so that options for solving the problem are always at your fingertips.
How to clean white gold
Not all classical methods are suitable for cleaning jewelry made of white gold, which is an alloy of precious metal with copper, palladium or nickel - in particular, any vinegar is contraindicated.
White gold cleaning
White gold can be cleaned with soapy water, ammonia, liquid detergent, paste or baking soda solution
White gold with inlay cannot be boiled
: High temperature will weaken and even deform the places where the stones are attached. For glued stones, cleaning with immersion in aqueous solutions is not used. White gold with diamonds can be cleaned without contact with the stones: simply wipe them with a soft cloth - this is often enough to restore the shine. If the shine has not returned, use the standard toothpaste cleaning described above, then wipe the product dry.
How to clean gold plate
Of course, you cannot use any aggressive agents or abrasive cleaning in this case - there is a risk of damaging the thin layer of gold plating. It is better to clean a gold-plated chain, bracelet or ring in the following way:
- Prepare a solution: 1 liter of warm water, 1 tsp. soap shavings, 5-6 drops of ammonia.
- Soak the jewelry for half an hour - they should be completely immersed in the solution.
- Rinse in running water, dry on a napkin or towel.
- Polish with a suede cloth.
Rules for cleaning gold jewelry
What products should you not use water to clean?
Contrary to popular belief, water can be used to clean any jewelry. The only point is to take drinking water from the store; you should not take water from the city water supply - it contains too many impurities.
When is it better to entrust cleaning to a professional?
First of all, if it is heavily soiled, you will not be able to clean such gold on your own. The second case is moderate contamination when it comes to a chain. The fact is that the chain has many corners (even if they are rounded), and when cleaning them at home, a residue will remain in them.
Cleaning medical gold
Medical gold is an alloy of brass, silver, copper, titanium and zinc, but there may be no gold in it at all: the alloy already has a noble “golden” luster. Products made from medical gold are durable, not subject to external mechanical influences, and due to the special technology of polishing and sputtering, they practically do not darken, do not lose shine, and do not change color.
- If it is necessary to clean such jewelry from contamination, the following methods are used:
- Rinse in a solution (2 drops of shampoo or liquid soap per 0.5 cup of water) and clean the product with a soft brush.
- To remove dust, wipe the product with a cotton swab soaked in beer; there is no need to rinse with water after this.
- Wipe the decoration with table vinegar, and then be sure to rinse in running water.
Why does plaque appear on gold items?
There are 4 reasons for gold contamination:
- There is too little gold in gold. As we said above, even 585 gold contains less than 60% of the noble metal. Samples in the 300-400 range are 30-40% gold respectively. The more impurities, the faster the metal oxidizes.
- The rhodium layer has worn off. Gold itself does not shine very well, so jewelers cover it with a thin layer of rhodium, a noble silver-white platinum group metal. Rhodium protects gold from external influences and gives it shine. The layer is erased - oxidation accelerates. In addition, in places where rhodium has been completely erased, oxidation penetrates deep into the metal, and such stains can no longer be removed.
- The product is constantly exposed to sweat and other skin secretions. The skin constantly produces sweat (which contains salt) and sebum (which contains acids). All this reacts with rhodium and gold, leading to both mechanical contamination and oxidation.
- The product is in contact with air. This factor cannot be ruled out at all. Oxygen, which is part of the air, is an aggressive element, and under its influence, metals oxidize, which is why characteristic stains appear.
There is nothing you can do about the first two reasons - even if you clean off the plaque, it will quickly return. But the problems caused by points 3 and 4 can be solved.
How to Polish Gold
In some cases, it is better to entrust the polishing of jewelry with complex designs to professionals, but you can handle simple jewelry yourself. To make a gold ring shine like new, use the following techniques:
- Soak the jewelry in hot water with shampoo or soap for 7-8 hours, and then polish with a soft toothbrush. The method is suitable for both shiny and matte gold.
- Soaking for 10 hours in an ammonia solution (25%), which can be purchased at a pharmacy, will help to add shine to gold.
- Polishing gold from scratches is done using a cleaning paste for gold items - factory-made or homemade from Vaseline, powdered white chalk, water and soap shavings. Buff with a soft toothbrush without applying pressure.
- Apply GOI paste to the felt, wipe the product with unidirectional movements without pressure: this will help restore shine and effectively polish scuffs and scratches.
Remember: do not use baking soda or tooth powder for polishing - the abrasive particles of these products can only worsen the situation.
The cost of home polishing of gold jewelry is several times lower than professional polishing. But when polishing yourself, it is important to take into account the characteristics of the metal: dullness, color and quality of gold, the presence of jewelry inserts, blackened or rhodium-plated coating.
Professional products
In addition to traditional methods, you can also use industrial cleaning products. Substances are available for sale in the form of pastes, liquids, and specially impregnated wipes. When choosing products, you must pay attention to what type of gold and type of products the product is intended for, and strictly follow the instructions for its use.
Solutions for chemical exposure
In addition to wipes and pastes, you can also choose effervescent tablets for cleaning. This product is used to prepare an all-purpose cleaning solution that gently and gently cleans jewelry and restores it to its original shine.
