Ring cleaning?!

[Dia123]

So I recently bought a round diamond set in a micro pave platinum band. Its stunning.

What advice do people have for keeping it clean to maximise its brilliance and keep the fireworks popping!

How do people clean?
How frequently?
Ultra sonic? - what chemicals to add in the water?
By hand? - what method and chemicals/product?

Thanks for any help guys

 

[missy]

I just use a toothbrush and dish soap and warm water and a microfiber to dry or a special tissue paper I cannot remember the name of right now. But most often I just use the above and it works wonderfully.

 

[PreRaphaelite]

For pavé, you might try using a lipstick brush - the pointed tip and small bristles can help work the detergent into the crevices as well as the azures inside the band.

ps - Please share pics of your lovely ring if you like!

 

[elizat]

I would not use ultrasonic as the primary method for pave. You'll eventually loosen it and have loose stones. Hot water and a baby tooth brush with Dawn or a foam like Lavish works.

I am probably in the minority but I don't see a problem with ultrasonic every so often with pave. If you are going to loose a stone and it is loose enough to dislodge, I'd rather it be contained.

 

[Sunstorm]

Daily! Ultrasonic is perfectly fine. Contrary to popular belief, there is no risk to losing pave stones. Only if the setting is not done well or is compromised, in which case you would want it to be lost in the ultrasonic rather than anywhere else.

Just use dawn or similar with water. Rinse well, dry with lint free paper towels. I do this every day. Perhaps two melee stones came lose in the last ten years.

It is also a way to test a setting job. Always use a basket though never have your pieces bang against the metal or each other.

If you are travelling you can use a soft electric toothbrush. If a piece has caked on grime, use the toothbrush to loosen it, then follow up with the ultrasonic.

Good luck! Remember regular cleaning is key!

 

[PintoBean]

...I am probably in the minority but I don't see a problem with ultrasonic every so often with pave. If you are going to loose a stone and it is loose enough to dislodge, I'd rather it be contained.

Totally agree with this. If you're gonna lose a stone, let it fall out in the ultrasonic, not down the sink drain. I also think the personal/ non commercial ones we buy from amazon, like the magnasonic, aren't THAT powerful.

I use a drop of dish soap and cold water. I take my jewelry off as soon as I come home and drop it into the ultrasonic. I dont use other chemicals bc I also wash my invisalign retainers in the same ultrasonic.

 

[KKJohnson]

I think yall have convinced me that I need to be cleaning my ring daily lol

 

[KristyDarling]

I clean all my rings - some have pave, others do not - about 3-4 times a week in the ultrasonic. I use a small amount of Mr. Clean with hot tap water in the machine. Then I brush gently with a baby toothbrush and rinse in the sink (with drain stopped, of course!). I dry them off with Kimwipes, which are low-lint.

 

[rainydaze]

I have tried so many things: commercial GemOro Ultrasonic, Jewel Jet, Sparkle cleaner, Mr. Clean, Dawn original, windex...

By far the best cleaning solution I have used is Dawn Foaming. I use the inexpensive Magnasonic daily. I drop my rings in, make sure they are not touch each other, and turn it on while showering. Then I finish by scrubbing a few seconds with a jewelry brush, rinsing well, and patting dry with a lint-free cloth.

As you see, there are two sides to using an ultrasonic with pave. If you decide you don't want to use one, I would recommend a dish with distilled water and a few drops of Dawn Foaming. Soak, scrub, rinse well, and dry with a lint free cloth.

 

[headlight]

I have always put pave’ in my ultrasonic. When you get your ring checked, they should be checking the mounting as well. If the ring was made well, the melee should be fine. If you have a problem with stones coming out, then I would go back to the jeweler.

 

[whitewave]

So I recently bought a round diamond set in a micro pave platinum band. Its stunning.

What advice do people have for keeping it clean to maximise its brilliance and keep the fireworks popping!

How do people clean?
How frequently?
Ultra sonic? - what chemicals to add in the water?
By hand? - what method and chemicals/product?

Thanks for any help guys

You have to be super careful with pave and the ultrasonic. My designer is CVB ID and Caysie said she was confident I could use mine several times a day.

I have knocked out 2 pave stones from lesser quality settings. It’s a real risk.

As a second choice from the ultrasonic, I recommend a product called Lavish; it is nearly as good. I would use lavish, especially on Pavillion and scrub and then soak overnight in hot distilled water (minerals out of the water) and Dawn dishwashing liquid, and then scrub again.

 

[whitewave]

I would not use ultrasonic as the primary method for pave. You'll eventually loosen it and have loose stones. Hot water and a baby tooth brush with Dawn or a foam like Lavish works.

I am probably in the minority but I don't see a problem with ultrasonic every so often with pave. If you are going to loose a stone and it is loose enough to dislodge, I'd rather it be contained.

One pave I accidently threw out with the water— that was my first incident. Then I learned to check the setting before throwing out the water, and so found the second pave diamond in the US.

 

[cflutist]

Canned air (used by photographers to dust off lenses) is also good to dry off your diamonds after cleaning. One can buy cases of it at Costco. Hubby uses it to dust off teddy bears for his eBay store (don't ask, lol).

 

[iluvshinythings]

For daily cleaning I add some warm water and Dawn dish soap to a small bowl and soak my jewelry from 10 mins to an hour. Then rinse with distilled water and dry with a can of air.

A couple of times a week or if something gets really dirty, I use the ultrasonic with some Mr. Clean or commercial jewelry cleaner and gently scrub with a baby toothbrush.

For special occasions, I use the US, rinse with distilled water and then hit it with the steamer. I'd use the steamer every day if I had time. (I bought mine from amazon so I doubt it's professional quality but it gets the job done)

I have lost some pave in the US cleaner from one ring. I have others with pave that go in the US occasionally and I've never lost any so I believe it depends on the quality of the setting.

 

[Ally T]

I read somewhere recently about soaking diamond jewellery in rubbing alcohol to clean, so I bought a small bottle to try it. Blimey! My diamonds have never looked better! My pear has a tendancy to trap oil & dirt in the underside of the setting, making it sometimes look milky or waxy. But not any more! It's glorious!

 

[distracts]

I would not use ultrasonic as the primary method for pave. You'll eventually loosen it and have loose stones. Hot water and a baby tooth brush with Dawn or a foam like Lavish works.

I am probably in the minority but I don't see a problem with ultrasonic every so often with pave. If you are going to loose a stone and it is loose enough to dislodge, I'd rather it be contained.

I ultrasonic my pave rings once or twice a year after letting them soak for a while to clean out anything brushing or steaming can't get. I find with my wear patterns that's enough to keep them clean to my satisfaction without causing me to worry about loosening stones. I haven't ever had a melee stone come out - and I'm very glad to hear others clean their pave rings much more frequently without issues.

I scrub BEFORE I put things in the ultrasonic - with my rings they get cleaned often enough that it doesn't seem to make a difference, but I clean my SIL's ring maybe quarterly (she doesn't clean it at home but asks me when she's over and remembers) and if I don't scrub first there is still dirt on it even after two cycles in the ultrasonic, but if I scrub it first it comes out sparkling. I do the same to her pave band - I can't get it clean without the ultrasonic so it gets ultrasoniced way more frequently than my rings.

I blot dry with a cloth and then hit it with the canned air.

 

[MamaBee]

@missy I found I had 91% rubbing alcohol in Maryland. I didn’t notice any difference then using the 70%..
I think the canned air is a great idea but My hands are always in water...so probably not worth it for me...

 

[missy]

@missy I found I had 91% rubbing alcohol in Maryland. I didn’t notice any difference then using the 70%..
I think the canned air is a great idea but My hands are always in water...so probably not worth it for me...

I don't like canned air for cleaning/drying rings. Too powerful. IMO.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

where we live we have really hard water that leaves calcium deposits (my mum called that scale )- inside the electrical jug and i have to really scrub the loo really hard ....

so im thinking im doing it wrong to use tap water to clean my rings with a sort tooth brush and dish washing liquid ?
would isopropyl alcohol be ok ?

 

[MamaBee]

I don't like canned air for cleaning/drying rings. Too powerful. IMO.

I remember worrying about you using it on Bubbalah and imagined her shooting across the room! I would hold on to the shank...It’s just not worth it to me...because like I said...I always have my hands in water...hence my crispy dry hands!

 

[MamaBee]

where we live we have really hard water that leaves calcium deposits (my mum called that scale )- inside the electrical jug and i have to really scrub the loo really hard ....

so im thinking im doing it wrong to use tap water to clean my rings with a sort tooth brush and dish washing liquid ?
would isopropyl alcohol be ok ?

I clean all my rings in rubbing alcohol. They should start off clean so you’re just maintaining the clean..I just soak or run the Magnasonic...or just dip it in for a quick shine. I dry the top with a paper towel. As long as your gems aren’t porous like emeralds or opals they will be fine. I mainly use it for gold or platinum with diamonds. I would check sapphires to make sure that’s okay.

 

[Demon]

where we live we have really hard water that leaves calcium deposits (my mum called that scale )- inside the electrical jug and i have to really scrub the loo really hard ....

so im thinking im doing it wrong to use tap water to clean my rings with a sort tooth brush and dish washing liquid ?
would isopropyl alcohol be ok ?

I have hard water. When not using the ultrasonic, I scrub the rings in tap water and rinse off in distilled.

 

[BMI]

@missy I found I had 91% rubbing alcohol in Maryland. I didn’t notice any difference then using the 70%..
I think the canned air is a great idea but My hands are always in water...so probably not worth it for me...

I have been cleaning my rings with 70% rubbing alcohol for years. I tried the 91% a while back after reading a post by one of the science smart people on here that the rubbing portion of the 70% was likely leaving a film. I also didn't notice any difference between the two but neither of my bottles list any other ingredient besides water.

where we live we have really hard water that leaves calcium deposits (my mum called that scale )

Adding a few drops of white vinegar to the alcohol works very well for me to keep the hard water stains away. Though if you have a heavy build up you might try cleaning your diamond first with silver polish to remove it. (I either rub it with a soft damp cloth or my finger.)

And unrelated to jewelry, I also clean just about every hard surface in my entire house that is not wood with diluted rubbing alcohol. I primarily use a 7 parts water to 1 part 70% rubbing alcohol ratio in spray bottles. I use reverse osmosis water but if I didn't have an RO system I would buy distilled water for diluting the alcohol. In over 40 years of housecleaning I have used a lot of different products and I wish I had figured out much much sooner how well the diluted alcohol works and without the harsh chemical smells or need for repeated rinsing.

 

[MamaBee]

I have been cleaning my rings with 70% rubbing alcohol for years. I tried the 91% a while back after reading a post by one of the science smart people on here that the rubbing portion of the 70% was likely leaving a film. I also didn't notice any difference between the two but neither of my bottles list any other ingredient besides water.



Adding a few drops of white vinegar to the alcohol works very well for me to keep the hard water stains away. Though if you have a heavy build up you might try cleaning your diamond first with silver polish to remove it. (I either rub it with a soft damp cloth or my finger.)

And unrelated to jewelry, I also clean just about every hard surface in my entire house that is not wood with diluted rubbing alcohol. I primarily use a 7 parts water to 1 part 70% rubbing alcohol ratio in spray bottles. I use reverse osmosis water but if I didn't have an RO system I would buy distilled water for diluting the alcohol. In over 40 years of housecleaning I have used a lot of different products and I wish I had figured out much much sooner how well the diluted alcohol works and without the harsh chemical smells or need for repeated rinsing.

@BMI I did the same thing to clean the counters..but added a dash of Fabuloso with water. My platelets started dropping over the course of two to three years...I read that alcohol can lower platelets...and wondered if my use of rubbing alcohol to clean daily was being absorbed and were killing my platelets. I stopped cleaning with it for three weeks...When I went in for my blood test the results were amazing. They went up into the normal range for the first time in years...where they were below normal and dropping. I finally told my doctor about the rubbing alcohol. She agreed it could be that and to stop cleaning with it. I do clean my bling with it..but I take out my jewelry with the basket and dry it with a paper towel...so it’s not as much as cleaning...sorry to be long winded but I know some people have a real problem so thought I would mention it!

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

I have been cleaning my rings with 70% rubbing alcohol for years. I tried the 91% a while back after reading a post by one of the science smart people on here that the rubbing portion of the 70% was likely leaving a film. I also didn't notice any difference between the two but neither of my bottles list any other ingredient besides water.



Adding a few drops of white vinegar to the alcohol works very well for me to keep the hard water stains away. Though if you have a heavy build up you might try cleaning your diamond first with silver polish to remove it. (I either rub it with a soft damp cloth or my finger.)

And unrelated to jewelry, I also clean just about every hard surface in my entire house that is not wood with diluted rubbing alcohol. I primarily use a 7 parts water to 1 part 70% rubbing alcohol ratio in spray bottles. I use reverse osmosis water but if I didn't have an RO system I would buy distilled water for diluting the alcohol. In over 40 years of housecleaning I have used a lot of different products and I wish I had figured out much much sooner how well the diluted alcohol works and without the harsh chemical smells or need for repeated rinsing.

thanks for the info
i always welcome any cleaning tips
im a dab hand with white viniger
as my asthma plays up using things with alot of bleech in

but i have some questions
see we had nice water where we lived before, a pleasure to drink from the tap, after growing up with just about undrinkable hard water with a lot of added chemicals- my parents had a water filter plumbed in under the kitchen sink
but i don't know what reverse osmosis water is ?
and what exactly is rubbing alcohol ?

(i do know distilled water though)

 

[MamaBee]

@Daisys and Diamonds Reverse osmosis is a treatment that filters the chemicals out of the water so it’s purer..
Rubbing Alcohol is generally used for sanitizing the skin before getting an immunization...but is great for cleaning anything because it kills germs...When I was a young mother the pediatrician told me to use rubbing alcohol to bring down my son’s fever because it has a cooling effect. That’s a big no no now...

 

[BMI]

@Mamabean Wow, thanks so much for letting me know about the rubbing alcohol possibly lowering platelets! Guess I know what I'll be google researching tonight.

 

[MamaBee]

@Mamabean Wow, thanks so much for letting me know about the rubbing alcohol possibly lowering platelets! Guess I know what I'll be google researching tonight.

@BMI If you don’t have low platelets to worry about then it’s fine to use. It’s only because mine dipped below normal...but I hover near the low end of normal anyway.

 

[BMI]

@Daisys and Diamonds As Mamabean stated above reverse osmosis is a drinking water purification system which we had installed under our kitchen sink. It is not as pure as distilled water but as far as I know it is the next best option and the minerals that cause hard water spots are definitely filtered out. Years ago I used a distiller but the steam was ruining my kitchen cabinets.

@Mamabean Ok, thanks! I never get my blood checked so I'll have to research if there are any symptoms associated with low blood platelets. I started using it in the kitchen a couple of years ago when my husband was very sick and had a feeding tube for several months. I was already using it for the laminate floors, mirrors and glass tables. When you were using it regularly what dilution were you using?

(Sorry everyone for the threadjack!)

 

[MamaBee]

@Daisys and Diamonds As Mamabean stated above reverse osmosis is a drinking water purification system which we had installed under our kitchen sink. It is not as pure as distilled water but as far as I know it is the next best option and the minerals that cause hard water spots are definitely filtered out. Years ago I used a distiller but the steam was ruining my kitchen cabinets.

@Mamabean Ok, thanks! I never get my blood checked so I'll have to research if there are any symptoms associated with low blood platelets. I started using it in the kitchen a couple of years ago when my husband was very sick and had a feeding tube for several months. I was already using it for the laminate floors, mirrors and glass tables. When you were using it regularly what dilution were you using?

(Sorry everyone for the threadjack!)

@BMI I made it in a little spray bottle..1/4 filled alcohol..fill the rest with water but leaving an inch off the top and filling that with Fabuloso..the lavender one. It smelled so nice and I would wipe down my marble counters, sinks, faucets, etc......I really miss it..and may get some rubber gloves so I can use it again...