On Sun, 17 Oct 2010 19:07:40 -0700, in rec.crafts.jewelry "Nelly"
wrote:


Last time I bought a pre-owned ring from non-jeweler I ran it through the
dishwasher. For that matter, that's how I regularly clean one ring which has
no good access to the pavilion facets, and doesn't respond well to my
ultrasonic cleaner. Strategically clamped & placed over jet holes (making
sure shank clears the washer arm), voila. Sparkly clean every time. And safe
to eat off too.

I do this probably at least once a week to this ring. The setting is secure,
the stones (diamond in this case) are nothing someone would ever balk at
putting in any other type of cleaner. Opinions?

First thought.

Geez, I wish my new dishwasher worked that well. Just bought a portable GE
dishwasher from Home Depot. It's a piece of junk. They sent a repair guy to
take a look, which he did, and pronounced it working fine (just listened to it
run, opened the door to see the wash arms moving, and that was enough for
him...) I'm trying to get Home Depot to take it back, but you wouldn't believe
the hassles. So much for their happy customer claims in their so called return
policy.. The darn thing won't even get a load of dishes clean when I pretty
much prewash them... And I'm certain it wouldn't get even a bit of lotion off
a ring's shank. So I'm jealous...

But anyway. That's off topic, but I couldn't resist. And I'm the moderator,
so...

But for your situation, the main things that occur to me are that some
dishwashing detergents contain what amounts to a bit of bleach (sodium
hypochlorite) or similar chlorine compounds. If your's does, this is very bad
for gold alloys, especially white gold ones. It can cause stress cracking that
can lead to prongs breaking off and stones being lost. This same chemistry is
why you're not supposed to put sterling silver in the dishwasher. The
detergents can be too harsh. Not all of them, but some, and it's hard to know
whether your's does or not.

Second, while you say the settings are secure, it's a risk. If a stone falls
out in your ultrasonic cleaner, it stays in the tank and you can find it. If it
falls out in your dishwasher, I suspect it would remain in the innards of the
machine's filter, never likely to be seen again without major disassembly of the
machine. Are you proficient enough as a goldsmith or jeweler to be certain the
stones are safe? Even if prongs look OK, are you sure? It can be deceptive
sometimes.

And a comment, do you actually have an ultrasonic cleaner, or is it just one of
the "sonic" ones that merely vibrate the solution with audible frequencies
(usually something near the 60 hz of line current. There's a big difference,
both in cleaning efficiency and in cost. Most ultrasonic cleaners cost over a
hundred dollars to start, and good ones are several hundred. The reason I say
this is that it would be surprising if an actual ultrasonic cleaner had trouble
cleaning your ring while the dishwasher managed it. If that's the case, then
either something is wrong with your ultrasonic, or you're not using a proper
cleaning solution for the job. The water in an ultrasonic cleaner should be
(just like your dishwasher) hot in order to do the job well. Better ultrasonics
have a heater for just this reason. If yours does not, heat the solution first
(microwave it, if you like). The cleaning solution needs to be a decently
strong detergent, or a cleaning solution specifically made to clean jewelry in
an ultrasonic. You can do the same for less money with decent strong kitchen
liquid detergents such as Mr. Clean or Top Job, to which, if they don't already
have it, you add a bit of ammonia. Do that, and your ultrasonic should be able
to do anything your dishwasher does, or better. Also, give the ultrasonic
enough time to work. less expensive ones can take ten or fifteen minutes to do
a good job. The simple "sonic" cleaners that are not ultrasonic types will
need longer. Even they are not so bad, if the right cleaning agents are used,
and the water is hot, and you give it time.

Hope that helps.

Peter Rowe
moderator