Top 10 ways to polish gold ring at home from scratches: jeweler's tips on how to take care of your jewelry

Damage to the surface contributes to the loss of attractiveness of precious metal rings, including gold. Scratches, microscopic defects, creating a matte finish, can be removed with professional products. In special cases, specialists are called in for cleaning and polishing. But in most cases, small irregularities are smoothed out and eliminated. independently. It is only important to study the instructions on how to polish a gold ring at home. For this purpose, you can use improvised means: products, chemicals.

Why a gold ring loses its appearance. Why regular polishing is necessary: aesthetics and hygiene

If you constantly polish, it will eventually lead to the thinning of the treated area, its deformation (especially a great risk when you do polishing yourself). This means that it is important not only to find the right method The following are some examples of how to remove scratches, but also to eliminate the causes of scratches:

• mechanical damage due to shock;
• The natural change in shape at the slightest pressure is a manifestation of poor ring quality;
• improper use: jewelry is not removed before bathing, playing sports, cooking, etc., and micro-damage occurs intensely.

The need for polishing is due to factors:

• aesthetics: scratched ring looks sloppy, loses its appeal;
• hygiene: scratches create the right conditions for the reproduction of pathogens - dirt accumulates in such areas.

Polishing options: professional or self-polishing

Before making a choice waysIf you want to know how to remove scratches, you should consider the available options:

• Professional grinding: carried out in the workshop and in the departments at the salons of jewelry, for the restoration of products using special equipment and tools (pastes, solutions);
• Self-removal of scratches: it is inexpensive, but it is not always possible to get accurate information about the composition of the gold, which will certainly affect the result. In addition, there is no guarantee that the surface will be flat (depressions may form if the product is unevenly exposed).

Polishing a gold ring at home. Main steps

If gold ring or the ring needs to be polished, you should determine the "front" of the work. Stages:

• Preparatory work: mix the active ingredients, the resulting solution is used to soak gold rings, this allows you to partially remove dirt, remove the darkened areas;
• polishing - smoothing the surface of the gold;
• optional mechanical cleaning.

Pre-soaking in a cleansing solution. Popular Recipes

As a rule, polishing gold begins with the preparation of the material. To soak the ring before further polishing prepare a liquid product, you can use improvised ingredients:

• Soap solution: dissolve the detergent in water, then leave the ring in a container to soak, the duration of this procedure - 2 hours;
• soda solution: to further polish the decoration, leave it overnight in a container, closed with foil, pour the liquid (1 cup of warm water, 2 tablespoons of soda);
• Saline solution: 125 ml of water, 3 tbsp. of fine salt (sea salt and coarse salt are strong abrasives), so that the ring shiningIt is left overnight in this liquid, after which it is washed and the moisture is removed;
• sugar solution: scratched rings are first left overnight in a sweetened solution (take 2 tablespoons of sugar, 250 ml of water), then rinse under the tap, proceed to the next stage of polishing;
• solution with vinegar or lemon juice: any acid is used, but this method can be used at home for cleaning products without stones, to soften the effect of the agent will help white vinegar (125 ml), it is mixed with baking soda (2 tbsp), in a working solution soaked ring, but wash it will need to be after 3 hours;
• Onion juice solution: prepare a solution based on the juice of one onion and two tablespoons of water and soak jewelry in it (chainsrings, etc.) for 3 hours;
• "Coca-Cola: the drink is taken undiluted, left in a container gold articles for two to three hours;
• hyposulfite solution: the substance removes dirt in 15 minutes, just mix 1 tbsp. of the product and 250 ml of water;
• peroxide mixture, ammoniaThis solution is suitable for cleaning a ring without stones, as it works aggressively, such a feature does not allow you to leave the jewelry for a long time in the medium, it is enough to soak for 5 minutes.

Important: Acid, ammonia, and peroxide cleaning are not an acceptable method for a ring with a stone, as these substances have a negative impact on the structure of the natural stone and cause clouding of the piece.

Gentle ring polishing

Do not grind intensely jewels with stones. If the products contain natural inserts, polishing can lead to their deformation. This can cause the fasteners to loosen. This can cause loss of the stone over time.

Important: Polishing is done only with a soft cloth and extremely gently. Such recommendations are given when it is planned to polish items inlaid with stones or with a minimal amount of admixtures in their composition (for jewelry of high purity).

Toothpaste, talcum powder

It is necessary to prepare a lint-free rag, the material must be soft, strong, smooth. Apply a small amount of toothpaste or talcum powder to the rag and work on the ring. The movements should be soft, act without pressure. Talc can be mixed with a small amount of ammonia. The resulting paste is used for grinding gold, but for stones, it is better to take toothpaste without abrasives and additives and dyes.

Hygienic lipstick, powder

Apply a small amount to a microfiber cloth or other lint-free material. Polishing in this way will bring back the shine, but will not remove scratches. It is used to repair micro-damage.

Professional GOI paste, polishing cloths

GOI paste is an all-purpose product that is best used for grinding the metal part of jewelry. There are varieties: No. 1-4. The choice of variant is made taking into account the complexity of the damage. At the initial stage, tool #4 is used, and then the granularity is gradually reduced - the product is affected by paste #3, and then #1,2.

Special polishing cloths are also used. Such products are most often double-sided and are used for cleaning and polishing. It is recommended to use such wipes when the dry polishing method is chosen. You can buy them, do the polishing yourself.

Video: polishing gold jewelry (ring) by folk methods and at the jeweler

Tips on how to keep the shine of the product for a long time

To prevent scratches on a gold ring from appearing again, it is advisable to adhere to the rules for handling jewelry:

• The rings should be removed before washing dishes or doing other household chores;
• Before taking a bath and for the duration of sports, jewelry should be removed;
• Do not use cosmetics without removing the rings.

Subject: Questions and answers

How to polish my grandmother's old ring?

After professional polishing, I saw that the white ring had yellowed in places. What caused it?

How much does it cost to polish a master?

How to polish a gold ring from scratches at home with improvised means?

Pros and cons of professional polishing: jeweler, electrochemical and ultrasonic cleaning

The positives of professional cleaning:

• high efficiency, because special equipment and professional line means are used;
• restoration of various items, including demanding to care: diamonds, pearls, agate, etc.
• The composition of gold is taken into account when working with it, which allows you to preserve the properties of the polished metal, to prevent the development of negative processes;
• the possibility of restoring the product in a short period of time.

But jeweler can remove the coating, which will increase the cost of the work - it will need to be reapplied. Other disadvantages:

• Initially the price is quite high;
• additional costs (it is possible to turn to an engraver when a previously made inscription is damaged).

If you need to find a way to remove scratches from a gold ring, you can immediately find the nearest repair shop. In this case, technology is used:

• electrochemical: the procedure is an anodic etching, you need special equipment to perform it;
• Ultrasound: under the influence of ultrasound remove dirt particles, but this method has the disadvantage of weakening the fasteners of the stone.

Before deciding how to polish gold, you need to clarify the cost of the chosen procedure. In addition, compare the effectiveness of each technology, you can find reviews that will allow you to assess the condition of the jewelry before and after polishing. It will be correct to compare how much such a service costs at different specialists, and to clarify the prices by region:

Reviews

I have a jeweler acquaintance, always asking for advice. From the last: told me that soap is not such a safe way, because it leaves an invisible film on the product, it must be carefully washed. Now I try to use the mildest means of action (for example, toothpaste, without additives).

I clean gold with my lipstick. If I find that the ring has turned pale on the road, I immediately take out a napkin. I apply my lipstick and rub the jewelry with it. I do it regularly, so I don't have to work too hard to get the ring back to its original glory.

I didn't like the effect after applying the salt. The ring felt as if it had become cloudy. But I found my mistake - I didn't leave it in the salt solution, but rubbed it, so I must have scratched it. I had to take it to a polishing shop.

Jeweler's tip

Molokanov N.M.

Jeweler, experience in jewelry manufacturing 26 years.

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Today there are situations where under the guise of white gold they sell yellow gold, but with rhodium plating. After polishing, such items change color. If the ring is made of an alloy containing platinum and sufficient additives, it will remain white even after polishing. Rhodium-plating is required on both white gold and yellow gold items once polished.