Wife wants an ultrasonic cleaner for jewelry. Mainly she wants to keep her engagement ring clean and sparkly. She wears it 100% of the time and it does get a bit dirty and soapy.

Reading the reviews there are always those that say it doesn't do anything so I'm wondering if they are worth getting. The jeweler that I bought the ring from cleans it for us but he's not always in when we can get there. He generally steams it and I don't think he uses an ultrasonic cleaner (not sure).

What do you use for cleaning jewelry?

This is the one I was looking at: https://www.magnasonic.com/dig...onic-jewelry-cleaner

I've had a magnasonic since 2015, but not as fancy. I use it on my eyeglasses (wrap in soft cloth first) and my titanium watch band. Mine just runs 3 minutes every time I hit the button so items that take longer require me to press button every few minutes (i.e. PITA).

Got my Dad one for his eyeglasses and SS watch band. He wore his SS watch while rebuilding his deck in summer (i.e. sweated his butt off), and the black gunk that came out of the band was pretty gross.

They are very effective at cleaning jewelry - a lot of gunk gets trapped in mountings and the ultrasonic is great at dislodging it. No need to get anything fancy. I'm not familiar with the one you chose, but there is no need to look for anything more expensive. A simple basic home unit is all you need.

I'm sure the negative reviews are due to misuse 90% of the time. Thank you for the advice. I think I'll order it today.

We have one that works great. Just pay attention to the cautions on cleaner fluids on which items not to use it with. Emeralds (I think?) are one of those that is softer and not a good match for some fluids.

Don't put opals in an ultrasonic cleaner.

No emeralds, opals, pearls, coral. Whatever you plan to put in, do a little online search first.

Go in any higher end jewelry store and you'll find they have an ultrasonic cleaner there to clean jewelry for customers.

I haven't looked lately, but they used to use a lot of L&R Ultrasonic cleaners.

That's what I have here in Shady acres, but not for jewelry, it's for gun parts.

If you use one for gun parts, be aware that they will strip all grease and oils from the parts so be sure to lube them thoroughly afterward.

Why don't you ask our resident jeweler, Dave Truong?

quote:

Originally posted by iron chef:
Why don't you ask our resident jeweler, Dave Truong?

Good idea, I’d like to know as well. We’ve tried the ultrasonic we have, but just doesn’t seem to do the job for any length of time. Never comes out as sparkly as having them done by the jewelry store. So what is the best way to clean jewelry stones, Dave?
TKS!

quote:

Originally posted by stkfox:

Good idea, I’d like to know as well. We’ve tried the ultrasonic we have, but just doesn’t seem to do the job for any length of time. Never comes out as sparkly as having them done by the jewelry store. So what is the best way to clean jewelry stones, Dave?
TKS!

Probably because you used ultrasonic cleaners that didn't really work as ultrasonic cleaners or because you didn't use the right cleaning fluid.

Here's the good stuff:

https://www.lrultrasonics.com/...ries/jewelry-watches

L&R is a name synonymous with cleaning since 1930. Watchmakers and jewelers depend on L&R for their ultrasonic cleaning systems and specially formulated cleaning solutions. Manufacturers and jewelers use ultrasonic cleaning to make jewelry, precious stones and metals sparkle and shine. By making ultrasonic cleaning a routine procedure, you’ll ensure that your products always make a stellar impression. L&R introduced professional watch cleaning products and for decades watch makers have trusted L&R products to effectively and safely clean delicate watch parts and movements around the world.

The Magnasonic came in today. It doesn't really seem to do much. Tried it with and without the plastic basket. It works better without it. It says either plain water or water with a little dish soap. Do you use anything else as a cleaning agent?

A little simple green and Dawn dish soap in the water. I rinse in a cup of clean water then blast with canned air.

quote:

Originally posted by Oz_Shadow:
A little simple green and Dawn dish soap in the water. I rinse in a cup of clean water then blast with canned air.

Ah, I forgot about simple green. Thanks.

I too have had a Magnasonic for years. In addition to handling eyeglasses and other "normal" items, it has proved invaluable on a number of items such as separating and removing the glue from a doublet lens allowing me to fully restore it as the old glue had clouded and bubbled rendering the lens unusable.

I put some very old and dirty guitar parts in the Magnasonic this evening with some Awesome cleaner and topped it off with water. The grime really bubbled out of the parts. Yeah, I think I'll keep it.

I cleaned brass in one designed for eye glasses for many years. Time consuming and a bit of a pain, but it worked.