How to clean a cubic zirconia ring?

Cubic zirconia is a synthetic semi-precious mineral that imitates diamonds. Despite the fact that the stone is not natural and grown in a laboratory, it is very popular among women. And this is not surprising, because its brilliance and depth are amazing. Cubic zirconias are combined with gold and silver; the metal emphasizes the shine of “artificial diamonds.” But over time, the jewelry becomes dull, the stones lose their transparency and shine. To restore their attractiveness, you need to carry out high-quality cleaning. There are 2 options – take the jewelry to a workshop or clean it at home.

Gold cleaning

• To remove minimal contamination, use a soap solution. To do this, warm water is mixed with soap shavings or shampoo. The decoration is placed in the liquid for 2 hours. Then the dirt should be cleaned with a soft bristle brush and polished with velvet.
• To remove stubborn stains, ammonia is used. A clean rag is dipped in ammonia and the metal is wiped, and then the product is rinsed with soapy water and polished.
• Mix crushed chalk, Vaseline, soap shavings in a 1:1 ratio to obtain a homogeneous mass. Apply the product to dirty areas with a napkin and wipe. Rinse the product with water and dry.
• Add 100 tbsp to 2 ml of boiled cooled water. spoons of salt, stir. Immerse gold items in a salt bath for 12 hours, then rinse under the tap and wipe.
• Mix 25 g of white clothes powder and 200 ml of water. Place the jewelry in the liquid, after 60 minutes, rinse and wipe with a flannel napkin.
• To clean white gold, use a solution consisting of ammonia and water (1:1 ratio). It is recommended to add 2-3 drops of shampoo to the liquid. The jewelry is dipped into the liquid, after half an hour, rinsed with water, and wiped.

To ensure that gold does not lose its shine for as long as possible, it is important to properly care for it. To do this, do not forget to take off your bracelet, ring or other item while cleaning or cooking. Protect your jewelry from chemicals that discolor the metal.

To store gold jewelry, prepare a separate box; separate each piece of jewelry with soft napkins to prevent scratches from appearing on their surface. When cleaning, it is strictly forbidden to use hard brushes and aggressive chemicals.

Methods for cleaning silver items

Silver items tarnish from time to time and become covered with dark spots. To clean silver, use the following methods:

• Place the decorations in a bowl with a foil-lined bottom. Sprinkle the rings with soda until it covers them. Then cover them with a second piece of foil, fill them with hot water, and rinse after 10 minutes.
• Cover the bottom of the bowl with a sheet of foil, place silver on it, cover the decorations with baking soda, salt, and add 5 drops of dishwashing liquid. Then pour boiling water into a bowl, and after 15 minutes, rinse and dry the products.
• A regular eraser removes dirt and blackness from the surface of silver. This method is only suitable for smooth products without indentations.
• Mix crushed chalk with ammonia until a creamy consistency is formed. Apply the mixture to a soft-bristled brush, wipe off the dirt, and rinse the jewelry.
• Chop the potatoes, add 100 ml of water and put silver in there. After 5 minutes, the jewelry is taken out and polished with velvet.
• Mix toothpaste with baking soda and ammonia in equal quantities. Apply the mixture to the jewelry, rub, and then rinse thoroughly. This is an aggressive method that allows you to remove stubborn stains.

If you are going to clean blackened silver, be careful not to scratch its surface. It is recommended to rinse silver with a matte surface with soapy water; hard brushes and abrasives are prohibited.

Cleaning silver and gold jewelry with cubic zirconia

To keep the stones shiny, the products need to be cleaned once a month.

Cubic zirconia is a durable and hard stone that can be cleaned in any way you like:

• Special products for jewelry in the form of liquid or paste. Caring for cubic zirconia involves using soft brushes, which can be purchased at a jewelry store.
• Toothpaste. The product is treated with the product, cleaned with a brush, then rinsed and wiped until it shines.
• Ammonia. Ammonia is diluted with water in a ratio of 1:6. Decoration with cubic zirconia is placed there for 3 hours if cloudy or for 12 if there is intense dirt. Then the product is rinsed and dried with a cloth.
• Soap solution. You can clean silver with cubic zirconia using a light soap solution. If necessary, wipe the product with a brush and then polish it with velvet.

Cubic zirconia is a picky stone with amazing properties: high strength, density, resistance to chemical compounds. In terms of aesthetic parameters, “artificial diamonds” are not inferior to real ones.

Gold and silver jewelry with cubic zirconia look amazing and are durable. The main thing is to periodically clean your jewelry and remove it before doing housework.

Cubic zirconia is one of the youngest artificial crystals. It was raised in 1968 and today it is a favorite of jewelers and anyone who loves the shimmering sparkle of jewelry. Diamond shine, ideal purity and transparency, excellent physical properties, affordable price – these factors conquered everyone.

But any stones (even synthetic ones) lose their beauty as a result of active wear: they become cloudy and dull. What to do if the cubic zirconia has darkened and lost its shine, the editors of Ukrzoloto looked into it.

What is cubic zirconia or cubic zirconia?

Cubic zirconia is used to decorate all possible jewelry, and the rich range of colors (more than 20 shades in total from transparent to black) opens up opportunities for jewelers to create real masterpieces. In different countries fake diamond known by the following names:

• diamondsky;
• Shelby;
• jevalit;
• Diamonesque;
• artificial diamond.

Our most popular name is cubic zirconium CZ (Cubic Zirconia) or cubic zirconium (confusion often arises, because it looks like zirconium (Zr) – a silver-colored metal that is used in the process of creating cubic zirconia).

The advantage of cubic zirconia is that it is not a natural stone, but a creation of science. Therefore, the stone does not react as sharply to the influence of the external environment as natural minerals and rocks. In terms of care, cubic zirconium is not as demanding as natural finds. It is not afraid of ultrasound, steam or alcohol cleaning. It is enough to follow the general rules and handle jewelry with care.

Also carefully study the features of caring for the precious metal of the product. Consider the presence of a special protective or decorative coating such as blackening, enamel, rhodium, or gilding. This affects the care of cubic zirconia jewelry.

Why does cubic zirconia become cloudy?

Everyone has favorite jewelry that becomes irreplaceable. But sweat, grease, cosmetics, perfumes, dust, sea water, chlorinated and hard tap water (which contains bleach), essential oils, improper storage, ultraviolet radiation, sudden temperature changes leave their mark on the appearance of the crystals, making them dull and provoke the appearance of microcracks.

They can crumble, crack, become cloudy and change color, especially if operating conditions are not followed. Even repairing jewelry without observing safety precautions, provided the quality of the stones is low, can damage them: after heating and interaction with fluxes (reagents), black cubic zirconias become colorless, blue cubic zirconias become white, red, pink and yellow ones fade, and white cubic zirconias become cloudy.

How to clean cubic zirconia

To maintain beauty and shine, stones should be cleaned every month:

• Mix warm water with liquid soap or shampoo in a 2:1 ratio (it is advisable that the detergent contains glycerin); if the contamination is complex, add a couple of drops of ammonia.
• Soak the jewelry for 30 minutes and clean it with a soft-bristled toothbrush.
• Rinse the jewelry under running water to completely remove the soap.
• Wipe the accessory with a dry soft cloth.

Avoid cleaning recipes with toothpaste, citric acid, soda, salt and solvents, since contact with concentrated acids, alkalis and high temperatures spoils the inserts, and sometimes the metal itself, even despite its noble origin. Do not use powders or abrasives to clean cubic zirconia to avoid damaging the stone.

Caring for jewelry with cubic zirconia is not difficult: if you clean it regularly, store it properly, and avoid contact with aggressive external factors, you will only get the shine and sparkle of your jewelry.