How To Clean Your Engagement Ring at Home
These care tips will make your engagement ring look as sparkly as the day you got it.
Tip #1: Do not attempt to use an ultrasonic cleaner on your jewelry. Many stones and materials are too soft for the ultrasonic, or will be damaged by being left in there for too long, so it’s best to leave the ultrasonic cleaning to the professionals.
Tip #2: Some other techniques found on the internet recommend the use of ammonia or other harsh cleaning chemicals. Please do not use harsh chemicals on your engagement ring! These can actually harm your stones and dull the finish on your ring. When cleaning your house with harsh chemicals be sure to take your ring off and store it in a safe place to avoid chemical exposure.
Tip #3: In fact, one of the best things you can do to ensure the longevity of your engagement ring is knowing when to take it off. Make sure you are taking your ring off whenever you are doing any hand-heavy activity. This includes doing the dishes, exercising, and gardening. I recommend keeping little ring dishes all around your house for safekeeping when situations like this arise. For times when you are in public, you can wear a chain around your neck to slip your ring on whenever it needs to come off. For a full list of instances when you should not wear your engagement ring check out our care page.
The following cleaning technique should only be used on engagement rings with durable stones, like this diamond ring.
How to Clean Your Engagement Ring
I like to recommend using warm water and non-organic dish soap. The organic stuff will not hurt your ring, but non-organic works a little bit better. You can use Palmolive or Dawn. This technique is safe for those with diamond, alexandrite, sapphire, ruby, morganite, or emerald engagement rings. Those with engagement rings with softer stones like opals, pearls, turquoise, etc. should not use this method as these gems are more delicate and sensitive to liquid.
Step 1: Add the dish soap to warm water, mix it up a little bit, and then place your ring in the mixture. The important part is soaking your ring. You have to leave it in this water for about an hour, hour and a half. Put it somewhere really safe like in a drawer, or a closet, so no one pours accidentally it down the sink.
Step 2: You’ve let your ring soak for an hour and half. We’re back to our water. Now that dirt has loosened up on your ring, it’s time to take a super super old toothbrush (old enough that the bristles are soft and bent*) and poke out all of the avocado, the suntan lotion, any of the debris that’s loosened up and hasn’t come off your ring already.
*If your bristles on your toothbrush are not soft or if you scrub too harshly, you risk scratching your stones, so this step is vital.
Step 3: Once you have sufficiently cleaned your ring, you can take a polishing cloth or some paper towel to get rid of any excess debris. You can either dry off your ring with the soft cloth or let it air dry. Now your ring is clean and as good as new!
Do not use harsh chemicals to clean your engagement ring as they can dull the finish and sparkle of your stones and metal.
How Often Should I Clean My Engagement Ring?
You can use this at home cleaning method max once per week. If you work in a profession that exposes your hands to a lot of oils, debris, or substances – like an esthetician, artist, scientist, or doctor, I recommend wearing your engagement ring on a necklace while you are at work to limit your ring’s exposure to chemicals. I recommend bringing your engagement ring into your jeweler for a professional cleaning and inspection once per year that will get spots you can’t reach at home safely, and ensure all of your stones are tight and secure in their setting.
If you are an existing Abby Sparks Jewelry client, we offer one complementary VIP treatment per year for your engagement ring. This treatment includes a professional cleaning and inspection. While our VIP treatments are temporarily suspended due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, we will send updates out via email, so make sure that you are subscribed to our newsletter. Otherwise, follow these engagement ring care tips and your ring will be in great shape for generations to come.
If you have any questions about these tips or cleaning techniques leave them in the comments below, we love answering them!
Comments