Will Ultrasonic Cleaners Clean Silver?
The short answer? Yes, of course! Read on for the long of it!
An ultrasonic cleaner is a versatile cleaning device and can be used to clean many things including jewelry. This can be jewelry in gold, platinum, silver etc. That however isn’t a carte blanche for all times of jewelry and gemstones. There are a few precious stones that don’t do too well in an ultrasonic cleaner. Stones that are porous in nature such as pearls and onyx for example will get badly affected under the waves of ultrasonic energy. Cleaning silver jewelry though is a cinch. With one exception. It won’t remove the tarnish unless a specialized solvent is used.
Tarnish is the result of oxidation of the surface layer of metal. It is not dirt and therefore will not yield to regular cleaning solutions. Specialized solutions are available for removing tarnish in an ultrasonic cleaner. All you have to do is place the jewelry in the cleaning tank with the solution and the ultrasonic cleaner will do the rest.
Ultrasonic cleaners are specially suited for those heavy types of silver jewelry with intricate designs that are difficult to clean manually. That’s because the ultrasonic cleaning energy can penetrate even though places difficult to reach by hand or even with specialized cleaning tools.
In an ultrasonic cleaner the sound waves that are created pass through the cleaning solvent in alternating waves of compression and expansion. During the expansion cycle the force of the ultrasound stretches the water forming millions of microscopic vacuum bubbles. In the subsequent compression cycle the sudden change in the direction of the force causes the bubbles to implode. This implosion releases a high pressure liquid stream of energy and heat that strikes the surface of the object being cleaned and dislodges any dirt or grime stuck to the surface.
With silver pieces that are tarnished, ultrasonic cleaning process requires the use of specialized solvents that will remove the tarnish. However if you are willing to brew your own solution you can get rid of the tarnish and then use the ultrasonic cleaner to clean the dirt off.
You can remove Tarnish with common household ingredients. You need a glass bowl, some aluminum foil, salt, hot water, and baking soda. Place the aluminum foil in the glass bowl, add a teaspoon of baking soda, a large spoon of salt and add two to three cups of hot water or enough water to submerge the piece of jewelry being cleaned. Place the tarnished jewelry in the bowl and within a few minutes most of the tarnish will have literally vanished off the silver pieces. The ‘magic’ behind this is that the tarnish caused by sulfur ions gets transferred to the aluminum foil in the presence of baking soda when activated by the hot water. You may need to repeat this a few times for pieces that are heavily tarnished. Once you’ve removed the tarnish, clean the silver pieces in the ultrasonic cleaner as normal. You will have your silver jewelry all sparkling and as good as new in no time.
About the Author
Dr. Bob Sandor is a Director at Tovatech, a leading North American supplier of ultrasonic cleaners. When not busy running his company, he explores his fascination with the many aspects of various scientific & industrial devices. For more details on the above you can reach him through the ultrasonic cleaner section of his website.
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