Since the dawn of time, people have been wearing jewelry and striving to keep it clean with the right jewelry cleaner. It is, after all, the first point of contact for most since it is worn on arms, hands, and across the front of a person’s body. After many tests, inadvertent and on purpose, the results are in: the right jewelry cleaner depends on the stone and metal. Here to help, we’ve come up with a quick guide, complete with charts, to know when it’s ok to clean your jewelry at home and when you need to see a professional.

How to Clean Jewelry at Home

When it comes to cleaning jewelry, most will opt to do it at home because more often than not, that’s where they are when they notice their jewelry needs a good polish or, say, they just finished in the kitchen and forgot to remove their jewelry before baking brownies. Before just reaching for the dish soap and water, check the Mohs hardness scale to see where your stone falls. Developed in 1812 by Friedrich Mohs, this scale measures a stone’s resistance to scratching. Diamonds, the hardest substance in the world, can handle warm, soapy water and a brush versus pearls, which fall right below six on the scale, and require distilled water only and a damp cloth. If you happen to be wearing a piece with mixed gemstones, do not fret: always clean to the softest stone. You should consult a professional cleaner if planning to use an ultrasonic cleaner, as many stones are oil-filled and treated, such as emeralds, or porous, like opal, and could damage under ultrasonic care. 

The Right Jewelry Cleaner for Gold, Silver, and other Metals    

Just like safe gemstone cleaning calls for knowing where they rate on the hardness scale, knowing what type of metal your piece is makes all the difference between the right and wrong jewelry cleaner. Since most jewelry is some derivative of gold or silver and those two metals are 2-3 on the Mohs scale, they respond well to warm, soapy water; it’s the harsh chemicals, such as bleach and ammonia, you want to avoid. As a rule of thumb, do not use toothpaste, baking soda paste, paper towels, and hard bristle brushes as jewelry cleaners. Although platinum is harder than pure gold, it scratches differently, and a patina finish occurs. You’ll want to consult a professional jewelry cleaner to have it polished. Sterling silver, albeit more durable than silver because of its copper content, tarnishes easily and should be kept in an anti-tarnish bag when not worn. 

The Universal Safe Bet for Jewelry Cleaner    

You can’t go wrong with a mild dish soap and warm water – most metals and gemstones handle that sort of jewelry cleaner well. Try and avoid any kind of online “hack” that swears by cleaning with ketchup or vinegar (very acidic and damaging to jewelry) or hard bristled-brushes. At the end of the day, if the thought of cleaning your jewelry stresses you out or you’re still unsure how to safely care for your gemstones, visit us at Schwarzschild Jewelers in Richmond, Charlottesville, and Midlothian, and let our team of cleaning experts handle the rest.