Can you use an Ultrasonic Cleaner to often?

[MrsFrk]

I looove my ultrasonic. I bought mine off of e-bay, a few years ago, cheap- a friend recommended the seller. I was skeptical about its efficacy, so I used it on my watch first. Good Golly Miss Molly, the crap that came off that thing. If it was just making noise, it wouldn''t have dislodged so much crud.

Whever my friends come over, I make them put their jewelry in my ultrasonic. I cannot believe how dirty most people allow their jewelry to become!

AAAAANNNNDDD...I can''t believe how many people look at their sparkly, freshly ultrasonic-ed jewelry, admire, & then PUT THEIR FINGERS ALL OVER THE STONES. Good god, were you people dropped on your heads as children?!?! Never touch the stones! Jeesh.

 

[AndyRosse]

Mara, still waiting on mine too!

 

[Tacori E-ring]

me too...

 

[jcrow]

ok- when you get it in- let me know if there''s a list of stones not to clean.

Sundial= let me know how yours works as well! i think that''s the one i am leaning towards

 

[Lynn B]

OK... new SI ultrasonic arrived today. Jury is still out.

I cleaned all my diamonds... and since I had been expecting the package, I hadn't cleaned my diamonds AT ALL in the last couple of days. So they were starting to look a little "dull".

Well, I don't know what I was expecting... well, I guess that's not quite true. I was expecting the stones to look muxh cleaner, brighter and sparklier than I have been able to get them by cleaning manually. Bottom line: I didn't notice much difference. I'm a little bummed, actually. I wanted to see a noticeable, blinding difference. Nope.

So, couple of things. Either the machine isn't working right -or- I've been cleaning the stones pretty darn good by other means.

Could someone who has one of these SI cleaners let me know if this is how it's supposed to work? There is a low humming (buzzing) sound except when the blue light flickers and when that happens, the unit makes a ticking sound and the water kinda "shimmies" This happens intermittently for a few seconds, every few seconds.

I will say that the machine is cute, compact, and couldn't be easier to use. But as for the cleaning ability... well, I guess I'm still kinda scratching my head over here...

Lynn

ETA: I also want to add that I used 1/2 tsp of ammonia and one drop of Dawn in the water. I didn't think to use hot water or I probably would have. I did notice quite a few little goobers floating in the water after the cycle was finished... so I think that it must be working properly. And the stones do look wonderful -- just not much MORE wonderful than usual. I bet I was just cleaning them pretty good before, therefore I'm not seeing a huge difference. But it's still a fun toy!

 

[FireGoddess]

It sounds like it is working right, but I did notice a big difference when I cleaned mine w/ the ultrasonic versus when I didn't.

I also formulated a list when I got mine last year about which stones can and cannot be put in the ultrasonic. No such list came with my ultrasonic. Here's my list, and experts, feel free to correct me:

Ultrasonic OK Ultrasonic NO
diamond lapis
ruby** turquoise
sapphire malachite
amethyst onyx
citrine pearl
garnet opal
spinel emerald
tourmaline amber
gold coral
platinum aquamarine
iolite peridot
jadeite topaz
zircon tanzanite

**heavily included rubies or rubies glued into jewelry may NOT be ultrasonicated.

 

[Lynn B]

Date: 9/26/2005 4:32:13 PM
Author: FireGoddess

It sounds like it is working right, but I did notice a big difference when I cleaned mine w/ the ultrasonic versus when I didn''t.

Hmmm... then maybe I was just an exceptionally good manual cleaner. Me and Ame! LOL!

Lynn

 

[aljdewey]

Date: 9/26/2005 1:27:52 PM
Author: MrsFrk

AAAAANNNNDDD...I can''t believe how many people look at their sparkly, freshly ultrasonic-ed jewelry, admire, & then PUT THEIR FINGERS ALL OVER THE STONES. Good god, were you people dropped on your heads as children?!?! Never touch the stones! Jeesh.

LMAO - agree wholeheartedly!

One of my friends does that.....goes to try on a ring and puts her finger SMACK on the table! WHAT ARE YOU DOING? I want to shriek! hehehe - but I don''t.

I simply wipe it down when I get it back and then secretly polish the crap out of it when she''s gone!

 

[jcrow]

Date: 9/26/2005 4:32:13 PM
Author: FireGoddess
It sounds like it is working right, but I did notice a big difference when I cleaned mine w/ the ultrasonic versus when I didn''t.


I also formulated a list when I got mine last year about which stones can and cannot be put in the ultrasonic. No such list came with my ultrasonic. Here''s my list, and experts, feel free to correct me:


Ultrasonic OK Ultrasonic NO

diamond lapis

ruby** turquoise

sapphire malachite

amethyst onyx

citrine pearl

garnet opal

spinel emerald

tourmaline amber

gold coral

platinum aquamarine

iolite peridot

jadeite topaz

zircon tanzanite


**heavily included rubies or rubies glued into jewelry may NOT be ultrasonicated.

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!

i have many rings and such with various stones. now i know. And i hope to buy a cleaner soon!

 

[Mara]

DRAT I was hoping mine would be here today but I guess not.

 

[Tacori E-ring]

Thanks for the list FG! It is very helpful.

 

[sharonb]

I agree with Lynn. I recently purchased and returned the SI ultrasonic cleaner. It didn''t seem to clean my rings any better than ammonia and a toothbrush. I was totally unimpressed. The best clean I get is from the jewelers (steam I think?). Do they make a steam system that can be used at home? Any advice from the experts?

Thanks,

Sharon

 

[ame]

I saw a personal steamer on Ebay last week. It was with all the ultrasonics when I searched.

 

[thelittleguy]

Hey Lynn...I''ve noticed that I get much better results when I use a lot more than a 1/2 teaspoon of ammonia...I pretty much go half water half ammonia...maybe that will make the difference for you...I''m surprised at your "ho-hum" results

 

[cutes814]

Hey everyone!

I noticed many ppl bought their refurbished SI cleaner from ebay. SI''s website actually sells the same one for $39.95 too, just FYI in case some other ppl want to buy it. I just bought mine from SI''s site, since I was there buying a memory foam pillow for my mom.

When I worked at Nordstrom''s Fine Jewelry department 5 years ago, I always cleaned my jewelry in the big ultrasonic cleaner and then steam cleaned it everyday. It does make a huge difference. I can''t wait to receive it!

 

[Jelly]

Has anyone used or tried this steam cleaner?

Jewel Jet

It seems as if I''ve seen that on a pricescope vendor''s website, but I can''t recall which one. Plus, I''m too lazy to look it up right now.

 

[MrsFrk]

For steaming, I just suspend my ring over a pot of water with a chopstick. Works a treat.

 

[Mara]

The steam thing doesn''t work for me unless it BLASTS out like a real steam cleaner at the jewelers...they blow crud out of there like no one''s business. Also I have tons of tiny stones that need cleaning too. This ultrasonic thing better work!

 

[Lynn B]

Date: 9/26/2005 7:42:25 PM
Author: thelittleguy
Hey Lynn...I've noticed that I get much better results when I use a lot more than a 1/2 teaspoon of ammonia...I pretty much go half water half ammonia...maybe that will make the difference for you...I'm surprised at your 'ho-hum' results

Little Guy,
Thanks for the recommendation. I'll try that. I did wonder just how much could 1/2 teaspoon of ANYTHING do?!!! Do you add the ONE DROP of dish detergen, too? And do you re-use your ammonia-water, or start fresh every time?

And, yeah, I'm surprised with my ho-hum results too! (I'm generally not a ho-hum kind of girl!)

All I can think is that I must have been cleaning them before pretty darn good. I was rather obsessive about it!

Lynn

 

[ame]

I might buy the one from Dave Atlas.

 

[Lynn B]

Date: 9/26/2005 9:05:29 PM
Author: ame
I might buy the one from Dave Atlas.

Any particular reason, Ame?

 

[bichon]

My fiancé believes I have obsessive compulsive disorder when it comes to cleaning my ring.

At first, I used to use Connoisseurs solution. I was definitely impressed. But under halogen lighting , I noticed a film on the bottom of my ring. No matter how much I scrubbed or left the ring in the solution, it would not get clean. It doesn''t help that I use a lot of handcream and sunblock lotion in the summer. The sunblock, in particular, really builds up and is hard to scrub off between the prongs.

A few months ago, I bought a JSP Ultrasonic Cleaner from a local jewelry supplier for $130 CAD. What a ripoff for a multitude of reasons:
(1) After doing some research on the Net, I discovered that the JSP is the same model as the Haier (sold at Wal-Mart and other stores in the US for under $40) which is manufactured by Codyson Electronics.
(2) I read some not-so-great reviews about the Haier.
(3) As a few other people posted on PS and Amazon, the JSP (aka Haier) literally broke down on me within 3 weeks.
(4) The cleaning ability was "okay" only if you added a fresh solution of ammonia or some other cleaner.

On a recent trip to one of my favourite American cities, Chicago, I purchased a Sharper Image Ultrasonic. Hands down, this is a much superior ultrasonic cleaner.

The first time I used it, I did a "repeat" cycle. During the summer, I use it almost every day because sunblock lotion really sticks to every crevice in the ring. But these days, I use it only 2-3 times a week. The Connoisseurs solution works well in between the ultrasonic cleaning.

So if you have diamond cleaning OCD, then the Sharper Image Ultrasonic Cleaner is a must!

 

[thelittleguy]

Hey Lynn,
I don't add any soap at all, just ammonia...and I do use fresh ammonia each time. I also use hot water from the faucet...hope that helps

 

[AndyRosse]

Thanks Bichon for the review!!

Now if mine would only get here, I could see it in action

...

 

[bichon]

Lynn - I filled 1/3 of the "Max" line with Connoisseurs solution, the rest with water, and a few drops of Palmolive dish soap (the one that smells like green tea). Even without changing the solution for several weeks, the ring came out sparkling clean. The frequency of changing the solutions probably depends on how often you use the ultrasonic, how many pieces of jewerly you put in, and how dirty it is.

This is a stupid question but where do you buy ammonia? Are people referring to Windex or are they buying a pure form of ammonia?

Stretch4 - You will not be disappointed when you get your Sharper Image. Don''t forget to do a "repeat" cycle for your first cleaning. If you have any suboptimal diamonds (I have a pair of total 10pts studs bought when I was relatively poorer and knew nothing about diamonds), you may notice that they regain some lost sparkle. Let us know of your results when you get to try it out!!!

 

[aljdewey]

Date: 9/26/2005 11:36:46 PM
Author: bichon


This is a stupid question but where do you buy ammonia? Are people referring to Windex or are they buying a pure form of ammonia?

You can buy it really cheap at the supermarket.....look in the cleaning aisle. You can get a half-gallon of pure ammonia for a buck or two.....just keep your face away when you open it. Fumes galore!

 

[Dancing Fire]

i have a 2 qt heated ultrasonic cleaner and the $99 jewel jet steamer (from Wink). if i need to clean bracelets or a big load of jewlery,ultrasonic is the way to go.if i only need to clean a couple of rings i use the steamer,it warms up in two mins.

 

[jcrow]

Date: 9/27/2005 3:06:56 AM
Author: Dancing Fire
i have a 2 qt heated ultrasonic cleaner and the $99 jewel jet steamer (from Wink). if i need to clean bracelets or a big load of jewlery,ultrasonic is the way to go.if i only need to clean a couple of rings i use the steamer,it warms up in two mins.

silly question- does anyone know if you can clean wink''s cz in the ultra sonic cleaner??

 

[jcrow]

Date: 9/26/2005 7:57:31 PM
Author: Milly
Hey everyone!


I noticed many ppl bought their refurbished SI cleaner from ebay. SI''s website actually sells the same one for $39.95 too, just FYI in case some other ppl want to buy it. I just bought mine from SI''s site, since I was there buying a memory foam pillow for my mom.


When I worked at Nordstrom''s Fine Jewelry department 5 years ago, I always cleaned my jewelry in the big ultrasonic cleaner and then steam cleaned it everyday. It does make a huge difference. I can''t wait to receive it!

milly- thanks for the info- i will check out the website... by the way- which pillow did you buy??

 

[FireGoddess]

bichon - I don''t buy actual "ammonia" separately - I use windex. I use a drop of dish detergent, 5-7 sprays of windex, and then fill the rest of the container with hot water. Works like a charm, and I have all of that stuff in the house ALREADY!