Prevent Metal Tarnishing (Specifically White Gold w/Rhodium)

[diamonds4ever04]

Ok, as my new ring has arrived today, set in white gold, I would like to know if anyone has tried to prevent the dreaded yellowing of white gold by using a lacquer or polish to coat the ring, preventing tarnish, and nickel allergys. I''ve heard of using the following polishes:

polyurethane
clear nail polish
Turtle Wax car polish
Midas Finish Seal lacquer

Anyone tried this? With these or other products? Successes? Failures? Perhaps most important, will it damage the metal, or especially the diamond?

My idea is to dip the ring in polish, let dry, and then buff clear. Of course, I''d avoid the diamond, but if we lacquer the prongs, wouldn''t it prevent them from corroding as well, so you''d have to get near the diamond, at least with a brush. I''m interested to hear people''s stories.

 

[diamonds4ever04]

Found this -perhaps the yellowing is merely oxidation? And could it really be removed and not flash treatment needed with a little acid rinse?

With finishes of less than .15 microns in thickness (ref: a coat of varnish is 10 microns in thickness), these types of commercial rhodium plated finishes will eventually discolor. This is caused from the corrosive oxides that are rising up through the microscopic pores "within" the rhodium plated surface. Over time, this type of oxidation will make the rhodium finish appear "yellowish" bright to the casual observer. As the surface tarnish increases it may even start to resemble and be mistaken for a pale light gold!

This type of oxidation can easily be removed with a light acid rinse and the rhodium plating will appear bright again. It will tarnish again in a very short time especially if the object (i.e.chains) is in frequent contact with skin oils. To prevent this, one option would be to plate more rhodium over the original finish to seal any existing porosity. However, this technique can only be successful if all oxidation on the object is completely removed prior to replating.

If the object is scratched and needs to be repolished, there is an almost certain chance that the thin rhodium plating will be removed during the polishing process. Replating the entire object with rhodium will be necessary to restore the original surface protection and bright reflective finish. Most jewelry repair shops will replate the item with another thin "flash" layer of rhodium. Depending on the type of item and the repair methods, you will more than likely be back to repeat the entire process all over again sometime in the near future.