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Ultrasonic /Jewelry Cleaners

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lawdog

Rough_Rock
Joined
Oct 4, 2005
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Ok... I have read posts about all different kinds of cleaners and solutions to use. I have read about a Sharper Image Ultrasonic that seems to be popular and the Salton Spa Cleaner and then the home steam cleaners.... But then I have also read about the ottofrei ultrasonic cleaners that claim to be "true" ultrasonic cleaners not just a buzzing shaking machine. I guess they would be referring to ones like the Sharper Image and Haier...

Point being I am confused. I am one who researches and researches a ton before any purchase, I check all sites known to man and all opinions. Has anyone compared the different models and types to determine just what is the best home jewelry cleaning system????

I really don''''t care about cost, I don''''t want to spend $500 bucks on a cleaner but I want the best cleaner I can find for a reasonable price if that is $50 or $200 dollars great, cause I only want to buy one once.

OttoFrei seems to be a true jewelers store and seems to sell some highend equipment, I tend to think they may know a bit more then say SharperImage (IMHO, I may be wrong) about jewelry and cleaning it. At the same time I don''''t want a machine to look like it belongs in the doctors office, the mini cleaner on ottofrei appears to be a happy medium, but can a regular consumer purchase from them, they seem to want a dealer agreement or business name and tax number to sell. I haven''''t tried to buy anything yet but I wanted a true set of opinions of those that have tried many and failed only to find that one true great cleaner that exists.

Anyone with any opinion on any of the cleaners and a true test of comparison please respond. Lets see if once and for all we can nail down exactly what is the best cleaner to buy for the money....

Thanks.
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Dave Atlas sells UC cleaners too. I love my SI UC. It does a great job and is the best one I''ve found yet, HTH.
 
Date: 10/12/2005 3:08:54 PM
Author:lawdog

Point being I am confused. I am one who researches and researches a ton before any purchase, I check all sites known to man and all opinions. Has anyone compared the different models and types to determine just what is the best home jewelry cleaning system????

I really don't care about cost, I don't want to spend $500 bucks on a cleaner but I want the best cleaner I can find for a reasonable price if that is $50 or $200 dollars great, cause I only want to buy one once.

OttoFrei seems to be a true jewelers store and seems to sell some highend equipment, I tend to think they may know a bit more then say SharperImage (IMHO, I may be wrong) about jewelry and cleaning it. At the same time I don't want a machine to look like it belongs in the doctors office, the mini cleaner on ottofrei appears to be a happy medium, but can a regular consumer purchase from them, they seem to want a dealer agreement or business name and tax number to sell. I haven't tried to buy anything yet but I wanted a true set of opinions of those that have tried many and failed only to find that one true great cleaner that exists.

Anyone with any opinion on any of the cleaners and a true test of comparison please respond. Lets see if once and for all we can nail down exactly what is the best cleaner to buy for the money....

Thanks.
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Here is my two cents on this topic:




I don’t think there is any one “best” ultrasonic machine or brand, but rather what fills your needs the best (the same could be said about cars and diamonds).






Ultrasonic cleaners fall into 3 major categories:






1 – Professional quality units with stainless steel tubs, stainless steel housings and powerful transducers.
These can be run 8 hours a day with no problems.
Some brand names are L&R Quantrex, GemOro, Ultronics, OttoFrei, Elma, Stuller, Branson, Crest, etc.
They range in size from a pint to over several gallons, and range in price from $200 to over $1500+.
These are what you will find in the jewelry stores.




Dancing Fire and Diamondlil have a 2qt heated GemOro, Noobie and Kaleigh have a Crest, and I have a 2 qt heated L&R Quantrex. They have larger stainless steel tanks which allow you to clean large batches of jewelry, eyeglasses, gun parts etc. in a very short time.






2 – Consumer units manufactured by companies which mainly manufacture professional quality units.

RockDoc sells the “Pet Rock Hot Tub” for home use which is manufactured by Ultronics. There is also a well written article explaining ultrasonic theory on his website. I found it to be very informative.

Dave Atlas sells the GemOro Sparkle Spa – the consumer version of what GemOro manufactures for the trade.

Otto Frei (which sells jewelry findings and tools to the trade but will sell tools to the public) also sells a $69 true ultrasonic for home use. I have used the Otto Frei one for the last 20+ years with no problems and it still continues to work today.

Branson is another company that makes home use ultrasonics.

L&R makes the PC3 for home use.

3 – Units sold to consumers by companies not in the jewelry supply business e.g. Sharper Image, Kmart, Circuit City, Radio Shack, etc. I have no experience with these but have read the many positive and a few negative reviews on them from the PS ladies.




So the choice is really yours as to your cleaning application, the space you have on your counter at home, and how much you want to spend.
 
cflutist - I never got a chance to thank you but I have to say that the OttoFrei that you recommended ROCKS! It makes all my jewelry super clean and I actually use it on my metal watch bands (of course I hold the face above water). :)
 
cflutist: Thanks for the information very informative. I am a lawyer so your breakdown on the information was very well received and very much like I would have wanted to provide had I had that knowledge myself. So thanks again. I understand your line about the right one for you. I have read so many threads on the topic I was just wondering if we could nail down the best of the best for the consumer in all of us. It seems from your reply that the ones manufactured by the professionals seem to work the best IYHO...and that the SI ones have gotten good reviews as well. I have read that some of the consumer versions are simply solutions that vibrate and shake a bit and are not a "true ultrasonic" cleaner...

So you recommend the ottofrei home version for $70 dollars???? or one of the larger units... if the home version does the job and has for you for the last 20 years than it sounds like a winner to me... I will check out the other tweener units as well.

Thanks for any input....

LawDog
 
While there are indeed the "vibratey shakey only" non-ultrasonic cleaners, my understanding is that the SI is NOT one of those... it is a true ultrasonic, but a consumer grade one ie trays etc are plastic rather than metal....

If my understanding is wrong, somebody please jump in and correct me!! :)
 
lawdog
if you are willing to spend $200,get a heated ultrasonic cleaner.they do an EX job
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i bought a 2 qt heated GemOro on e-bay for $180. as for the brand, i think they''re all about the same price for the size. i have no experience with the ShaperImage so i can''t comment on it.
 
If I bought that Otto Frei--how do I go about buying that...just put it in the cart? I saw on there a comment about needing a business license or something.
 
I would call them on the phone, there is a toll free number 800-772-3456.
That way you can ask them all the questions you want.

They sell tools to the public.

You would need a business license to buy wholesale findings (parts to make jewelry e.g. shanks, heads etc).
 
yea I don't need any of those :)

I will look into that. I was looking at the mini one, I wish they had more photos of it. I assume its got a stainless interior but it doesn't look like they have any little baskets for it.

Thank you!
 
ame I wonder if you could find some sort of plastic basket that you could put inside of these larger cleaners so you wouldn''t have to worry about it wacking around on the metal? Just a thought, not sure what is out there really!
 
Some appear to come with a plastic basket. I was also seeing those "ring tree" things on Otto Frei but I have no idea if that would fit in any other units besides theirs. Those are plastic coated.
 
I finally bit the bullet and ordered a new US for myself. Mine is on it''s last leg. I got the GemOro 2 qt. with heat and a 16-ring rack including priority shipping for $215. I''m hoping that''s the last US I''ll ever buy.

Here''s the link (thanks to Cflutist): http://www.renterprises.net/catalog/i2.html
 
DL,

Congrats on your purchase. Enjoy !!!!!!
 
I was looking at this AND the sparkle spa: http://www.renterprises.net/catalog/i1.html

Would those ring racks fit in both or just the regular gemoro
 
DL,

You won''t regret it! Post your thoughts when you get it.
 
After reading loads of reviews, I decided to pick up an ultrasonic cleaner myself. I''ve had my ring for only 2 weeks and already I''m starting to notice the gunk that the brush is simply not getting to.

Anyway, I thought I''d let everyone know, I picked up a new, 2qt, heated Crest model on eBay for $179.00 incl. shipping. The seller is having a special right now. If you''re interested, it''s available here.

It doesn''t come with any racks or baskets, but it''s at least 30 dollars cheaper than any place else.

Needless to say, I will be sure to post my thoughts on this model.
 
Date: 3/20/2006 5:28:33 PM
Author: stermag
After reading loads of reviews, I decided to pick up an ultrasonic cleaner myself. I''ve had my ring for only 2 weeks and already I''m starting to notice the gunk that the brush is simply not getting to.

Anyway, I thought I''d let everyone know, I picked up a new, 2qt, heated Crest model on eBay for $179.00 incl. shipping. The seller is having a special right now. If you''re interested, it''s available here.

It doesn''t come with any racks or baskets, but it''s at least 30 dollars cheaper than any place else.

Needless to say, I will be sure to post my thoughts on this model.
Click to expand...
I hope you love it as much as I love mine. You got your''s for a great price!!!
 
Kaleigh,

I must admit, I read somewhere that you owned one of these (or at least another Crest model)... and I would be lying if I said it didn''t factor into my decision. :)
 
Date: 3/20/2006 6:34:15 PM
Author: stermag
Kaleigh,

I must admit, I read somewhere that you owned one of these (or at least another Crest model)... and I would be lying if I said it didn''t factor into my decision. :)
Click to expand...
There are a lot of threads floating around here on this subject. noobie had the Crest and his opinion swayed me. He is very paticular like me so if he liked it I knew I would. You will love the heat function too. The sound it makes is kind of like a washing machine. Like a swooshing sound. It''s not annoying at all. My doggies don''t even mind it.
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Date: 3/20/2006 5:28:33 PM
Author: stermag
After reading loads of reviews, I decided to pick up an ultrasonic cleaner myself. I''ve had my ring for only 2 weeks and already I''m starting to notice the gunk that the brush is simply not getting to.

Anyway, I thought I''d let everyone know, I picked up a new, 2qt, heated Crest model on eBay for $179.00 incl. shipping. The seller is having a special right now. If you''re interested, it''s available here.

It doesn''t come with any racks or baskets, but it''s at least 30 dollars cheaper than any place else.

Needless to say, I will be sure to post my thoughts on this model.
Click to expand...
stermag
congrats,you got a high quality US for an ex price.
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Stermag,

How do you like your new US? I''m sure you''ve used it a few times by now.
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Websailor - ah, yes, I used it the moment it arrived.... I had been wearing my ring for a month without even attempting to clean it, so that first cycle was like night and day! I was quite impressed with the difference it made.

At this point, I use it fairly regularly, usually daily or every other day, so I''ve come to take for granted how clean my ring is.... It almost begins to feel like the ultrasonic isn''t doing anything, but of course if I went even a week without cleaning it, I''d remember very quickly just how good it is...

So, in short: I''m very pleased. This is a quality model, and it really feels durable. The only thing I absolutely cannot stand is the noise it makes with the cover on. Somehow, the slight vibration causes the lid and the unit to grind against one another, making this high pitched screaching sound. Unbearable. Of course the solution is quite simple, I keep the cover off :)
 
stermag

no need to cover when using the US. i only use the cover when heating up the solution.
 
The cover just makes it more noisy. I just keep the cover on when I''m not using it so the solution doesn''t evaporate. Glad you like it. I am loving mine!!!
 
Date: 4/9/2006 9:21:57 PM
Author: websailor
Stermag,

How do you like your new US? I''m sure you''ve used it a few times by now.
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So many choices, so little time. Crest, Gemoro, Branson....Heat, No heat, Timer, No timer.

Do I need a basket? What kind of solution should I buy? How long should I clean my rings?

I can help you with any of these questions if you need me to break it all down.
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Date: 4/11/2006 8:46:32 PM
Author: Tool Guy

Date: 4/9/2006 9:21:57 PM
Author: websailor
Stermag,

How do you like your new US? I''m sure you''ve used it a few times by now.
36.gif
Click to expand...
So many choices, so little time. Crest, Gemoro, Branson....Heat, No heat, Timer, No timer.

Do I need a basket? What kind of solution should I buy? How long should I clean my rings?

I can help you with any of these questions if you need me to break it all down.
35.gif
Click to expand...
Please give me the best cleaning solution for my ultrasonic. I ordered Gemoro and wasn''t thrilled with it. Thanks Tool Guy!!
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Date: 4/11/2006 9:55:53 PM
Author: kaleigh

Date: 4/11/2006 8:46:32 PM
Author: Tool Guy


Date: 4/9/2006 9:21:57 PM
Author: websailor
Stermag,

How do you like your new US? I''m sure you''ve used it a few times by now.
36.gif
Click to expand...
So many choices, so little time. Crest, Gemoro, Branson....Heat, No heat, Timer, No timer.

Do I need a basket? What kind of solution should I buy? How long should I clean my rings?

I can help you with any of these questions if you need me to break it all down.
35.gif
Click to expand...
Please give me the best cleaning solution for my ultrasonic. I ordered Gemoro and wasn''t thrilled with it. Thanks Tool Guy!!
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Click to expand...

Hi kaleigh, I have to be honest I sell a ton of Gemoro solution because it is the least expensive on the market. I have coming in a Jewelry Cleaner by Branson and it does cost a little more but It will will work great on jewelry and rings. They have a whole line of different cleaners for the trade.

What ultrasonic are you using?
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TG,
I have the Crest 1 quart Ultrasonic. When is the Branson cleaner going to be available on your site?? The gemoro was cheap that''s why I bought it. But doesn''t do a whole lot IMHO.
 
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