Chlorinated Pools and Your Jewelry!

Summer is fast approaching, and many of you love to swim to beat the heat. But while you are soaking in the pool, your jewelry is taking a beating! In fact, wearing your jewelry in a chlorinated pool or hot tub can do more damage in one hour than several years worth of wear and tear.

If your jewelry is 10 karat, 14 karat or 18 karat gold, it contains other metals such as copper, silver, nickel and zinc. The lower the karat of your jewelry, the less gold it contains, and the more copper, silver, nickel and zinc are present. While gold itself is a noble metal and is very resistant to chemical attack, the other elements mixed with your gold are not, and are highly susceptible to damage from chemicals. One of the most damaging chemicals is chlorine. Chlorine in swimming pools, hot tubs, and even cleaning supplies, will attack the other metals that are alloyed with your gold. It literally leaches out the nickel and zinc and silver, leaving microscopic bubbles inside your jewelry. And when this happens, your karat gold jewelry will become brittle and weak. Prongs can spontaneously fall off, settings can disintegrate and precious gems can be lost. It only takes one exposure to begin the damaging process! So beware of wearing any jewelry that is made from karat gold or sterling silver. Take it off before you swim or use cleaning chemicals that contain chlorine. What if your pool is a natural salt or baquacil pool? Then rest easy and enjoy the water. Those chemicals will not harm your karat gold jewelry, though they may discolor your silver.

What if your jewelry is made from platinum or palladium? Can chlorine still damage these precious metals? No. If your jewelry is made completely from platinum or palladium, you have nothing to fear from chlorine. But a word of caution! Make sure your jewelry is completely made from platinum or palladium. If it contains any silver or karat gold, you must take it off or risk damage.

What can you do if you have been wearing your jewelry in a chlorinated pool? The best thing you can do is bring your jewelry to Cormier's in Southbridge and have us professionally clean and inspected it. It is a free service that will stop any further damage from happening.

Finally, I've heard that some people like to clean their jewelry with toothpaste. Do not do this! Toothpaste contains fluoride, and fluoride can also be damaging to the alloys mixed into karat gold.

Shawn Cormier
Cormier Jewelers
42 Central Street
Southbridge, MA 01550
1-508-764-7415
www.cormiers.com
CormierJewelers@aol.com

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