Metals safe (and unsafe) for Mer-Jewelry

**Mardoll_Star** · 05-21-2014, 02:05 PM

Ok, so I haven't seen any of this information on here and I thought it might be helpful for those of you who want to wear any kind of jewelry or accessories in chlorinated or salt water. I am a jeweler by profession. That doesn't mean I just string beads (no offense to you beaders out there), but I size rings, cast precious metals, and fabricate in silver and gold. I know quite a bit about gold and silver, and I see a lot of these metals damaged by exposure to harsh chemicals, especially chlorine!

Sterling Silver: NOT ok for chlorine, sometimes ok for salt water
Sterling silver is an alloy of 92.5% silver and the rest is copper. The copper in the alloy reacts very badly with chlorine and can turn your sterling jewelry black! This is harder to remove than regular tarnish, and can pit and damage the jewelry much more especially with repeated exposure. As far as I can tell, sterling silver by itself is not bothered too much by ocean water. HOWEVER, most clasps have a little steel spring inside of them which can VERY quickly corrode and rust if exposed to salt, even if only a tiny bit.
Please don't wear your silver jewelry in the pool or hot tub! And you should take it off when you shower as well, because even some chemicals in soaps and shampoos can damage it.

Yellow and White Gold: NOT ok for chlorine, sometimes ok for salt water
Yellow gold is alloyed with zinc, copper and/or silver. White gold is usually alloyed with nickel, copper and zinc. Both copper and nickel are very reactive and they can react very badly with chlorine. I don't know all the chemistry details about the reaction between copper or nickel and chlorine, but I have seen its effects: pitting, discoloration and structural damage to jewelry. This is BAD NEWS for your wedding bands, necklaces, anklets, etc. I have seen wedding bands damaged beyond repair by chlorine and other chemicals (ammonia being one). DON'T wear it in the pool!
As with sterling silver, yellow and white gold are ok by themselves in ocean water. HOWEVER, take into account those clasps with steel springs, and the stones in your jewelry. Some gemstones are quite fragile and treated in ways that could be damaged by salt water. Mostly this would include emeralds and opals. But that's a whole other discussion..

Base Metals (Nickel, Pewter, other Costume Jewelry): NOT ok for chlorine, most likely not ok for salt water
This is a large class of metals and there are almost as many alloy variations as there are products! Mostly what I see is nickel based (like the silver toned findings you buy at craft stores like Michael's, Hobby Lobby, etc.). These nickel based findings (earring wires, clasps, jump rings) may hold up ok for a while but eventually they will probably start taking some damage. I don't know as much about the time frame for this but with as much time as people in this community spend swimming, it's probably not a good idea to use these findings long term.
I'm not completely sure about the reaction of nickel and copper in salt water, it might be ok. But IMO, I would not trust them long term there either.

So What IS a safe metal for use in chlorine?
As far as I can tell right now, the two best choices you have for metals that will be repeatedly exposed to chlorine are STAINLESS STEEL and TITANIUM. Now it's going to be pretty much impossible to find titanium earring wires or clasps, but there are plenty of stainless steel options. Just make sure that the package of what you're getting says STAINLESS STEEL, because it can be the same color as the nickel findings.
***UPDATED 5/8/17***
It has been brought to my attention that rust can still develop on stainless steel, as there are different kinds and qualities of stainless steel. SO please if you decide to use stainless steel, I would recommend also doing a test with a sample of the particular finding you are going to use. I apologize for not giving this correct info sooner, as I have more experience with silver and gold***
However, even if you get a stainless steel clasp (lobster claw or spring ring) please remember that the little spring inside the clasp will probably still rust if exposed to salt water. Go with another style clasp on a necklace that you will wear in the ocean, like an S-hook clasp or a toggle clasp.

HELP! I already got my sterling silver/gold jewelry in chlorinated water!
Don't panic yet! The first thing to do is rinse your jewelry in plain tap water or a gentle soap solution. Don't immediately plunge it into your jewelry cleaner you bought from Wal-Mart! I tend not to trust random store bought jewelry cleaners, and I recommend against them. They could also cause a bad reaction with the chlorine already on your jewelry. After you have rinsed your jewelry to prevent further damage, look it over yourself and then take it to a trusted jeweler to have them check it further for damage. They can professionally remove the tarnish, polish out surface pitting, and advise you on your particular case. They also can recommend a safe cleaner for you to use at home and sometimes have some for sale.

Above all, the important thing to remember is NOT TO WEAR YOUR SILVER AND GOLD JEWELRY IN THE POOL! EVER! If you want to read more about why, this technical article has some great info: http://technical-articles.hooverands...ect-your-gold/
I am thinking of conducting some of my own tests with various base metals at some point to see how they hold up in pools and the ocean. Until then, feel free to ask me any more questions or send me a message for more information!

Hope this helps all of you who are getting ready to make accessories, so you can continue to enjoy them for a long time!

**Morticia Mermaid** · 05-21-2014, 02:33 PM

This info is epic! Thank you for posting it

Sent by star fish

**Mermaid Galene** · 05-21-2014, 02:40 PM

This should be a sticky! Thanks, Mardoll!

**JessieMermaid** · 05-21-2014, 04:30 PM

Well then I guess it's a good thing I'm allergic to nearly every metal on the planet. All my jewelry has to be stainless steel /14k+ gold/sterling silver.

**sashiyoop** · 05-21-2014, 07:05 PM

This is really helpful, thanks!

Sent from my shellphone using Tapatalk 2

**Mardoll_Star** · 05-21-2014, 08:43 PM

You're all welcome! Just trying to put some of my expertise in this area to good use..
JessieMermaid, you're most likely allergic to the nickel. That's the most common metal allergy that I've come across.

**Winged Mermaid** · 05-21-2014, 09:11 PM

Thank you so much for sharing! Yes this shall be a sticky as added to the reference list

Good thing I'm too cheap to use sterling silver or gold then

haha. I did have some split rings in SS so I'll have to replace those. As for the based metals, I've been using those for years on end and have customers that use my jewelry for 2-8x a week (hours in chlorine each time) for years and still no report of corrosion. Then again both of is take very good care of our tails and accessories- always rinse, dry, and hang dry before storing. I think both of is do making soda dips to help with acidity too.

Not saying you're wrong- you definitely know your stuff- maybe it just takes a whole for any issues to get bad enough to be apparent? Also I think as mermaids we know taking our things in water they're gonna break down eventually, just nature of the beast.

All that being said I think I'll have to sleep my eye out for the metal findings you suggest

**Winged Mermaid** · 05-21-2014, 09:14 PM

Originally Posted by JessieMermaid

Well then I guess it's a good thing I'm allergic to nearly every metal on the planet. All my jewelry has to be stainless steel /14k+ gold/sterling silver.

Agreed, sounds like nickel allergy. My husband has that. He can only wear titanium or stainless steel. He has a ceramic wedding ring (he lost the original titanium one). He has to put mole skin on the inside of his jeans buttons, use plastic glasses frames, ect.

**Mardoll_Star** · 05-21-2014, 09:30 PM

Originally Posted by Winged Mermaid

Thank you so much for sharing! Yes this shall be a sticky as added to the reference list

Good thing I'm too cheap to use sterling silver or gold then

haha. I did have some split rings in SS so I'll have to replace those. As for the based metals, I've been using those for years on end and have customers that use my jewelry for 2-8x a week (hours in chlorine each time) for years and still no report of corrosion. Then again both of is take very good care of our tails and accessories- always rinse, dry, and hang dry before storing. I think both of is do making soda dips to help with acidity too.

Not saying you're wrong- you definitely know your stuff- maybe it just takes a whole for any issues to get bad enough to be apparent? Also I think as mermaids we know taking our things in water they're gonna break down eventually, just nature of the beast.

All that being said I think I'll have to sleep my eye out for the metal findings you suggest

Iona, it may be that the base metal you've previously used is some kind of alloy without nickel.. like I said there's so many alloys sometimes it's really just a guessing game. You may have just gotten lucky in the base metal findings that you happened to use. That's why I would suggest going with something clearly labeled stainless steel. To be sure!
And that's a good point about using a baking soda bath. That does help to neutralize any acids, we use it sometimes to make sure that pickle (which is acid used for cleaning metals) is completely neutralized in a hollow formed piece by rinsing it several times with a baking soda solution.

**Miyu** · 05-21-2014, 09:56 PM

Wonderful info here!

I also rinse and/or baking soda all my swimmable accessories after use

As a general rule, I find it helps to keep things lasting longer. After all, I'm sure a lot of chlorine OR slat water exposure would ruin the shells in my jewelry :P I also have a nickel allergy, so I do use a lot of things that are resin-coated as well, but I do try to make the findings replaceable, and I use mostly fishing line or acrylic cord to string with. My gauged ear tunnels are stainless steel, though! I've noticed that they get the least amount of damage from the elements. I'm trying to phase out all my silver/gold jewelry as it's ultimately a lot of work to maintain :P

**Aziara** · 05-22-2014, 02:15 PM

Would a nickle allergy make you able to wear sterling silver and nothing else? Because gold, costume jewelry, and sometimes copper make my skin turn red and itch.

**Mardoll_Star** · 05-22-2014, 03:04 PM

Yes, if you are allergic to nickel then you should be able to wear both sterling silver and yellow gold, but not white gold.
However, if you still react to copper then you may not be able to wear either. Many people who are sensitive to nickel are also sensitive to copper in varying degrees. Sometimes if you are only a little sensitive to the copper then you can still wear sterling silver and just try to keep it as clean as you can and limit your contact with it. It's just a matter of experimentation, each person is different.

**Aziara** · 05-22-2014, 03:50 PM

Yeah, yellow gold isn't nearly as bad as white gold for me, but still uncomfortable. The most pure I've tried is still 10 carats or less though, so heavily alloyed with...who knows?

**Mermaid Jaffa** · 05-25-2014, 10:13 PM

Stainless steel is safe for both chlorine and salt water.

If in doubt, loop one piece as necklace and wear it during swimming, as an allergy and chlorine test. That way you can safely gauge if it is safe to wear it in the pool.

If your skin immediately becomes red and itchy, once you're in the water, you can easily take off the necklace over your head, instead of fiddling with clasps, toggles, knots etc. Once your skin allergy starts, you feel like hell and want to rip off that necklace and chuck it at the side of the pool!

**Arejay** · 07-07-2014, 05:39 PM

Originally Posted by Aziara

Yeah, yellow gold isn't nearly as bad as white gold for me, but still uncomfortable. The most pure I've tried is still 10 carats or less though, so heavily alloyed with...who knows?

Yellow gold with higher carats shouldn't be as irritating. Also, make sure you item is sold gold and not just plated.

**Sherielle** · 07-21-2014, 11:48 AM

I was wondering about this. I do wire wrapped jewelry and was thinking of making some accessories for myself. I can get stainless steel wire. I guess I'll need to test the different stones I use to see if they are safe in chlorine. I know some of my stones are enhanced or dyed so they might get affected.

**Adalira** · 08-21-2014, 06:52 PM

How about aluminum wire (nickel free)? Is that bad i Chlorine too? I am working on some pieces with that.

**Mardoll_Star** · 08-22-2014, 05:06 PM

As far as I know aluminum should be ok in chlorine. But to be safe I would put a small jump ring or o-ring in chlorinated water for a while as a test to see what happens. I believe that a lot of metal railings and ladders used in pools are made of aluminum.