The Covid-19 pandemic has affected our lives in many ways. Frequent and proper hand washing has become an important part of protecting ourselves and those we love from the virus. Unfortunately, the soap or hand sanitizer that is very effective against Covid-19 may not be very good for your engagement ring! Here are a few ring cleaning tips in the age of Covid-19.
Can Cleaning Agents Damage Your Engagement Ring?
With repeated exposure to cleaning products the white gold of your engagement ring and wedding ring may wear more quickly. Repeated use of antibacterial soaps, chlorine, and other bleaches will reduce the shine and brilliance of your ring over time.
What Can You Do?
Your health and that of your family come first, so don’t avoid hand washing with a good sanitizer. But, you can avoid rubbing the sanitizer directly onto your ring. Rather, remove your rink to clean it, wash and dry your hands, and put the ring back on.
Normally, you will want to clean your ring twice a week by soaking in warm water with a little dish washing soap added. The same approach works while you are washing your hands. And, if you wear gloves when doing cleaning around your home, that will protect both your hands and your ring from strong cleaners.
Do Germs Hide on Your Ring?
Georgia State University found that health care professionals who wore their rings at work walked around with a “protected area” for germs on their hands. So, you should not just remove your engagement ring to wash your hands and then put it back on. If your work puts you at risk for contracting the corona virus, you may simply wish to avoid wearing your rings at work for the time being. It turns out that nurses who wear their rings at work carry more bacteria on their hands even when they use wipes or antibacterial soap routinely.
Viruses like to hide in any hidden or protected area like under your fingernails or in the hidden parts of your engagement ring. Protect your engagement ring from hiding the virus for now by not wearing it in high risk areas for Covid-19 and protect the finish on your ring from harsh cleaners by not having to expose it many times a day
Are Cleaners Harder on Some Kinds of Jewelry than Others?
Turquoise, opals, coral, and pearls are organic gems that are easier to damage if constantly exposed to harsh cleaners like antibacterial soaps and hand sanitizers. The same applies to the majority of crystal rings. Do your rings a favor by leaving them home and safe when you have to wash your hands dozens and perhaps hundreds of times a day. And, do yourself a favor by not running the risk of hiding bad germs in the nooks and crannies of your beautiful ring!
Interestingly, some metals like stainless steel and copper may actually help counteract viruses due to properties of these metals, but you should never assume that this makes you safe from the corona virus.