Understand the Rhodium Plating in detail

There are many people who know about Rhodium Plating, but they don’t have a clear idea of what is rhodium plating exactly? On what metal can be done? Can it be done on yellow gold? So, this post will provide information about Rhodium Plating.

What is Rhodium plating on jewelry?

Rhodium is a member of the platinum family which is one of the rare and precious metals and costs 10-20 times more than gold. It has a silver shade with high reflective quality. It is harder than metal gold.

Rhodium is a very hard metal and it is not easy to make a shape. So, due to this quality, it cannot be fully as a pure used in the making of jewelry. But it can be used as the plating of the jewelry, which increases the durability of the jewelry and the metal. It is famous for its White Gold jewelry and can also be used with silver and other metals too.

On what metal we can do a rhodium Plating?

The Rhodium plating helps the jewelry in the increment of its durability and luster. The Rhodium plating is more famous with Platinum, white gold, silver, and palladium. As, the jewelry with the white gold is not pure gold but with some alloy metals with it, so to give a proper luster to the jewelry pieces the process of rhodium is done. It also helps in making the jewelry more scratch-resistant.

How much thickness of the plating is to be done?

The Rhodium should be plated with a thickness of about 0.75 to 1.0 microns. This may be thin, but it is enough for the rings and other jewelry that are to wear daily. If the plating is too thin it will waive off in a few months and make the jewelry look dull. So, proper thickness maintaining is very important for making the perfect jewelry.

Can a rhodium plate be done on yellow gold jewelry?

The answer is Yes. If anyone wants to change their yellow-gold color to white, then this is one of the options they have. But the only problem with this option is the plating will be waiving off from the jewelry in some time and turning the jewelry back in its original color.

Can the plating affect the diamonds on jewelry?

No, it doesn’t affect the diamonds. As the process requires the electric current to run through the metals and the diamond doesn’t conduct the electricity, so they will be safe from damage. The diamond doesn’t have to be removed when the Rhodium process is taking place.

Is it safe to wear such rhodium-plated jewelry?

Yes, it is safe. It won’t give any skin reactions. As it doesn’t contain any allergens like nickel. Also, the rhodium plating can eliminate the skin reaction by jewelry of any other metal.

Can any gemstones be affected by rhodium plating?

There are many gemstones available and it generally depends on the gemstones. As, some softer gemstones like pearl, topaz, opals, and many more stones can be damaged as they cannot cope up with the acids and heat in the electroplating solutions.

Costing of the Rhodium plating on your jewelry?

When we talk about the cost of rhodium plating, it is quite costly because rhodium is one of the very rare and expensive metals in the world. And the costing can be based on the quality, Thickness of the rhodium, also the size of the jewelry. The costing is not like a one-time cost. It might cost you every year like for maintaining your jewelry for a longer period.

Tips for making the plating last longer:

The rhodium plating will eventually wear off after some time, but there are some steps that can help you in making the plating on your jewelry last longer:

1. Avoid the jewelry expose to the water too. Like the washing hand with the ring can wear off the plating.
2. Protect and take off the jewelry when dealing with harsh chemicals.
3. Avoid jewelry contact with chlorinated water.
4. Perfumes and cosmetics will surely damage the looking of the plating on the jewelry.