rhoduim plating? Re-dipping? is this really necessary?

eclv82 · July 2014

I am new to TheKnot, and recently saw that you should have your ring re-dipped in rhodium? While I did look at a link someone provided, I still want to know if my white gold engagement ring needs to be re-dipped every 6 months to a year like the link said. I just feel like the jewelry stores are always trying to screw us into spending money where it doesn't need to be spent. My fiance said the jeweler didn't mention anything about it. They also talked him into upgrading the prongs holding the diamond on top (its halo w/cushion cut diamond on top) to PLATINUM prongs. What they failed to tell him is that is more expensive when it comes time to have to re-dip. I didn't even know about re-dipping until my MOH told me that she had been weaseled into a platinum upgrade, and when she went in to get the scratches fixed by re-dipping (which is when I found out what re-dipping was..lol...) it was waaaay expensive! So any help with regards to this stuff would be appreciated! Thanks< Em

mrscaty · July 2014

Most prongs are platinum. It's more durable. So you can pay to upgrade to platinum prongs now OR have a higher chance of your diamond falling out because gold prongs are softer. As for rhodium dipping - your white gold ring will fade and yellow. The dipping shouldn't be too expensive. I think most jewelers it is less than $50. You don't HAVE to do it every six months. You can do it when you notice your ring yellowing. But doing it every six months will help keep the ring looking nice.

In short, you don't HAVE to do either of these things. But I don't think either of them are jewelers trying to screw you out of money.

banana468 · July 2014

PP is sort of correct but your ring doesn't "yellow".
My husband has degrees in mechanical engineering and metallurgy and materials engineering so this is what he taught me:

It's important to know your metals and their properties.

White gold is not a pure metal. It's an alloy of gold and a silver-toned metal like nickel or palladium. You will never find 24K white gold because 24K is pure gold and it's impossible for the alloy to be pure.

When you see white gold jewelry, it gets its shine from being plated in rhodium. Actual white gold looks a bit dingy but rhodium is in the platinum family and had a great luster. Consequently, you rarely see a white gold item in its real state until the plating wears off from natural use. The ring isn't yellowing but instead, you see the actual white gold and no more plating in rhodium.

Keep in mind that platinum is much stronger than gold. Most prongs are platinum or palladium (a metal in the Platinum family with similar properties but less expensive than platinum) because they hold the stone with less chance of bending.

If your ring is white gold it isn't bad but it will need replating over time. However, I'd go to a different jeweler because it sounds like they're trying to upsell you now that they already got your FI to spend money which sounds fishy.

FWIW, if you don't want your ring to have to be replated, ask a good jeweler about working with palladium. It's more popular now and should be available. Platinum is a great option too (my e-ring, wedding band and DH'S band are all platinum), but will be slightly pricier.

Senecaf · July 2014

I have a white gold ring. My jeweler re-dips for free whenever I want it done. I am pretty rough on my hands and my ring certainly shows it on the underside. I have not had it re dipped yet, but since it doesn't cost anything I will have it done soon.

kns1988 · July 2014

I have a white gold ring, and I can really tell that the color has changed after 7 months of being engaged. I'll get it re-dipped before the wedding so that it matches the new wedding band, but I'll probably let it go after that. I don't mind the yellowish color.

MyNameIsNot · July 2014

Check with the jeweler. It may be free. My wedding band has free dipping, and they usually dip my engagement band free or super cheap at the same time.

Every six months is a bit of an exaggeration, IMHO. It was 2 years before I felt the need to get mine dipped the first time. That may depend on body chemistry, though.

RissAnn1970 · July 2014

I have had my white gold engagement ring since July 26, 2008, and have never had it redipped. I have worn it 24/7, to shower, sleep, cook, bake, clean, garden, put in a stone path, dig a pond, change tires, make homemade pasta, take care of babies, make soap and candles, refinish furniture, face paint, and a host of other things I can't think of offhand.

It's not yellowed at all.

mysticl · July 2014

I have no idea if mine have been redipped or not. MIne are under warranty from the jeweler and to kept the warranty active I have to take them in for a cleaning/inspection every 6 months. They don't mention redipping them but they look shiny when they are done.

Cookie Pusher · July 2014

My body chemistry apparently makes the plating wear off faster, I guess, as my e-ring was noticeably yellow within 2-3 months of wearing it. It didn't bother me but I did have it dipped a few weeks ago so it will look nicer at my wedding.

artbyallie · July 2014

Platinum doesn't need plating, but I certainly don't see why having a platinum head/prongs would make it more expensive to rhodium. It shouldn't cost more than 25-30 bucks per, and realistically you can probably go 2 years or more between, unless your personal chemistry wears off the rhodium faster. Some people do 'need' (or notice enough to want) it done every 6 months. My rings are currently at 2 years without, though I want to get it in the next few months.

If you feel your jeweler is charging too much, go price out some other places. I know for the one I work at, we would either just rhodium the whole thing as is, or coat the platinum part to keep it from getting plated and take off the coating afterward. The latter is what we do for pieces that incorporate rose or yellow gold with white in the same piece.

WinstonsGirl · July 2014

I had mine dipped for my wedding and they just did it again, 2 1/2 years later. My ring was actually in cos the centre stone was loose and it was being fixed. They re dipped it without asking so it was all pretty shiny and sparkles when I got it back. I haven't been charged for it yet.

getaclue44 · July 2014

I get my ring cleaned every six months for free, but have not needed to get it redipped. I am not sure what they clean it in, but it is really sparkly when I get it back. I have had it for three years and it has not started to yellow at all.

MollyandD · July 2014

I can also get my ring redipped any time I want. I think it has to do with a special lifetime coverage option that we bought. I didn't redip my ring until a couple weeks before the wedding. I am really happy with how new it looked once I did that. It made it look great for wedding pictures.

WildMagelet · July 2014

My mother gave me her white gold engagement ring from my dad (they divorced when I was 12). I wear it opposite my e-ring. I am allergic to nickel and have to get it replated after about 6-7 months of continuous wear or else it makes my hand swell. Cosmetically getting it replated is just a preference. I usually costs between $30-40 each time I have it replated depending on where I take it. If your FI bought it from a jeweler it might be covered for regular maintenance including replating.

ohmrs2014 · July 2014

Replating is free for me as well. DH took out a lifetime warranty plan on the e-ring and wedding band when we purchased it. It covers sizing, replacing of stones that fall out, and replating.

misshart00 · July 2014

I have no idea if mine is free but I've had my ring about 3 years and never had it replated. It seems perfect when it's cleaned. But I might ask them next time I go.

tammym1001 · July 2014

My jeweler dips mine for free every 6 months. I actually didn't get it done on my e-ring for the year and a half I wore it before the wedding. It looked exactly the same to me as it did when I got it so I didn't think it was necessary. I had it dipped before the wedding when they soldered my wedding bands to it and it turns out I was completely wrong. Having it re-dipped made a huge difference. I just couldn't tell how much it had changed because I see it every day and it was a gradual change. It's not something that you have to do, but if it's included with your ring I would recommend just getting it done.

MairePoppy · July 2014

RissAnn1970 said:

I have had my white gold engagement ring since July 26, 2008, and have never had it redipped. I have worn it 24/7, to shower, sleep, cook, bake, clean, garden, put in a stone path, dig a pond, change tires, make homemade pasta, take care of babies, make soap and candles, refinish furniture, face paint, and a host of other things I can't think of offhand. It's not yellowed at all.

: ) I have been married for 36 years and have worn my white gold engagement and wedding rings every day, all day, except for when I had them re-sized and had one of the prongs repaired.They haven't yellowed or been re-plated, ever. I wonder if they used something more resilient, back then, to make the gold white.

Thanks banana468 for the interesting information.

banana468 · July 2014

You're welcome! You can also thank a quality UCONN education!

I'm guessing your ring never yellowed because the alloy makes the metal more white. To say that white gold yellows is a little incorrect. My mom's wedding band hasn't been replated either and it just had more of a matte finish now that she's had it 37 years.

VerizonGirl · July 2014

If you get high quality white gold, it won't need to be redipped. I've had my rings on since the summer of 2004 and no redipping necessary.

[Deleted User] · July 2014

Yes, if you get a white gold ring, get it done. Mine hasn't been done in a while (2 years) and it is showing. Especially on the inside where my finger constantly rubs it. You will notice the change, and it's not pricey at all to get it cleaned and re-dipped.

eclv82 · July 2014

thanks! That really helped, everyone!! He did get the lifetime warranty plan, where I have to go in every 6 months for "maintenance" cleaning and stone check, and have no idea if its included...oh ill find out from FI! And since wedding is in a little less than a year and a half, I see from all of you lovely ladies that I can wait til then to see if it even needs it!
And thanks banana468! Awesome info!!!

HauteRoxy · July 2014

@eclv82
Sorry for the off-topic question in your thread!

hopefully someone will know . . I have been wearing a super thin 10K yellow gold necklace and 10K yellow gold cross since I was 16 (I'm 35) . . I NEVER take it off except for xrays, surgery, etc. that is IT.

Obviously I will be wearing it on my wedding day as well, but all of my other jewelry is white gold - I prefer it now anyway. Even before my engagement I have thought about this a few times.

Is it a big deal to have yellow gold dipped in white to change it? Does that work? Will it look off or discolored?

artbyallie · July 2014

@HauteRoxy, it will wear off of the chain faster than the pendant. You should take them to a local jeweler and ask if it is an option. The store I work at does it, but we generally like to have a look at the jewelry in case there are other concerns we want to address.

HauteRoxy · July 2014

Thank you so much @artbyaallie !!!

I think I will leave it alone. I am notorious for grabbing the charm and pulling it back and forth across the chain, so I am certain that will wear it quicker ..

It probably will look odd too if it is worn off and the charm isn't I guess.

Oh well!

I might take it to the jeweler a few blocks away and see what he thinks just to satisfy my curiosity completely . . lol

Maggie0829 · July 2014

I have a white gold ring. I have yet to have it re-dipped. My e-ring is 4 years old and my wedding band is 3 years old. I can definitely tell, mainly on the portion of the ring that faces my palm, that it is starting to get discolored/dingy looking. That also could be because my rings haven't been professionally cleaned in 3 years as well. I have been meaning to go back to my jeweler and have it re-dipped and cleaned but they are located 45 minutes away and I just haven't had time.

I do think that re-dipping every 6 months is excessive.

jenna8984 · July 2014

Find out if it was even dipped to begin with. When I was given my ring, I went to the jeweler and asked why it was so yellow-ish (for white gold). He told me he does not dip them pre-purchase like most stores. He said I could get it dipped but then I'd have to keep re-dipping or I could just leave it alone and never dip it and it would alwways look the same with no maintenance. So I decided to just live with the color and not get it dipped so I won't have to keep up with it. So find out if yours was already dipped or not, if not you can just continue to not.

iloveotters2014 · July 2014

I was engaged for almost 2 years before I was married. I never really noticed any changes in my ring (probably because I clean it quite often). However, when I went to pick up our wedding bands a few days before the wedding they cleaned and redipped my ring for free....Oh man! It looked brand new! I loved it.

Redipping is free since we purchased our rings there so I am thinking I will probably have it done every couple of years as upkeep.

photokitty · July 2014

Re-dipping is the reason I got platinum rings - ain't nobody got time fo' dat!

I have simple bands - tiffany style ering and solid 2mm wedding band - so the cost difference wasn't bad at all.

DH got palladium for the same reason. It's also more durable. Platinum doesn't lose weight over time, gold can start to thin over the years - but it takes a long time.

rhoduim plating? Re-dipping? is this really necessary?

Re: rhoduim plating? Re-dipping? is this really necessary?

Choose Another Board

Search Boards