Caring For Your Opal
You’ve chosen an opal that truly reflects your unique personality. Wear it proudly and revel in its beauty. Just like you, your opal is one of a kind and incredibly precious.
Here’s how to care for your special piece to ensure it remains as stunning as the day you first wore it!
Opal Care Guide
Opal stands in a class by itself. More than any other gem, each opal is distinctly individual. Like many other gemstones, opals are delicate. They require care to ensure their health and longevity.
How hard is opal? Is opal soft?
Opal is approximately the same hardness as glass. There is an exponential scale of hardness for gemstones, it’s called the Moh’s Scale.
From 1 to 10 – with 10 being the hardest, which is a diamond. Pearl is 2 and opal is about a 6 – 6.5 compared to quartz and sapphire approx 7.
Opal is therefore not ‘soft’.
Does Water Damage Opal?
Homogenous solid Australian opals cannot be damaged by water as they are impervious to liquids. In fact, most precious Australian opals contain about 5.6 – 6.5% molecular water. Opal may crack if subjected to extremely dry conditions or rapid changes in temperature, just like any other gemstone. Try to avoid very high temperatures or low humidity, such as boiling water or zero humidity bank vaults.
Cleaning Your Opal
Homogenous solid Australian opals should be cleaned gently with mild detergent in warm water, using a baby soft toothbrush or non-abrasive cloth then either air dried or with a dedicated soft jewellery cloth (glasses cloth can be used as long as it is not used for any other reason and kept in a sealed bag). Avoid bleach and harsh chemicals. Note though that whilst hand sanitiser or liquid soap with moisturiser will not damage Lightning Ridge opal, the metal setting may be either compromised or become slippery and possibly lost – so please be careful especially with rings when washing hands.
You may place homogenous solid opal jewellery in a jewellers’ quality liquid cleaner, following the manufacturer’s directions for use, then polish with a jewellery polishing cloth.
Never allow anyone to clean your opal in an ultrasonic cleaner, as the intense ultrasonic vibrations may cause cracking in a solid opal.
WARNING – Never place opal doublets, opal triplets, matrix opal or non Australian homogenous opal into any liquid for cleaning. Our opal cleaning instructions are for homogenous solid Australian opals and more specifically for Lightning Ridge solid opal which has no exposed clay or sandstone in the face or back of the opal.
Repolishing Your Opal
If your stone loses its shine or becomes scratched, bring it back to Down to Earth Opals. As with any jewellery, years of wear may result in small scratches and scuff marks that may cause an opal to lose its shine and become dull looking. This mainly occurs in opal rings.
Professional polishing can bring new life to an opal, which has become dull or scratched. Subject to the type of setting and/or access to the dome of the stone, not all opal jewellery can be repolished.
We will assess the ability to repolish parts of your opal and advise our considerations and caveats prior to undertaking any work.
Storing Your Opal
If you need to store your opal for a period of time, simply place it in a padded cloth bag (remember to remove the chain) or the original box for protection and put it away.
For longer storage periods, place your opal in cotton wool with a few drops of water, then into a sealed plastic bag then into the original box. The water will not soak into the stone, but will prevent water leaving the stone if it is exposed to very low humidity environments (for example, very low humidity storage conditions/safes).
Follow the below guide to enjoy the beauty of your opal jewellery forever!
Caring for Your Solid Opal Ring
It is important to treat your opal carefully, to avoid damaging it by scratching or breakage. We recommend removing your opal rings when working in the garden, going to the beach, doing house work, preparing food at the kitchen bench, during physical or sporting activities, while washing dishes, etc.
It is important to take your opal ring (as with all gemstone rings) to a reputable jeweller once a year for a check-up 😊. Your jeweller will advise if there is any claw or bezel wear and make the necessary recommendations to ensure your opal is nice and snug in its setting.
Caring for Your Solid Opal Necklace/Pendant
If you wear an opal pendant on a long chain, take care that it doesn’t swing forward and collide with a hard surface. Store your opal pendant in a cloth bag, removing the chain. As with an opal ring, your opal pendant should be checked every 12 months for claw or bezel wear by any reputable jeweller.
Caring for Your Solid Opal Earrings
Enjoy wearing your opal earrings every day! Remember to take them off when going to the beach. Also have them checked every 12 months by a reputable jeweller for claw or bezel wear.
Caring for Your Solid Opal Specimen Pendant
Wear your opal specimen pendant all day, every day! If your opal becomes discoloured from frequent wear, simply clean it with a soft toothbrush and mild detergent to restore its shine.
Caring for Your Opal Specimen Sample Piece
To maintain the beauty of your natural opal specimen, dust it off periodically. For pieces with minimal clay stone, you can clean them with a soft toothbrush and mild detergent to remove any dirt from handling.
If you need to store your opal specimen for a period of time, simply place it in a padded cloth bag and put it away.
For longer storage periods, as long as the specimen does not contain substantial clay or sandstone, place your opal in cotton wool with a few drops of water, then into a sealed plastic bag then into the original box. The water will not soak into the stone, but will prevent water leaving the stone if it is exposed to very low humidity environments (for example low humidity environments).
Caring for Your Doublet or Triplet Opal
Opal doublets and triplets consist of a gem opal layer bonded to a dark backing and, in the case of a triplet opal, a clear quartz or glass cap bonded to the face of the stone to protect the thin layer of opal. You can enjoy your doublet or triplet opal for many years by following these simple guidelines.
Avoid getting your doublet or triplet wet for substantial lengths of time (e.g. lengthy immersion in water). This does not mean your opal will be ruined if you wear it in the shower once or twice, or are caught in the rain.
Prolonged immersion in water could allow water to penetrate between the layers, which may cause the layers to separate, producing a foggy or grey appearance or even visible condensation inside the stone.
Cleaning Your Doublet or Triplet Opal Jewellery
Doublets and triplets may be cleaned by wiping with a damp soft cloth and mild detergent, but should never be soaked or immersed in liquid. Never use bleach, chemicals, cleaners or ultrasonic cleaners.