QuestionHi, I accidentally spilled some toxic fabric glue on my engagement ring and it has hardened under the stones. Any ideas? I'll be heartbroken if I have ruined the stones but I don't want to harm the gold by using something to remove it. The ring is yellow gold.
AnswerGood New Year to you, June. I will try to help with your fabric glue on your engagement ring situation.
First, it would be good to know what sort of cement you are really dealing with. That is one way to get a clue about cement removal. If my answer does not help, look at the small print on the cement container and find the ingredients. Then do a web search for "removal" of that stuff or for a solvent to remove the cement. Keep in mind, some solvents affect many substances and are not safe on some plastics, furniture finishes, etc. However, you are dealing with the items least affected by solvents overall: Gold and gemstones. Are the stone diamonds? If so, the solvent should not affect the stones at all. Gold will not be damaged and perhaps a bit of discoloration is the worse possibility. But I don't believe even that will happen in trying to remove the cement. All said, you can calm down and not worry about permanent damage. : )
By any chance does the cement contain alpha-cyanoacrylate? If so, then this cement is just another form and brand name for super glue. What I am going to recommend you try is a solvent for super glue. The solvent is acetone and works for several sorts of cements. Where to get acetone? You can get a jug at a home center but will certainly not need that much! The easiest way to find it is in fingernail polish remover. Some newer polish removers do not contain acetone and I am not certain how well those will work. Look for the ingredient acetone in the polish remover. If you can't find it, try the other sort but as I said I am not certain of the ability of it to remove the cement.
GEMSTONES
Some gemstones can be damaged by solvents. These are porous stones such as lapis and turquoise and stone with fillers to make the stones look better. Faceted gemstones such as emerald may be damaged. The solvent is not hurting the emeralds but is removing oils soaked into the stones to hide flaws at the place the stones were cut. The oils come out and the flaws show! A jeweler can likely reoil emeralds but I recommend against even trying to remove the cement with a solvent if emeralds are involved. In the case of gemstones such as these, take the ring to a jeweler for help in removing the cement. Sapphires, rubies, topaz and other solid faceted stones will not be damaged by the solvents.
HOW TO DO IT
Your can take a fine bit of cotton swab and fill it with the fingernail polish remover(or straight acetone). Place this on the stone as close to the cement as possible, coming in from the back side if you can. Acetone will evaporate quickly. Rub gently. You can go one more step which may be slightly more messy but works just fine: Get a small ziplock bag, put the ring in the bag, pour in enough solvent to cover the stones and shut the bag tight. Set aside for an hour and then check the cement with the end of a sharp toothpick. Loosened by the solvent, some cement may pop off when touched by the toothpick. If it needs more time, it is back in the bag to soak longer.
You really do not want to breath the fumes of the acetone so be sure to use with good ventilation. And, the fumes are flammable and you must keep it away from flames.
Keep in mind that the long term security of your ring is important and that means the stones are secure and set tightly in the ring. Use this cleaning time to closely look at the stone for security. With the toothpick or other fine point touch each stone and see if it moves in the setting. If so, it needs to go to a jeweler to be tightened. If glue is still on a stone and the stone moves, take it to a jeweler. Do not try and rub off the loosened cement if a stone shows movement since that pressure could make the stone come out.
All in all, if the cement is what I believe it is, the acetone/finger polish remover should take off the cement pretty well with no rubbing needed. When through soaking, rinse in fresh water, wash gently with mild detergent, rinse and dry.
This method should work for most cements. If your cement is a less common one the solvent may not work and that means searching for a proper solvent to do the job.
Best wishes, God Bless and Peace. Thomas
