I discovered a wonderful piece of equipment called Speed Brite. It
is an ionic cleaner that works wonders on tarnish and is safe for
all stones (opals, emeralds, etc. that are not ultrasonic safe). We
got one for our store when we had a lot of temporary holiday help
and we didn’t want to risk having them damage items by putting
things they shouldn’t in the ultrasonic. We discovered it was
especially effective at removing tarnish from silver gently and
thoroughly. I hope that helps!
In Australia we use a JCR ionic cleaner. Great for everything but
Argentium as there is no need to use it on this metal. Just a quick
wipe with a polishing cloth is all Argentium needs.
Paul- Unless you are on well water with a very high mineral content
you shouldn’t need distilled water for a sonic.
We use the cheap little plastic strainers that come from the Dollar
Store to place small objects into while they are in the sonic. Every
thing else that can be suspended is put on a piece of scrap plastic
coated electrical wire that is shaped to hook on the edges of the
sonic with little bends in the middle to keep rings etc from rubbing
against each other. That way any grit on the object falls to the
bottom of the sonic and is not trapped in the same container that
contains the object you are cleaning. Less contact with grit less
likely that the piece will be scratched by vibrating vibrating up
against the grit.