FMF - Friends of Minerals Forum, discussion and message board

[Piroska Magyar]

Hi :-)

Could someone perhaps give me advice as to how to clean my Amethyst !!! Thank You!!

Kind Regards,
Piroska

[GneissWare]

Super Iron Out...
https://www.summitbrands.com/summit/downloads/msds/usa/MSDS%20Super%20Iron%20Out.pdf
(link normalized by FMF)

[Pete Richards]

[gemlover]

First, warm water, soap and a soft toothbrush

then, if you need to do additional cleaning, especially rust stains -- oxalic acid soak -- but be careful with acids and use gloves, eye protection, etc.

john

[Piroska Magyar]

WOW!! Thanks for the advice...........will try it !! :-)

[Piroska Magyar]

Thank You for All who replied :-) much appreciated :-)

[Pierre Joubert]

A day or two in lukewarm oxalic acid should do the trick. Leave the container with your specimen and oxalic acid in the sun. Just a word of caution: Brandberg Quartz specimens (more than quartz specimens from most other areas) do not like a quick change in temperature. Also, do not attempt to boil quartz in oxalic acid! Quartz from some areas do not like that.

[GneissWare]

Super Iron Out is safer to use, and generally more effective for most rust-stain removal. It is near pH of 7 as well.

Oxalic can create worse problems if you live where the water is hard (hi Ca content), as it can leave a calcium oxalate stain which is insoluble except in HF. You sometimes see it on minerals as a weird yellow stain. If you decide to use oxalic, use deionized water for the cleaning mixture. Tap water is fine for the rinse.

[Scott LaBorde]

I definitely second the use of Super Iron Out for cleaning that piece. I've been cleaning my quartz specimens for years without ever having a problem. As stated by GneissWare it's much safer to use and very effective. I have forgotten specimens in a solution of Super Iron Out for a week and still had no damage or residue. It only becomes a problem when the acid is completely broken down and the solution can no longer hold the dissolved iron. It will then re-precipitate on your specimen. Just make sure to remove the specimens before the solution starts to turn yellowish brown or some color that's not white or clear. The temperature of the water is best warm, but room temperature is totally fine. 2 - 3 days in a solution would be fine for yours.

[Mark Randle]

Sodium Dithionate (Super Iron Out) works well on most quartzes with iron staining as Scott and others stated. When we have extremely heavily coated pieces oxalic works faster, assuming the discoloration or scaling is primarily iron oxide. Avoid temperature shock regardless of whether en hydros are suspected or not. Pieces from some locales that have overgrowth or sceptering may have ingress paths that are not visible uncleaned so an overnight soak in plain distilled water before acid or Iron Out may allow these paths to fill somewhat and prevent trapped clays from discoloring in the cleaning solution. As John said, always start with a mild soap and a soft toothbrush. Always finish with a plain water bath. Always wear gloves and avoid breathing fumes from oxalic and Iron Out.

Oh, and don't even think about using or storing oxalic inside unless you want every ferrous object in the surrounding area to rust. Also, neutralize acid baths with baking soda before disposal.

Mark

[Jordi Fabre]

Piroska,
Is a lot of info already available in FMF about this topic. Please use the Search for a text and write the words: "Super Iron Out" or "Sodium Dithionite" or "Oxalic" and you will be surprised with the results! ;-)

[Piroska Magyar]

Thank You !!! All advice much appreciated..........will keep you posted once I have cleaned my Amethyst :-) I am new to this Forum still learning where and how I can post things etc.

Cheers!
Piroska