Metal finishing Q&As since 1989

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Electroplating

2002

I Rebuild Clarinets, And I Thought It Would Be A Good Idea To SilverPlate, Or Goldplate The Metal Parts. How Do I Do This?

I Remember From College That To Chrome Plate, You Use A Tank (IE Aquarium) A DC Source Of Power (IE A Car Battery)Connecting The Pos. Terminal To The Chrome, And The Neg Terminal To The Work. The Tank Has A Liquid Solution In It. This Is What I Forget, Along With A Lot Of Other Things.

Looking Forward To Your Response,

Bill Murphy
- British Columbia, Canada

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First of two simultaneous responses --

Let me be repetitive and say again, what I just said on letter 15106: "I almost wish schools would discontinue their electroplating demonstrations because my experience from thousands of letters posted here is that it leads most newbies to have ludicrously unrealistic expectations about what is involved in electroplating and what is achievable on a casual basis :-)"

I very strongly doubt that you saw chrome plating in school, and you certainly didn't see a terminal connected to the chrome because chrome plating isn't done that way. It is obviously not impossible to silver or gold plate, but to think that you are going to do it with a fish aquarium and a car battery is what I mean by "ludicrously unrealistic expectations". Take the first one to a plating shop and follow it through the process; I don't think the plater will have any worries about a new competitor after you see how much is involved.

Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
2002

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Second of two simultaneous responses --

Theoretically, you are on the right track. Electroplating is a reduction / oxidization reaction in which a metal anode dissolves into solution and is deposited on the part, which acts as a cathode. What you may not know is that hazardous chemicals are involved. You would need to be qualified to handle and dispose of the chemicals safely. As a result, you would also have legal issues to contend with. For these reasons, most of the experts here recommend that industrial plating be done only by industrial plating operations.

Tim Neveau
Rochester Hills, Michigan
2002