Nickel plating kits and electroplating kits can

Various metals that can be used with nickel as the covering plating metal include chrome, steel (stainless or not), iron, copper, brass, bronze and aluminum. Once plated with nickel a buff, polish and cleaning can make the nickel shine and take on a great appearance similar to chrome. Nickel also has great weather resistance along with a hardness and anti-corrosion quality.

Options of kits for the home nickel plater range from the brush plating kit to the small tank kit or the electroless kits. Each one has its advantages over the other while offering a wide range of alternatives. There are several online dealers that sell these kits all over the world. It's important to look into what each one has to offer the novice at-home plater before deciding on which kits to buy.

A nickel plating kit that uses a tank for larger pieces may include five gallons or so of a tank solution like copper alkaline for use in building up a copper base before plating is done. This will be used on materials like steel that require a base coat (plate) before a final deposit of nickel is done. The tank kit may include nickel solution for plating, nickel anodes and wires. This would be used with a battery or power supply. A 10 amp rectifier may also be recommended for use with a tank kit which may just be plastic five gallon buckets.

A brush electroplating nickel kit is very easy and simple to use and also safe. It is for smaller objects and would include metal wands and a swab bandage that affixes to the end of the wand piece. After dipping the wand and swab into a solution the plating can begin. Kits will commonly include a clip for the anode, the plating material (nickel), which is on the positive charge and a clip for the cathode, the object to be plated, and is on the negative end of the charge. These kits use 120 volt of AC power, 16 oz of nickel plating solution and instructions.

The electroless nickel kit is very simple and uses objects submerged into a heated nickel solution in order to plate the base material. Electroless plating can be very even and uniform compared to plating with electricity which can leave thin spots in divots or recessed areas. Regardless of the kit used the base material should always be cleaned and repaired as much as possible before plating begins.