Degreasing question. Material turns golden colors.

[WolfeMacleod]

Okm, another dumbd question. This one has actually been plaguing me for some time.

As with my other posts, the material I'm working with in nickel-silver. 18% "German Silver" it's also called.


Using any method - the Caswell degreaser, Simple Green, or even a dishwasher, the parts turn a golden yellow color after a few minutes.
I had originally thought it was the heating of the part because I was previously running them through a dishwashing cycle before "aging" them with acid, but I learned today that's not the case. I left a part in Simple Green/water for about ten minutes today, and when I pulled it out, the part was golden. The mixture was cool. Earlier, a hot mixture did the same thing...
I also ran another part through the washer...same problem.
And I get the same problem withthe SP degreaser, too. The part I just pulled out of the SP is a very dark golden brownish.

What could be causing this? And will it affect the plating in a negative way?


Other than that, still making progress with plating. A little mild pitting issue to figure out...very tiny pinhole pits.