Ways to Know the Purity of your Gold at Home

In the United States of America, less than ten karats gold is considered fake gold. If you are wondering whether your gold is real or not, there are several ways to test and evaluate your precious metal. The most reliable way to test your gold’s purity is to take it to certify jewelers or gold buying company and have it tested. Always have it tested at two or more places.

Some quick ways to test to see if your gold is genuine can be done with items that you can find around your home. Look for discoloration on jewelry especially between links or connections that rub against each other. If the jewelry is in use and shows a different color beneath it means that you have only gold plated jewelry. Gold is not a magnetic metal if you place a small magnet next to your gold item and it moves then the item is not real. Find an unglazed ceramic plate and drag your gold item across the surface. A black streak means your gold is not real, whereas a gold streak indicates your item is genuine.

 

Purity of gold is measured in terms of karats. Many people confuse karat as a measurement of its weight similar to diamonds. Gold purity can differ from 10 – 24 karat karats. In the U.S. 14 karat is most commonly used in making jewelry. The higher the karats the purer and higher value of the gold. 24 karat gold is 100% pure gold.  14 karat is 58% or .583 pure gold. You will see 24 karat gold in coins, gold bullion, gold jewelry or bars.

Real gold will have laser engraving or stamping on jewelry displaying the purity of the gold. This is known as the quality control stamp or hallmark. You may need a magnifying glass to find these small stamps. Depending on the country where the gold is produced can change how the stamp is displayed.

There are few metals denser than gold. Measuring density is another method to know the purity of your gold. Here’s how;  1.Weigh your gold in grams. 2.Fill a container that has millimeter markings on it with water to about the middle and to nearest mm marking. 3. Place gold into the container and make a note the difference between old and new water level in mm. 4.Density =mass/volume.  Example 50g (gold)/3.5ml (water displacement) = 14.28 g/ml.

14k = 12.9 to 14.6 g/ml                        18k = 15.2 to 15.9 g/ml 

22k = 17.7 to 17.8 g/ml                        24k = 17.9 to 19.3 g/ml

 The age old tradition of biting gold to test its authenticity was used throughout history because pure gold is relatively soft and the more base metals mixed with gold the harder the metal. The bigger the mark from the bite the purer the gold. Today you will see gold medal winning athlete’s pose with their medal between their teeth attesting to this old gold testing tradition.

 

Do you know of any ways to home test gold purity with house hold products?

By, Kevin Robbins
Gold Solutions, LLC