The methods for identifying gold at home include magnetic testing, observing the surface of gold, gold hardness testing, listening to the sound of gold falling to the ground, ceramic scratch testing, etc.
How to identify gold at home
1. Test with magnet
Gold is not a magnetic metal. When identifying gold at home, you can use a magnet to test it. If your gold is attracted by a magnet, it proves that it is not real gold. If your gold is not attracted by a magnet, it may be real gold, but there are many non-magnetic metals, and this method can only rule out low-quality gold.
2. Look at the surface of gold
The surface of gold jewelry must be bright and clean, without obvious processing marks, sharp corners, and smooth to the touch. There should be no pores, impurities, etc. on the surface. Additionally, it is important to carefully observe for any cracks to avoid purchasing jewelry that has undergone secondary processing.
3. Test the hardness of gold
In TV dramas, some people use their teeth to bite gold to distinguish its authenticity, and this method is actually feasible. Because pure gold has low hardness, biting it with teeth will leave tooth marks. So, when identifying pure gold, you can try its hardness. If the hardness is too high, it cannot be pure gold. (Excluding 3D hard gold)
4. Listen to the sound of gold falling to the ground
When real gold with a purity of over 99% is thrown onto the ground, it will make a "click" sound, with no rhyme or elasticity. Fake or low-quality gold has a crisp and dull sound, usually emitting a "dang dang" sound, with a loud, crisp and sharp sound, residual notes, and a rebound.
5. Ceramic scratch test
Use unglazed ceramics to test the authenticity of gold. Use ceramic to scratch your gold product. If it is a black scratch, it means your product is not gold. If it is a gold scratch, it proves that your product is gold.
6. Look at the golden steel stamp mark
Domestic gold jewelry is purified and formulated according to international standards, and each gold jewelry is marked with a steel seal. If "24K" indicates "full red" or "full gold"; 18K gold, marked with the words "18K". But now many unscrupulous merchants on the market will forge marks, so other methods are needed to assist in identification.
7. Look at the golden color
Gold is "seven shades of green, eight shades of yellow, nine shades of purple, and ten shades of red". The higher the purity of gold, the darker its color will be.
Gold presenting a deep reddish yellow color with a purity of over 95%;
Presenting light reddish yellow gold with a purity of 90-95%;
Presenting light yellow gold; Purity is between 80-85%;
Presenting a greenish yellow color of gold with a purity of 65-70%;
Gold that presents excellent blue with white light, with a purity of only 50-60%;
And gold appears slightly yellow and white, with a purity of less than 50%.