Ways to Identify Gold Purity at Home

Gold jewellery is available to gold lovers in exotic styles and even colours, like yellow gold, white gold, and rose gold. While these exotic styles can be classified into traditional and modern, one thing remains common – the value of the gold. Over the centuries, gold value has multiplied unbelievably. Today people buy gold not only as jewellery but also for its investment value.

Gold price varies as per its purity. Owners of gold jewellery, ornaments and other items have always known the importance of gold purity. Many traders use fraud and counterfeiting to cheat people who do not know how to identify the purity. It is very difficult to tell real gold from fake by looking at it, even though the colour and shine of 24 carat gold varies from 10 carat gold.

How to tell if gold is real? It is important to know how to identify real gold from fake to get the best out of their gold investment. Did you know you can identify the purity of your gold items in a few straightforward ways at home?

Here are five easy ways by which one can know how to test gold at home:

How to Tell if Gold is Real: 5 Easy Ways to Identify Purity of Gold at Home

1. Magnet Test

It is the easiest and most inexpensive way to test gold’s purity. Pure gold does not have magnetic properties and is non-reactive to it, but several metals are mixed with gold to bring down its purity.

Why this works: Anyone who wants to test the purity of their gold holdings can bring an inexpensive piece of magnet and check the gold item instantly for its purity. If the item attaches itself to the magnate, it is most probably a fake.

Tip: So with a strong magnet at home, easily check the purity of their gold items. Magnets are readily available in the market.

2. Hallmark

The Indian government made hallmarks mandatory for gold items in June 2021. Gold owners can look for the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) mark, Caratage, and the jeweller’s identification mark on the jewellery piece to ascertain its hallmark certification.

Why this works: The hallmark certification tells how pure the gold is and how much quantity of alloy is mixed in it. 24-karat gold is the purest gold and has no metals mixed in it.

3. Float Test

Why this works: Gold is a thick and hard metal with high density. The heaviness or density of gold is a clear indicator of its authenticity. It is a free and instant method of testing whether the gold item is genuine.

Tip: To test, fill a bucket with water and drop your gold item. If the gold piece sinks, it is pure gold. Pure gold’s high density makes it sink in water. On the other hand, if there is an impurity in the gold article, it will float on the water’s surface.

4. Acid Test

The most genuine and reliable way to test gold’s purity is through the acid test. The accuracy of this test is relatively higher, and it can be performed conveniently at home. Pure gold does not react with nitric acid but with other alloys, like zinc and copper.

Why this works: Since this test involves using chemical substances, be careful when performing it. Conduct the acid test in a well-ventilated room and wear gloves before performing the purity test. Also, if your ornaments turn out to be impure, doing the test at home can damage its beauty.

Tip: Get a gold testing kit containing nitric acid and a black stone resembling a jeweller’s stone. Rub the gold article on the stone and add a few drops of nitric acid to the scratch mark. If other metals are present on the scratch mark, nitric acid will dissolve them.

5. Vinegar Test

Tip: Your kitchen items can also help you establish the purity of your gold possessions. Drop some drops of vinegar on the gold article. If it is pure gold, vinegar will not change the colour of the article.

With these simple methods, test the purity of gold articles. For transparent and profitable deals, find the best place to sell gold and identify genuine gold-buying companies to deal with.If you want to sell a pure gold item, trust Muthoot Gold Point – it is a trusted gold-buying company to sell hallmark-certified gold ornament and other items.