Gold, with the exception of platinum, is the most expensive metal on the planet. Its undoubted advantages include plasticity, a large specific gravity, resistance to external influences and, of course, excellent sunny luster. Gold does not rust and does not dissolve in almost any known aggressive substance. Metal is rare, but in small quantities it is everywhere - in the earth, in water, in ash and even in plants. Gold can be mined both by industrial and artisanal methods. Prospectors often wash it, of course, in rivers and streams. This procedure is technically simple, but usually very laborious. In this article, we will fully understand how to wash gold.
Where to looking for?
Gold is a chemically inert metal. That is, it rarely forms various kinds of compounds with other substances. Therefore, in nature, gold is most often found in the form of nuggets. The sizes of the latter are very different. Small accumulations of gold may even be invisible to the naked eye. In nature, there is also golden sand or small nuggets weighing 1-3 grams. Such valuable “pieces” can be found in many rivers and streams - even where there have never been miners. But sometimes in nature you can also find very valuable large nuggets - weighing from 10 grams.
Where can I wash gold or find it? There are only two main varieties of such deposits: ore and placer. A huge advantage of the latter is that during their development it is not necessary to crush ore and dig deep mines. Alluvial deposits are formed in rivers due to the leaching of mountain quartz gold-bearing rocks by water . The stream carries away pieces of metal from the earth downstream. At the turns of a river or stream, or near any obstacles, grains of sand or nuggets stop their movement, gradually accumulating. Such places are called "nests." It is here that prospectors usually work.
How is gold mined in rivers?
Of course, metal located in water or on the shore (when changing the channel of a river or stream) does not lie directly on the surface. Anyone seeking an answer to the question of how to wash gold properly should bear in mind that nuggets in placer deposits are always mixed with stones, sand, clay, silt.
Actually, in order to remove them, a method such as flushing with a tray is used. Gold, as already mentioned, has a large specific gravity. Basalt stones, sandstone and other rocks usually weigh less. Therefore, when flushing, they simply drain with water. Gold itself remains at the bottom of the tray.
What to bring
We will talk about how to wash gold in the river below. First, let's figure out what is needed for this procedure. Of course, first of all, the prospector, who decided to get nuggets, will need to take a tray with him. In addition, you will need a pipette and several containers for gold itself. Nuggets are often very small and difficult to pick up with their fingers. For this, you need a pipette. For storage of very small grains of sand, for example, an ordinary medical bottle is well suited. Large nuggets, of course, can be stacked in any container.
You should also bring a sieve with you. You can make it by cutting about a half plastic bucket and making a lot of holes in its bottom. Indeed, in the rivers there is often not only sand, but also large stones. The sieve is necessary in order to weed out them. To scoop up the soil you will also need a small shovel. Sometimes a prospector also needs a stroke to stir up, for example, heavy clay rock.
And of course, a person who decides to find gold should definitely wear rubber boots. Two pairs of gloves are also useful. Rubber will protect your hands from getting wet. Under them, you should wear ordinary household gloves with pimples. In the river, water can be warm. But in the creek it will surely be very cold.
How to wash gold: technology
The actual procedure for extracting nuggets from river soil is not complicated. Large stones are previously removed:
- the sieve is installed on top of the tray;
- a shovel scoops up soil from a river or stream;
- the mass is poured into the sieve and sieved;
- water is poured into the sieve from above in order to wash off the remaining soil particles down from the stones;
- the sieve with stones is removed from the tray.
Next, the washing itself is performed. In order for the business to move faster, experienced prospectors recommend a small flow to perform this procedure. The answer to the question of how to wash gold looks something like this:
- a tray with gold-bearing soil is carefully lowered into the water;
- make them right-left movements until the turbidity dissolves;
- begin to perform circular motions, screening sand.
Continue this procedure until all the soil has been washed. Next, carefully inspect the bottom of the tray. Nuggets weighing two or three grams are clearly visible to the naked eye. However, very small grains of sand can also be found in the remains of the soil. It is important not to miss them.
How to work a stroke
This procedure on clay soils is performed after screening large stones. To stir up, the comb is first immersed in the bow of the tray. Then he goes up the bottom. This should be done so that the soil with clay and silt slides down into the middle of the tray. The strokes should be repeated quickly - about once per second. As a result, silt and clay will come into suspension, heavy particles will drown, and pebbles will be forced up. Continue stroking until the water stops clouding.
At the final stage, the tray must be pulled out of the water and the pebbles on top removed. Then you can start washing the remaining sand.
What are the trays
How to wash gold by hand, we found out. Now let's talk in more detail about what constitutes the necessary equipment for this procedure, and in particular - the tray. There are several varieties of such devices used by prospectors for washing:
- Asian ladles and pots. Such dishes are sometimes used by prospectors of the Urals. The disadvantages of such equipment include a small volume, an uneven discharge stream, the possibility of losing small nuggets due to the small side. Do not use when using such a tray and stroke.
- Trays of the Chinese and Korean type. Such devices are quite convenient to flush. However, they are expensive. It is difficult to make such a tray on your own. They make equipment of this variety from one piece of raw thick wood (without knots and cracks) by hollowing out the middle.
- Yakut trays. Such devices are made both from sheet iron, and from tesa. They are most often used by private miners. Wooden trays are more suitable for rough washing in rich deposits. On the metal, you can notice even the smallest grains of sand.
How to make a metal tray: practical recommendations
How to wash gold in streams in this way is understandable. An ordinary person who decided to find nuggets in the vicinity should take a metal tray with him. For the manufacture of such a device, sheet metal is well suited:
- 0.8 mm for small trays;
- 1 mm - for medium;
- 1.2 mm - for large.
For work in water, it is best to take galvanized metal. Firstly, it will not rust over time, and secondly, golden grains of sand will be more noticeable on a light zinc surface. Metal should be cut according to the scheme (can be seen below).
This procedure is performed as follows:
- contours of pieces are drawn on a sheet;
- cutting is performed;
- on each cut piece, lines of bends are drawn;
- the sheet is bent to give the tray an appropriate shape;
- sharp corners are rounded off with scissors;
- at the edge of the tray rolls a wire with a thickness of 6-8 mm;
- handle rings are riveted on the sides on both sides.
When making a tray of metal (as well as of wood), it should be borne in mind that the angle between its two planes should be 140 degrees.
Can gold be washed in a river: what does the law say?
Unfortunately, it is forbidden to walk freely and search for nuggets in our country. In principle, everyone can wash gold in Russia . However, this kind of activity should be properly designed. Unfortunately, licenses for gold mining in our country are not sold, unfortunately. But if you wish, you can conclude an agreement with an enterprise that has a similar document.
Unfortunately, there are not too many gold mining companies in Russia and the territory of their activity is limited. Perhaps someday the government will allow free exploitation (as it was, for example, in the USSR). But currently, walking with a tray along streams and rivers just like that, without a permit, is not worth it. If a prospector finds gold without a contract, he faces a large fine.
Instead of a conclusion
So, we hope that we have answered in sufficient detail the main question of the article - how to wash gold in the river and with what it is best done. Metal trays are convenient and quite simple to manufacture. However, if you wish, for the first time you can buy a small plastic tray, for example, via the Internet. Such devices are inexpensive and finding them on the Web is relatively easy.