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Best Way to Clean Gold?


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Hi all,

When buying these acid materials, and wish to share some with others, who might be in need of

such products, such generosity may have its downside.

To wit: Visiting my brother in another part of the country, I noted a big jug of an acid based product

in his shop, I asked if I could have some.  He said I could, found a plastic peanut butter jar, cleaned it, and put about 8 ounces of the acid in it for me.  Now being a happy camper, I brought it home, put it  on a metal cabinet shelf, with a hand written label in it, as to the jars content, I forgot about it, until one day I smelled a vaguely familiar odor.  The plastic jar had began to leak over time, dribbling from its perch on a metal shelf down about 6 feet to the floor.  All the way down, the acid did it's job, etching everything it could.  Then I had the job of neutralizing the acid in areas it had touched and damaged.  Even the concrete garage floor.

 

In another shop, we had a bricklayer doing some work, who asked if he could store some of his tools in an unused and fairly new birch cabinet, at nearly floor level.

Time went by, apparently the bricklayer had apparently forgotten the few items he had left, one of which was a gallon of muriatic acid, which he used to clean the brickwork he had been contracted to  lay.  The acid degraded the plastic jug, spilling on the wood cabinet floor, eating it slowly over time.  The vapors ate the finish off every metal shelf clips, door glide, and cabinet lock, anything made of metal was affected.

So, the point of all of this is, just because you can get a good deal on a BIG jug of acid, be mindful that the acid can and may, clean up more than you intended it to...

Gary/LARGO     

 

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That's one reason I use the Alibrite. Get it in a 1 litre container that isn't too expensive & theres no need to have large volumes of acid sitting around.

Its always best to store these things in their proper container that has the relevant safety information on the label rather than decant into other containers. Have heard some real horror stories from this practice.

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If and I repeat if I have to clean gold I use a multi step process. This is NOT for the beginer. Start with a soak in HC (Muriatic) acid for 24 to 48 hours. Neutralize in ammonia and then rinse. Pressure wash. ( I use one of those neat cleaners that dry cleaners use). Rpeat if needed. Most of the time I leave gold the way I find it or use HC or a good soak in Whink. I use a prosess using HF acid but it is way to dangerous to explain it here but when done properly is very effective and will leave a nice nugget when done.

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  • 1 month later...

Hi guys trying to figure out next step with some of the pieces to the left side not showing gold, they have amythest showing in them. This was a solid rock i dug out that had most of the gold localized in one end i had a friend slice it. I carefully fractured the end out with the gold in it into chunks then used strong percentage of HF to eat away the quartz untill the gold showed up,problem is i dont know what to do with these that have a lot of amethest showing but cant see the gold yet they hit big time with detectors,i just dont want to turn them into a pile of dust. I dont want to use acid on these to get gold to show but not sure of the next step,any ideas i think im going to sell some of this crystaline.

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OK here it is but first be cautious HF acid is very dangerous. First a soak in Muriatic for 24 to 48 hours. A short soak in ammonia about 24 hours then a good rinse in hot water for about an hour. Next a pressure wash using one of those neat pressure guns that dry cleaners use. Soak in HF for 12 hours (remember HF is extremely dangerous) wear chemical gloves for this process. Do not breath the fumes, it will burn your lungs! Now soak in ammonia for 24 to 48 hours. Rinse then soak in HOT water for 1 hour. If needed pressure wash again CAREFULLY. If a drop or two gets splashed on you, the best thing is to be cautious and don't let it happen. If it does rinse with ammonia then pack with Calcium Gluconate (Calgonate)and get your butt to the hospital! Remember you may not feel the burn but it will be happening. The best way to avoid burns is to be cautious and don't let it happen, wear chemical gloves and even an apron. Keep the ammonia and the calcium gluconate real handy. I friend of mine is missing a thumb and he insists that he cut it off before going to the hospital. Dramatic I know but I would do the same thing IF it happened to me without the materials needed to rinse and clean the wound.

 

Steve

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I forgot an important step. HF will ruin an eye if splashed on so wear eye protection (goggles etc.). Get the goggles off as soon as safely possible if they have a few drops on them. There is a liquid form of calcium gluconate designed as an eye wash but I would still make a run for the hospital. The best method is to simply not use HF.

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The nearest I will ever get to HF is the Whink 1% solution. I may take a month to do what the high power stuff will do overnight, but they do sell it in grocery stores because it is safe - by comparison. Thanks Steve, you did a good job convincing me that HF is best left to professionals. I will hire one if it needs using.

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Steve, another reasonably safe way to clean gold pretty quickly is to use an acid proof beaker on a bunsen burner at low heat using Oxalic acid, letting it simmer in a well ventilated area. Oxalic acid also seems to brighten the gold surface compared to other more aggressive acids like HF and HC which seem to etch the surface layer.

 

I sometimes let things soak in a mild solution of HF for a while if there is a lot of quartz then use the heat catalysed Oxalic method to do the final clean up.

 

Definitely DO NOT mixed Nitric and Hydrochloric acid together, Aqua regia will be the result!!! :o

 

JP

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