How Do You Know if Something Is Gold Plated
The difference between solid-gold and gold-plated jewelry is related to metal composition: While solid-golden jewelry is made of a gold alloy that is consistent throughout the piece, aureate-plated pieces are made of a non-gold metallic that is just covered with a thin picture show of gilt. Allow's see how y'all can find out whether a piece of jewelry is solid gold or gilt plated.
Aureate Plated Jewelry Markings
Looking at gilded markings is one of the fastest ways to establish what your jewelry is made of.
Looking at gold markings is ane of the fastest ways to found what your jewelry is made of.
The virtually common postage stamp used in aureate-plated jewelry is GP (standing for "aureate plated").
You lot may also run into GEP, which ways "gold electroplated" and RGP (meaning "rolled gilded plate").
HGE (for "heavy gold electroplate") is another marking that indicates gold plating (y'all can also see HGP, which has the aforementioned significant).
Please note that not having such markings does not mean that your jewelry is solid golden: It may simply non be stamped despite existence plated.
Acid Testing: The Well-nigh Reliable Method
Possibly the most reliable way to find out the gold content of jewelry is to do an acid test. Click hither to see an acid testing kit that tin can be used to check the purity of gold and other precious metals.
Although you tin buy an acid testing kit and perform the test at domicile, interpreting the results can get tricky depending on the gold alloy examined. This is why we recommend that y'all have such a test done by a professional.
Hither'south how acid testing works:
The jeweler will accept some sample fabric from your jewelry and then apply acid to it to discover if at that place is a colour alter, which will indicate what metals the sample contains.
Acrid testing is used mainly to determine the karat of solid golden jewelry, just it can also indicate whether the piece is plated.
It'due south also useful to know that many gold-plated pieces are coated with 24/22/20/18-karat gold, so if yous come up beyond an item whose surface acid-tests similar 24, 22, twenty, or 18 karats merely the price is too cheap for that karat, then the jewelry is probably plated.
Alternatively, if you scratch a plated piece deep enough, you lot will see the underlying metal, which will confirm that the jewelry is not solid gold — endeavour this on your own risk, though.
Note: Solid gold does not mean pure. You should keep in listen that solid pieces consist of an alloy of gold and other metals, and the purity of this mixture depends on how much gilded it contains. A piece tin can exist made of solid gold and have very depression gold purity at the same time (purity is indicated by the slice's karat).
Related: Cheque out this smashing selection of fine golden jewelry.
Magnet Testing
Another mode to test what metals yous jewelry contains is to use a magnet. Since gold is non magnetic, if your jewelry is attracted to the magnet, the piece must comprise some other metal.
This test, however, is non conclusive for a couple of reasons.
First, while a reaction of your jewelry to the magnet indicates that the slice is not made solely of gold, this does not necessarily hateful that it is plated – information technology can still be a solid gold alloy that has low purity and contains a magnetic metallic.
Second, a piece may exist gold plated without being attracted to a magnet if the core metallic, which is covered with gold, is nonmagnetic.
The magnet test is non completely useless, all the same: Used in conjunction with other tests, it can requite you lot some clues virtually what your jewelry is made of.
Gold Color as an Indicator
The color of your jewelry tin can as well be used every bit a clue to whether the slice is solid or plated.
More: Click here to run into a selection of gold-plated jewelry.
Golden-plated jewelry is sometimes covered with 24-karat gold. In dissimilarity, solid gilt pieces are non made of pure gold as it is too soft; they are instead made of a gold alloy that contains metals that give the mixture hardness.
So, if your jewelry has an intense yellow color similar to that of pure gold and is relatively cheap (or its toll is close to that of identical 10K or 14K pieces), then information technology may be gilt plated.
The all-time way to know that for sure, however, is to have the piece acrid tested.
You can also look at the surface of the jewelry and meet if its tone is even throughout or there is a change in color somewhere: If the gold plating is worn off in some places, the underlying metal volition be visible there.
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Source: https://www.jewelrynotes.com/find-out-if-your-jewelry-is-gold-plated/
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