subject: Gold Jewelry Refining Information [print this page] Gold refining has become more popular during the economic down turn. Since gold is one of the rarest and most valued precious metals found on earth, it has retained and steadily increased in value through out the years. Gold has most commonly been discovered in rivers and mountains, in the U.S.A., and many other countries around the world.
The reasons for gold's value are that it is neither easy to find nor extract. For example, three tons of rock with gold ("ore") need to be removed and processed, smashed, ground, washed, heated, and put through other stages to get one ounce of gold. The stages of gold prospecting, gold mining, and gold recovery are technically specific and labor intensive.
Gold is used for gold jewelry, tooth fillings, electronic components, circuit boards, and more. The karat (kt) mark on a piece of jewelry helps gold refiners and jewelers determine the quantity of pure 24-karat gold in it. When someone no longer wants old jewelry, there are several ways to make money out of what is thereafter called "scrap gold jewelry."
One method of gold refining that can be beneficial to people with old jewelry sitting around, is to sell scrap gold jewelry items to an online gold jewelry refiner. The gold refining process involves purifying and extracting the gold content of the item from the other metal alloys and smelting those alloys down for recycling and reuse.
Since gold refining is expensive and dangerous, its not recommended that people undertake it by themselves. Although gold-refining kits, tools, books, and instructions exist, many people have died trying to mine and refine gold themselves. It is easiest, safest, and most cost effective to have a professional gold refinery process your scrap gold for you.
There are online gold refiners with good references and information who offer competitive prices for scrap gold jewelry and other precious metals. One site that pays well for used gold jewelry, scrap gold, and even gold fillings is www.mygoldenvelope.com. This is an informational site about gold jewelry and gold refining, with a friendly, helpful staff.
