Gold has always been viewed as an element of value. Kings and rulers throughout history have sought it out and hoarded it over the years. This element is becoming increasingly scarce as more and more gold deposits are mined. At the time of writing this article Gold is at an extreme high, selling for about $1,650 per ounce. Most of us are not involved in the mining of this expensive rock, but can you find some close to home?
Gold could be hiding in the most unlikely of places, store bought sand. Lowes, Home Depot, and other lumber stores carry bags of sand for a variety of uses. Some of this sand does contain gold. However the quantity will vary based upon location. We tested some and here is what we discovered.
Our Test
We recently read about this phenomenon on a gold mining forum which really peaked our interest. We decided to head up to the local lumber yard and grab a few bags for testing. Not knowing which type would be a better bet to contain gold, we opted to get one 50 lb. bag of play sand and one 50 lb. bag of all purpose sand.
After we lugged these heavy bags to our testing site (my backyard), we got our gold pan out and got to work. We did not have a dredge so hand panning was our only option. So how much gold did we extract from the sand and what was it worth? The answer may or may not surprise you.
0…the answer is 0 gold worth $0. If you’re disappointed imagine how we felt. Where was the gold? Why didn’t we find any? But I thought you said there was gold? These are all questions you are probably asking and we were too. We decided to do the research to find the answers.
Gold Deposits
An important question to answer and understand is where and how gold is deposited. The small flakes and nuggets we are hunting with this method have been eroded from the motherload (source). Gold is an extremely dense metal, more heavy than almost anything else being carried away in the erosion process. This results in the gold falling to the bottom of whatever material it is suspended in as gravity does its job.
When this process happens via water the gold eventually finds itself in a creek, stream, and/or river. The water carries the gold downstream but deposits some of it along the way. Typically this heavy material drops out where the water slows down. This happens where bends in the stream occur or a rise in elevation.
Store Bought Sand
As you know most home improvement stores carry a variety of materials including sand. Sand has to be mined and then classified before making its way to the shelves. As stated earlier, gold is very heavy and falls through sifting screens with sand during this mining process.
So why didn’t we find any in our test? One major factor is the source of the sand. Sand is heavy and it is not economical for companies to mine sand in a central location and then ship it across the country. Therefore, sand companies, such as Quickrete, locally source their sand.
We live in an area not known for vast deposits of gold and since the sand we bought was locally sourced, we had a very low chance of finding any gold within this sand.
Another factor with sourcing is physical location of the sand mine. Most gold is found in current or ancient water ways. Some if not all of our local sand is mined from large holes in the ground, not from waterways. This was another strike against us finding any gold in our test.
You may have better luck than we did if you live in an area where gold is more common. You could also have success if your sand is sourced from a waterway even if you are not in a well known gold deposit area.
Other Factors
Another factor that could have played into our lack of success extracting this expensive material could have been “user error”. We are not professional gold miners, nor do we have extensive experience prospecting.
We took handfuls of material and put it into our gold pan. We proceeded to follow processes we learned from the internet. As you and I know, not everything on the internet can be trusted.
Additionally learning to gold pan via text or video has its advantages and disadvantages. It is easy to watch and read how to pan, but it is another thing to know for certain you are doing it correctly. While we are confident in our ability, there is the possibility we are doing something incorrectly. This could have had an impact on our test.
A sluice box could render a fix for all these issues mentioned above. We did not have access to one nor was it economical for us to purchase one for this small scale test.
The Good News
Even though our small scale test produced no results this does not mean you will have the same outcome. If you live in or near an area know for gold deposits there is a higher chance your local hardware store sand will contain gold.
There are numerous documented cases of people actually finding gold in store bought sand, so we know it can be done. Most of these documentations we found were from people in gold rich states such and Colorado and California.
Even at the current high price of gold there probably won’t be enough in each bag to quit your day job. It may not even be enough to cover the cost of the sand! This should be considered a hobby, not a career choice.
If you live in an area like we do that is not known for gold, there is still hope in finding some. Gold can be found all around the world even in our area. It is just not as easy to find as going to the store and buying a pallet of sand.
Local rivers, streams, and creeks could contain gold that can be found. Look for places where the water slows down or places where water falls and has created a pool underneath. The latter may not be accessible but if you are observant you may be able to find some small plunge pools that you can get to.
Be sure and check local laws and regulations before you begin prospecting for gold in streams and rivers. Some might be privately owned and trespassing laws may apply. Mineral rights of the land owner, whether publicly or privately owned, might be applicable as well.
There is a misunderstanding that any gold found must be turned over to the government. However, this is not true. If the gold was found legally then it is yours to keep!
Even though we did not find any gold we did have a lot of fun trying. It was a great family experience that got our family outside and focused on a singular goal. Even though we know the odds are stacked against us, we will try again for the thrill of the hunt and the added bonus of family bonding.
Have fun, and stay safe!
Gold pan photo by Matt Seymour on Unsplash
Girl in sand photo by Ostap Senyuk on Unsplash
Mine photo by Curioso Photography on Unsplash