There are many silver jewelry on the market today, many times these jewelry are only plated with a layer of silver on the outside, while the inside is made of other metals such as copper, zinc, iron, etc. Therefore, you can use some of Helios 's ways to identify real silver below to check the quality of your jewelry.
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Does real 925 silver turn black?
So does s925 silver turn black ? 925 silver will turn black or dull after being worn for a long time. Many people feel confused because they think they bought fake silver, but in fact it is not like that.
In the air, our sweat glands always have a certain amount of sulfur. The reason silver jewelry turns black is because silver reacts with sulfur to form silver sulfur, which is black and forms a thin layer on the jewelry, causing your jewelry to lose its original shiny beauty.
However, you do not have to worry too much because there are many simple and effective ways to brighten silver . If you suspect that the jewelry you are wearing is fake, you can apply some of the following ways to distinguish it.
How to tell if silver is real or fake
To help you easily distinguish between real and fake silver chains, you need to try the following:
Silver Testing with Spectrometer
How to identify real silver using a spectrometer is a very professional method with the highest accuracy. A spectrometer is a device used to analyze samples by detecting and analyzing radiation waves from that sample. Thanks to this process, you can determine the specific composition of the silver product and know clearly whether it is real silver or not.
How to identify real silver with a magnet
There are many tips to accurately identify real and fake silver, in which distinguishing fake or real silver by magnet is commonly applied because it is convenient, simple and quite accurate.
Gold, silver and platinum are non-magnetic metals so they are not attracted to magnets. So you can test 925 silver by using a magnet, if the silver attracts the magnet it is fake silver, if not it is real silver.
Identify silver based on observing the index
Another simple way to identify real or fake silver is when choosing to buy silver jewelry, you should pay attention to find the product's quality standard stamp. If the silver product is made from standard silver, it will be marked with the number 925 according to the standard. Because this is an index indicating the amount of pure silver used in jewelry making.
Based on the weight of silver
How to distinguish real silver from fake silver? You can estimate the weight of silver. Real silver will not be too heavy or too light. This method is usually only for goldsmiths and jewelry makers to distinguish and is relative.
Test silver with nitric acid
Another way to identify real silver that you should apply is to use nitric acid. With this method, you can drop a drop of nitric acid on a piece of metal. When performing this test, there will be 2 cases: First, if you see a green color, it means that the metal is fake silver or some metal plated into silver, but if you see a cream color, it is real silver.
Which silver testing method should be applied?
To check real or fake silver in an optimal and economical way, you need to consider your economic conditions and needs:
- High financial capacity: If you have good financial conditions and the jewelry to be tested is of great value, you should use a spectrometer. This method is very accurate, but the cost is high, so it should only be applied to expensive jewelry.
- Home testing: If you want to test silver at home and the jewelry is not too important, you can use hydrogen peroxide, nitric acid, or heat. The remaining methods such as relying on weight, silver index... have low probability and often have incorrect results, if your jewelry is not very valuable, you can use these methods.
- Cost and value of jewelry: Low-value jewelry should not be tested with a spectrometer because the cost of measurement may be higher than the value of the jewelry. The testing method should be chosen according to the value of the item to avoid waste.
How to preserve silver jewelry
To keep silver jewelry shiny, durable and beautiful over time, you need to preserve it properly. Specifically, you should:
- Wear jewelry only when necessary to keep it looking new longer.
- Do not let silver necklaces, rings, bracelets... come into direct contact with sunlight or in dusty, moldy places, as this will cause the jewelry to quickly become old and tarnished.
- When doing strenuous activities such as housework, exercising, playing sports, etc., you should not wear silver necklaces. This will easily cause the necklace to collide and lead to breakage, bending, scratches, and reduce the shine of the jewelry.
- Avoid letting your silver come into direct contact with substances such as cosmetics, seawater, swimming pool water, etc., because it can easily oxidize the metal in the silver, causing silver jewelry to tarnish easily.
- Arrange the necklaces neatly, do not let these jewelry mix or rub against each other to avoid deformation and scratches.
- You should clean silver jewelry regularly and properly to remove dirt and plaque. In addition, you can use toothpaste to polish.
- Do not store tarnished silver jewelry with relatively new products, this will cause the new necklaces to easily tarnish as well.
Hopefully, through the information shared in the above article, we can provide you with more useful information and help you know how to identify whether a silver chain is real or fake.
