Now and then, you hear in the news that someone has found a huge gold nugget. Of course, you have to be really lucky if you want to find gold nuggets, but it is definitely possible!
You might be wondering if you can use your metal detector to find gold. Therefore, I have written this article. The questions that arises…
…Can a metal detector actually detect gold?
Yes, a metal detector is capable of detecting gold. This is due to the fact that gold possesses metallic properties and a high electrical conductivity, making it detectable by the metal detector. If your goal is to find gold nuggets, it is advisable to use a pulse induction or a multi-frequency metal detector.
Of course, finding gold is not that easy and there are a lot of things that you should know to increase your chance of succeeding in finding gold. In this article I will tell you the most important things that you need to know if you want to find gold (nuggets).
Can a metal detector find gold?
The answer is yes, a metal detector can find gold. This is because metal detectors can recognize metallic targets that have a high enough electrical conductivity. Gold has metallic properties and a high enough electrical conductivity to be observed by the metal detector.
However, finding gold is not very easy with a metal detector. The gold nuggets are often very small and therefore you will need a proper metal detector. Hence, not all metal detectors are suitable for finding gold.
What kind of metal detectors are the best for finding gold?
Unfortunately, not all metal detectors are suitable for finding gold nuggets due to several factors. Firstly, gold is often found in bottoms with high levels of ground mineralization. Therefore, you need a metal detector that can differentiate between iron components and gold.
Secondly, gold is typically found in small grains, requiring a metal detector with the capability to detect tiny objects. Lastly, gold has relatively low conductivity, so the metal detector must be able to detect low-conductive targets effectively.
The multi-frequency metal detector and pulse induction metal detector are considered the best options for finding gold. These detectors excel in mineralized bottoms, where gold is often found.
They are designed to detect very small targets effectively, making them well-suited for locating gold in various forms. Additionally, these detectors are capable of detecting low-conductive targets, which is important for detecting gold due to its relatively low conductivity.
Let’s explain to you why these are the best metal detectors for finding gold in detail.
Mineralized bottoms
The most gold can be found in bottoms with a lot of ground mineralization. This means that there are a lot of little iron components in the ground. These iron components can disturb the electromagnetic field of the metal detector. Hence, the most metal detectors will freak out in these bottoms.
Therefore, you need a metal detector that is able to distinguish the iron components from the gold grains. Otherwise, your metal detector will constantly beep. Pulse Induction detectors are suitable for these bottoms.
This is because the Pulse Induction (PI) metal detector sends out pulses into the ground instead of a constant electromagnetic field. These pulses are less sensitive for the little iron components. Therefore, the PI detector will provide a high detection depth and only a limited ground interference.
Frequency of the metal detector
Metal detectors with a low frequency can reach great depths but they can’t properly signalize small targets. The most of the time, the gold grains are very little nuggets. Therefore, the low frequency metal detector is not suitable for finding little gold nuggets.
Therefore, is it better to use a high frequency metal detector. The high frequency metal detector is better at recognizing small objects like gold nuggets. However, the high frequency metal detector can’t reach great depths.
This is a common problem in metal detecting. It is always either the combination of great depth and large targets or small depth and small targets. Unfortunately, you can’t choose great depth and small targets.
Luckily, there have been manufacturers that created the multi-frequency metal detector. By using this metal detector, you can choose the frequency very precisely depening on the circumstances of the bottom.
For highly mineralized bottoms you can choose a higher frequency and for bottoms without ground mineralization you can choose a lower frequency. This means that the multi-frequency metal detector is very suitable for finding gold!
Low-conductive targets
Something that is correlated with the frequency of a metal detector is the ability to detect low-conductive targets. High frequency metal detectors are better at detecting low-conductive targets while low frequency metal detectors are better at detecting high conductive targets.
Gold is a relatively low-conductive material. This means that you should need a high-frequency metal detector for detecting the gold nuggets.
Summary
All in all, a metal detector that is suitable for finding gold nuggets must meet a number of requirements:
- The metal detector should properly work in bottoms with a lot of ground mineralization. This means that it must be able to ignore the iron components but recognize the gold nuggets.
- The metal detector must be able to find small objects like gold nuggets. Therefore, the metal detector needs a high frequency.
- The metal detector should be able to properly detect low-conductive materials like gold. Therefore, the metal detector also needs a high frequency.
Based on these requirements we can conclude that the multi-frequency and a pulse induction metal detector are the best for finding gold!
Can a VLF metal detector detect gold?
Maybe you don’t want to spend money on buying a Pulse Induction or multi-frequency metal detector for finding gold nuggets. I can completely understand this, because these metal detectors are more expensive than a VLF metal detector.
Unfortunately, a VLF metal detector is not the most suitable for finding pure gold like gold nuggets. But no worries, you can use a VLF metal detector for other gold purposes. The VLF metal detector is in fact suitable for finding gold jewelry. Let me explain this to you.
Not all gold targets are made of 100% pure gold. Gold jewels like rings, bracelets and earrings also contain silver, copper and palladium. The VLF metal detector can detect these metals. Therefore, you can also use a normal VLF metal detector for finding gold jewelry.
You can also find golden targets like pendants, coins and figurines with a VLF metal detector because these targets also contain other metals like silver and copper.
Where can you find gold?
As said before, there are two types of gold that you can find; pure gold (like gold nuggets) and mixed gold like jewelry.
If you want to find pure gold like gold nuggets you should search close to old mines. Furthermore, you should search at places where gold has been found before. Creeks and rivers are also good for finding pure gold. If you want to find gold jewelry you should search on the beach, in busy parks and on fields.
Close to old gold mines
Back in the days, there were a lot of gold mines where people were mining gold. The current technologies are way better than in the past. Therefore, you can still find gold close to old gold mines if you are lucky.
Unfortunately, these old mines are quite dangerous. Therefore, you should search close to these old mines instead of going into it.
Places where gold has been found before
It is very difficult to find good places that have not been discovered yet. To make it a little easier for yourself you can go to places where gold has been found before. Of course, the most gold has already been found at these places.
However, finding gold is very difficult because the gold nuggets are so small and they are widely spread over a large area. Therefore, I promise you that you can still find gold at these places.
Creeks / Rivers
The areas with a low flow rate in a river are good for finding small gold nuggets. In these areas, the eroded gold can sink to the bottom due to the low flow rate. However, you will probably need a gold pan for finding gold at these areas.
Gold jewelry
You have the highest chance of finding gold jewelry on the beach. At the beach, many people take off their jewelry to take a swim. Now and then, someone loses their jewels by doing this. If you are lucky you can find gold rings, bracelets, pendants and chains. Busy parks are also good for finding gold jewelry.
Back in the days, people also used gold jewelry. This means that you can also find gold jewelry on places where many people lived. Think about higher altitude areas close to a water source, old fairs and old farms.
Gold coins
Gold coins where mainly used in the past. This means that you probably won’t find these coins at our beaches and parks. You have a higher chance of finding gold coins at places where many people came together back in the days.
Think about old fairs, old paths, old farms and higher altitude areas close to a water source. Therefore, you should search at these places.
Frequently Asked Questions
A VLF metal detector will be able to detect large gold nuggets. However, the VLF metal detector won’t be able to detect small gold nuggets. Luckily, the VLF metal detector can find gold jewelry because these jewels also contain silver and copper.
Two huge neutron stars bumped into each other 130 million years ago. These neutron stars contained gold and they were at least 10x heavier as our current sun . After the collision, the gold of these stars landed on earth during a meteor shower.
A 1 gram gold grain that contains 95% pure gold is worth around the $50.
Basically, you can find gold everywhere on earth. However, the concentration gold differs between areas. You have the highest chance of finding gold close to old gold mines and on places where gold has already been found in the past. The low flow rate parts of the river are also good places for finding gold nuggets.