Dry Gold Prospecting Washer

Dry washers for prospecting gold are more frequent and commonly used in areas where there is not water available such as deserts and dry washes. Dry washers make used of air, vibration and static electricity to work and do the work of separating the gold from the waste gravel. The use of vibration which moves the material with a sluice box is very similar to the movement that occurs by the speed of water. Dry method recoveries can be very functional if there is a good balance of the separation of air and the right type of vibration. Air separation is in addition important for dry recovery prospecting washers given that the vibration is not the only factor that works at separating the gold properly. The air that is placed in and induced will create a static change that causes a magnetic field that works to attract the heavy metals such as gold. The static charge comes about when it is pushed through a fibrous material that is lined on the recovery trough of the dry washer. Prospectors have the option of purchasing dry washers but it is also possible to custom make one. Dry washing has been being done for a very long time now and in the early days it was used to separate the gold from the other materials by using a flow of air in order to concentrate the materials. In the past, dry concentration was very slow and inefficient. Now dry washers have some difficulty recovering gold after the surface layer of the sand has been removed and the wet sand and gravel has been reached. The trick to this is to ensure the material runs through the dry washer more than just one time. In the past one of the most known of and commonly used methods for dry washing consisted of winnowing. Winnowing was the process of winnowing the course gravels that used to be screen out and then gotten rid of. The fines that remained were then placed on a blanket or sheet that was lifted by the corners and tossed into the air when the wind was blowing strongly. The strong wind would carry off the lighter material and the heavier materials, such as the gold, would fall back into the blanket. The weave of the blanket also used to help trap the gold flour in it.