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How to Remove Gold Finish to Sell as Scrap Gold

Gold finish or plating can be found on jewelry or on electronic parts such as circuit board fingers which are found inside computers. Gold finish on jewelry covers less valuable metals such as silver or various allow metals. Inside computers, the circuit board fingers look like gold fingers inserted into connectors. To make any kind of profit from selling the recovered scrap gold, you will need to collect hundreds of old computers (or at least the circuitry from inside the computers) and many pounds of gold-plated jewelry. There are various ways to remove gold finish, but one of the fastest, easiest and safest ways is to remove it using circuit board stripping powder which can be obtained from any chemical dealer that sells supplies for scrap gold recovery (see Resources).

Things You'll Need

Goggles or face shield
Long rubber dish gloves
Circuit board stripping powder
2 large glass bowls
Water, 2 gallons
Glass wand
Circuit board fingers or other gold-finished materials
Coffee filter (made from plastic and metal)

Instructions

- 1
  Put on goggles or face shield and long rubber dish gloves to protect yourself from the highly corrosive stripping powder. Pour one container of circuit board stripping powder into one of the glass bowls.
- 2
  Pour one gallon of water into the bowl on top of the stripping powder and mix with a glass wand. You can purchase a glass wand at a kitchen supply store or alternatively you can use a swizzle stick.
- 3
  Add your gold finished material and circuit board fingers to the bowl and let them soak for eight hours or longer, according to the manufacturer̵7;s directions.
- 4
  Take the materials from the solution and put them aside. Note: Make certain you are still wearing long rubber dish gloves when you do this.
- 5
  Put the coffee filter (not the disposable kind, but one made from plastic or metal) into the second glass bowl and pour the liquid through the filter. Slowly elevate the coffee filter as the bowl begins to fill with liquid. When you are finished pouring, look for the gold inside the filter.

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