Why such small batches???

[gpoon]

OK whilst I hear what you're saying please allow me to point out that the first time you break a household item and lose gold you'll wish you had bought the right stuff in the first place.

Saving money usually ends up costing you money as the vast majority of guys on here will corroborate.

Jon

Ahhhhhh i seee..... its matter of equipment integrity rather than trying to look professional.
Excellent tip.....might have to checkout the Bay of E's then.
Many thanks on the caution, and thats to all.

 

[Lou]

If you're going to set up to do 3Kg batches then you need to be buying lab glassware. 1l and 2l beakers at the very least. Buy once, cry once!

I was just going to use big glass jars and a standard pyrex 1L measuring cup for measuring the chemicals.
Not that im trying to be cheap, its just, while i'm doing big batches, it will be fairly infrequently 2 maybe 3 times a year.
I can't justify buying glassware when i can use existing household items.

OK whilst I hear what you're saying please allow me to point out that the first time you break a household item and lose gold you'll wish you had bought the right stuff in the first place.

Saving money usually ends up costing you money as the vast majority of guys on here will corroborate.

Jon

What Jon said.

 

[kurtak]

If you're going to set up to do 3Kg batches then you need to be buying lab glassware. 1l and 2l beakers at the very least. Buy once, cry once!

I was just going to use big glass jars and a standard pyrex 1L measuring cup for measuring the chemicals.
Not that im trying to be cheap, its just, while i'm doing big batches, it will be fairly infrequently 2 maybe 3 times a year.
I can't justify buying glassware when i can use existing household items.

OK whilst I hear what you're saying please allow me to point out that the first time you break a household item and lose gold you'll wish you had bought the right stuff in the first place.

Saving money usually ends up costing you money as the vast majority of guys on here will corroborate.

Jon

What Jon said.

I agree with Jon & Lou

Though canning jars & pyrex are made to take (some) heat they are NOT made to take the heat like real lab glass - I can assure you that jars & pyrex WILL crack/break/shatter - sooner - or - later --- & that can/will happen just from the heat produced from reactions taking place - much let alone "adding" heat

Kurt

 

[rickbb]

Also forget about the respirator, it won't protect you. The cartridge type is for low level, limited and occasional exposure and they will be depleted quickly, (seconds), if you get exposed to a full on "cloud".

Get yourself a proper fume hood, and a secure, separate place to do it in. Especially if you want to do more than "small batches". Seriously.

I plan on doing this outside and plan on having not having enough exposure to any gasses to warrant a respirator, but was planning on using one just as a precautionary measure.

Make sure your health and life insurance are up to date. That respirator will give you a false sense of security that is just not there. And hopefully you don't have any neighbors, curious pets or children that will get down wind of your operation. (In which case make sure your liability insurance is up to date.)

 

[patnor1011]

Standard measuring pyrex jug can explode and believe me you will literally s**t yourself. I was drying about 2oz of gold powder using heat gun. I then simply poured powder in another container and about 2 seconds after I did that while still holding pyrex jug in my hand it exploded. Explosion sent glass flying all over the room all what reamined intact was handle I was holding in my hand. 2 seconds earlier and it would cost me over 2000 euro so I got lucky that time. Never again.

 

[Justincase]

I had trained in several different disciplines that required controlled movement and deliberate action.
I knew nothing until my entire environment was littered with very delicate glass items all about 3mm thick.
At £20 to £500 a piece you learn a hole new definition of contemplation before action.
I take days now instead of moments and it is still only half right.
gutting when you crack a 5000ml beaker.
:lol:

 

[Topher_osAUrus]

Standard measuring pyrex jug can explode and believe me you will literally s**t yourself. I was drying about 2oz of gold powder using heat gun. I then simply poured powder in another container and about 2 seconds after I did that while still holding pyrex jug in my hand it exploded. Explosion sent glass flying all over the room all what reamined intact was handle I was holding in my hand. 2 seconds earlier and it would cost me over 2000 euro so I got lucky that time. Never again.

Terrifying!

Was it one of the new ones that are the soda-lime glass, or was it one of the old (but good) borosilicate measuring cups?

Ive heard of the soda-lime "pyrex" breaking often, rarely with the older stuff though. You can tell the difference by the hue of the glass. Borosilicate is clear, soda lime has a blueish tint to it.

I ponied up and got real lab glass after a coffee pot cracked when I had a few pentium pro's in it. Thankfully I heard the crack, and was able to siphon the pregnant liquor off to another vessel. Soon as I did, I picked it up and the bottom fell out into my corningware dish. Would have been a tough lesson to learn, had I not had my bases covered already.

 

[Shark]

I have to agree with using the best equipment you can. When working with large batch's it can be even more important money wise. On small batch's I have used coffee pots, flower vases and even wine glasses. When you have over $1000 in gold in solution those cheap short cuts become even harder on the nerves. When trying to be extra cautious with the cheap glassware something will almost always go wrong. Even the slightest "clink" of two pieces bumping together can be nerve rattling.

 

[snoman701]

Glass jars can take the heat...what they can't take is the thermal shock. Think about it...when canning you put them in boiling water....much hotter than most anything we do, but very uniform heat. When you heat a coffee pot, it's hot at the bottom and often cool at the top. That differential causes stresses. Those stresses can turn in to a mess. When you have something like a processor in there, likely lagging behind a bit, it's contact point makes even more stress.

That's my experience as a glass blower talking. Reiterating what others have said.

Buy a pack of six 150 ml tall form borosilicate beakers. They are cheap new.

Now go to your jeweler and get a piece of gold....at least 1 gram. Fine gold....not karat scrap. You could also ask to buy a chunk here.

Practice!

Don't start on e scrap until you've got the drop down.

This is experience and frustration giving advice. The above purchases will be the best $85 you spend in your refining.


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[snoman701]

Standard measuring pyrex jug can explode and believe me you will literally s**t yourself. I was drying about 2oz of gold powder using heat gun. I then simply poured powder in another container and about 2 seconds after I did that while still holding pyrex jug in my hand it exploded. Explosion sent glass flying all over the room all what reamined intact was handle I was holding in my hand. 2 seconds earlier and it would cost me over 2000 euro so I got lucky that time. Never again.

Isn't it funny how it's always right after it could have been ugly that you get the warning? I mean, not ALWAYS...but a lot of the time.


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[patnor1011]

Well that was pure luck but it served me a lesson. I was finding pea sized pieces of glass everywhere for weeks. They were kind of uniformed size. I still use this kind of jars for some things but have since bought proper lab glassware which was surprisingly not that expensive anyway.

 

[anachronism]

Well that was pure luck but it served me a lesson. I was finding pea sized pieces of glass everywhere for weeks. They were kind of uniformed size. I still use this kind of jars for some things but have since bought proper lab glassware which was surprisingly not that expensive anyway.

I know this may seem a little strange but if you look at it as a "cost of doing business" then it feels better.

 

[haveagojoe]

Another reason for doing small batches is that the amount of fumes produced is more manageable

 

[upcyclist]

Looking over all these replies, I am again amazed and thankful for the great crowd of refiners we have here. Lots of people willing to let others learn from our mistakes.

And, we have that rare new guy asking questions who actually listens to the answers!

Kudos to all. :G

 

[gpoon]

Looking over all these replies, I am again amazed and thankful for the great crowd of refiners we have here. Lots of people willing to let others learn from our mistakes.

Kudos to all. :G

That is exactly what I was going to say.

Some of the comments seem slightly critical but it's obviously out of concern.

And you guys will be happy to know I bought 2 600ml beakers and 500ml conical flask and a couple of glass stiring rods while I was at it only cost me $35.

And I really do appreciate all the helpful replies and comments. You guys have made the mistakes so others don't have to.

 

[anachronism]

And you guys will be happy to know I bought 2 600ml beakers and 500ml conical flask and a couple of glass stiring rods while I was at it only cost me $35.

Game on!

 

[Geo]

It takes roughly the same amount of time and effort to refine a couple of grams as it does and ounce at a time. Working with small batches as a beginner is just good practice. After all the processes that you plan to do has been mastered, there is no reason to do small amounts at a time unless that is all you have.

 

[Justincase]

It takes roughly the same amount of time and effort to refine a couple of grams as it does and ounce at a time. Working with small batches as a beginner is just good practice. After all the processes that you plan to do has been mastered, there is no reason to do small amounts at a time unless that is all you have.

I find it very helpful to run test lot's of most industrial scrap.
I have fond that components that look just about identical can have quite varied property's.
Particularly when trying to pacify alloys.
It dose not take much of a variance in alloy to necessitate a slower digestion.
Like wise if I am not completely certain about the amount of fuming or waste solution.
also when I have a tole client ,It is always good to check they are happy with my return before processing a full lot.even then I had one very memorable individual who I went out of my way to develop a process for.
On the small run he was happy and every thing was dandy,come the main run I returned to the point place exactly what the test had shown.
Guess what?he all of a sudden decided there should have been twice as much.
I so wish I had pulled out at that point, even with clients it is always good to start on small batches.

 

[gpoon]

So i just started my first batch of AP and lucky i started with a smaller batch as suggested because as soon as i added the peroxide to my acid and fingers bucket it turned red!!.
I have read that it could have been something that is added to the HCL that i got at Bunnings.

What now?? Whats it doing to my gold?

 

[anachronism]

Case in point. Just today.

Bought a new vacuum pump with a regulator I didn't know well. 1 litre of heavily pregnant solution in it and I bumped the dial as I walked past. Five minutes later the buchner flask imploded. I had used a cheap unit because my usual glass didn't have the correct hose fittings. It's a good job that my cabinet has a PP base catch pan inside because there was over 100g of gold in the liquor.

Think losses- I messed up today but fortunately the right gear was there to save my butt.

Look closely at the pic and tell me what's missing. 8)