How would you know, the diamond in your hand is real or fake. Your grandmother may have left you her jewellery box consisting of exquisite earrings, necklaces and a few loose diamonds. While she hasn’t ever mentioned these precious stones, you might be wondering, ‘are they real diamonds?’
Diamonds are typically emotional purchases, an investment that you would always want to get right. However, the demand and price of diamonds have stimulated counterfeiters to create copycat stones. Thus, it becomes difficult to tell whether a diamond is real or fake only by looking at it.
Whether you are in the market to sell a loose diamond or buy a diamond engagement ring, you would want to ascertain the authenticity of your diamond. With this in mind, we have jotted down a few ways that you can perform at home to tell if your diamond is real or fake.
The Scratch Test
Diamonds are the most potent components available on our earth. They are used to cut through glasses. Keeping this in mind, a scratch test can help you to ascertain if your diamond is genuine or not. So to carry out the scratch test –
- Take a glass plate and the loose diamond under the question.
- Now, put the glass on a rigid platform or table and scratch the glass surface using the diamond.
- If the stone strikes the glass, it is real.
However, one significant fact to note is that this test can cause damage to your diamond during the process.
The Fog Test
Another easy and quick way to know if a diamond is real or fake is by the fog test. Firstly, you have to hold the diamond between your two fingers and breathe on it. Your breath contains heat and moisture, and they will form a light fog on the diamond. Now:
If the fog clears up right away, your diamond is real. On the contrary, if the fog dissipates after several seconds (four to five seconds), then you are probably dealing with a fake diamond. The fact is that –
Diamonds conduct heat instantaneously and, thus, disperse heat fast.
However, before performing this test, make sure to clean your diamond to remove oils.
The Floating Test
Get a glass of water and your loose diamond. Then, drop the stone into the water. If it falls to the glass’s bottom, the diamond is genuine as they have a high density. On the contrary, the diamond will float on the water surface if it is a fake one.
Well, the floating test is one of the easiest ways to confirm whether or not a diamond is real. However, do not consider the floating test results as conclusive because not every fake diamond floats in the water.
The Heat Test
Diamonds are formed of highly durable materials that make them ineffective to high heat. To perform the heating test –
- Take a drinking glass filled with cold water.
- Wear fire-proof gloves or use plyers to hold and heat your diamond with a lighter for nearly 40seconds.
- Soon after heating, drop the gemstone straight into the cold water.
If it shatters after dropping, it will signify that the stone is made of weaker elements, and thus, it is a fake diamond. A genuine diamond will not show any reaction.
The heating test verifies the strength and quality of a diamond. Weak components such as glass will crack due to the fast heat expansion and contraction. While diamonds are made of the strongest elements on earth, they are resistant to these heat tests.
The Transparency (Read-Through) Test
For the transparency test, you will need your loose diamond and a newspaper. You have to place the stone facing downwards and the pavilion facing upwards on a newspaper’s text section. Can you read the letters through the gemstone?
If yes, then the chances are good that your diamond is a fake one. The letters appear blurry if you look through a natural diamond. However, make sure to clean the diamond before carrying out this test.
If you cannot rely on the test results mentioned above or don not have time to perform these tests, the best thing to do would be to visit a diamond appraiser near you to inspect and evaluate your stone. The appraiser can immediately tell if your diamond is real or fake with the help of specialised equipment.
A diamond grading report or certificate verifies the authenticity of a diamond. Thus, if you purchase a diamond, make sure to ask for a certificate. While it will confirm the authenticity, you can sell your diamond quickly to any potential diamond buyers like The Luxury Hut in London.
Want to sell large diamonds for an accurate price? Fill up our online form with all details of your precious stone and get a free competitive quote shortly. Or call us on 0207 242 9160 now.
Also Read: The Most Expensive Diamonds In The World That Will Make You Go Crazy
