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How To Tell If A Diamond Is Real – Determine Using 5 Easy Ways At Home And Stores
Want to understand how to tell if a diamond is real? We have amazing home tests that can you establish whether the diamond you have real or not. Do not worry, you don’t have to take appointments or drive a long way to jewelers to find out and know how to tell if a diamond is real, just follow these tests, and you are done with results.
Buying a diamond is no less than an emotional purchase for most of us, which makes it even more important for us to know how to tell if a diamond is real or not by just doing some easy tests. Before you sign on the dotted lines for purchase, making sure it’s exquisite, authentic, and real is as necessary as it seems like you to.
Whether you are outside in a marketplace or something to buy a diamond or you need to inspect the jewels you already have, getting to know how to determine your diamond is authentic or not plays a key role in determining the price. Diamonds have certain fake counterparts that look exactly real and it is not possible to determine whether they are real or not by just looking at them. Natural gems that have a close and strong resemblance with sparkling diamonds are colorless sapphires, colorless zircon, and colorless topaz.
There are few gems that are specially created in labs like Synthetic cubic zirconia, Yttrium aluminum garnet, synthetic moissanite, and gadolinium gallium garnet. To any average person who does not own very great knowledge of diamonds, it is difficult to determine whether they are dealing with a real diamond or any laboratory counterpart of it. This probably leaves us wondering how to tell if a diamond is real or not.
Experts advise you to complete your homework on diamonds you have because the greatest misconception about diamonds is that there is only one type of “fake”. It is not so, there are things such as fake diamonds but there are also some stimulants and substitutes of the diamond present in the market. While few of these substitutes have a great value in their own rights, others are absolutely worthless. It is explained by Shannon Delany (director of communication).
However, if you wish to learn how to tell if a diamond is real, you should know that a diamond has certain qualities and attributes that cannot be faked.
It is also mandatory to know if the diamond you own or about to purchase is certified within the top 3 grades which are IGI certification, AGS, or GIA certification. If you are still in doubt, feel free to use some tools that will help you on how to tell if a diamond is real or not using Diamond Display Technology, provided by James Allen. It will help you evaluate and review your diamonds.
Well, of course, you will want your stone to stand out, if you highly doubt whether your diamond is real or just a substitute, we highly recommended performing these tests in your house. If you still remain in a fix, visit the nearest jeweler and find out.
How To Differentiate Between Loose Diamonds And Mounted Diamonds?
Before we dive straight into home methods that can help you determine how to tell if a diamond is real or not, we need to know the difference between a loose diamond and a mounted diamond because how to tell if a diamond is real or not will vary depending upon whether you have a diamond ring that is loose or mounted.
It is very easy to determine if a diamond is real or fake if it is loose or has not been mounted yet. Also, to tell if the diamond is authentic or it has any flaws is easy in the case of loose diamonds as compared to diamonds that are mounted. Mounted diamonds are those that are ready-made and the diamond is already fixed. Due to their fixed form, potential cracks or any flaws in them will not be very evident.
Mounting is also responsible for reflecting light within the diamond which makes it highly difficult for anyone except a highly reputed jeweler to determine if it is real or has any flaws. If you are planning on buying a mounted diamond, make sure you ask the jeweler to remove it and make it loose to determine any potential flaws in it.
Usually, stones or diamonds that are unreal are not sold at high prices due to various testing procedures but sometimes you may be given a quality less considerate than that of a valuable diamond. Some stones are treated with laser drilling and fracture fill-like procedures to make them appear real and much better than they actually are in terms of quality and looks.
Another great misconception regarding diamonds is that a real and a fake diamond both look kind of similar. Initially, cubic zirconia and a diamond may appear similar in terms of their look but within a short period of time, cubic zirconia stone will start losing its sheer brilliance and appear damaged. Other stones or substitutes are not as hard as diamond. There are few more ways you can test your stones.
Let’s begin with some home methods you can use to determine how to tell if a diamond is real or not. You can perform these tests both on mounted diamonds and loose diamonds, although, if you have a loose diamond, it becomes highly easy to test.
How To Tell If A Diamond Is Real
We have shortlisted few methods that you can even try at home and few methods that use tools to determine. Let’s see what are they so you can easily determine at home how to tell if a diamond is real.
1. How To Tell If A Diamond Is Real Using Fog
It is the easiest to perform at home and can easily help you determine if the diamond you have is real or fake. Just hold your diamond and place it in front of your mouth such that your mouth acts as a mirror for it. Fog the stone or diamond with your breath. Just for a few seconds and see if it is still fogged or the fog effect has vanished. If to stays fogged, it is probably a fake or substitute for a real diamond.
This is due to the condensation properties of a real diamond. If the diamond you have is real, it would not stay fogged for long since the condensations do not stick to its surface.
2. How To Tell If A Diamond Is Real using Water
This one is also easy like the previous one. Just take any glass and fill it with water. Do not worry about the water you use because any water does fine. Drop your diamond ring or any diamond or stone you have into this water glass. A diamond when real, has a higher density due to which it will easily sink in the water and will be settled down at the bottom (simple physics).
If your diamond is fake, the density will not be higher. It will either float on the top of the water or drown somewhere in the middle.
3. How To Tell If A Diamond Is Real Using Magnifying Glass
Another easy method through which you can tell if the stone you have is a real diamond or just a substitute. Just take any magnifying glass and observe your diamond through this glass. Look carefully and see if there are any imperfections also referred to as inclusions in the stone. If you find any imperfections, the diamond is most likely a fake one.
The majority of diamonds that are real usually have imperfections or inclusions. You might be wondering about flawless diamonds, there are few diamonds that have no flaws or imperfections but they are either created in labs or specifically at very high prices.
4. How To Tell If A Diamond Is Real Using A Blacklight
As the title suggests, you need to have a blacklight at your house to perform this test. If you do not have one, ask your neighbors or friends if they have any. Once you get a pretty black light, just turn off all the lights in your room and close every source of light possible. After you turn off the lights, hold your diamond in front of this black light.
The majority of the diamonds are said to release a blue fluorescence when blacklight falls onto them. If you notice a medium to strong blue color, you can estimate and know how to tell if a diamond is real or not.
Instead of blue, if you notice a visible green, gray, or yellow-colored shine, the gem or sapphire you have is not a diamond. However, this, not an exclusive test, and some diamonds do not show blue light or fluorescence.
5. How To Tell If A Diamond is Real Using A Loupe
You might have seen a small device that generally jewelers use to see the details of their work closely. This small magnification device is called a Loupe. You might be wondering we already performed a test using a magnifying glass, even a loupe has magnification property so what is the difference. The only difference present between a magnifying glass and a loupe is that loupe has a lens frame slight conical in structure with no handle present to hold it.
If you see a jeweler they will use a loupe to test the class and clarity of a diamond. Through this loop, look closely if the diamond has any inclusions. The diamonds obtained through mining have natural and tiny imperfections that can help you determine the diamond is real or not. If you witness signs of slight color change or small flecks of minerals then the diamond you have is most likely to be real. However as already mentioned not all diamonds have imperfections. Do not rely completely on this method itself because diamonds created in the lab normally do not show imperfections because they are made in controlled environments.
6. How To Tell If A Stone Real By Heating It
Diamonds are the hardest material present on earth and it’s letting point or boiling points are extremely high. The material they are built up of is also extremely incredible and strong which makes them unresponsive to high levels of heat.
To try this testing method, get a drinking glass and fill it using cold water. For safety use a set of players or gloves that are fire-proof for holding the diamond or stone you have. Use a lighter and heat the stone for nearly 40 to 45 seconds. Immediately drop this stone or diamond into cold water.
If it immediately shatters, know that it was fake and made up of weak components. A true diamond will not break and not show any reaction to this testing method. This method is used to test the quality of important stones and works on a principle. Any weak material like cubic zirconium or glass will crack and break if this procedure is tested on them.
In the case of diamonds, as they are the strongest material on earth, the heat applied to them will quickly disperse and the diamond will not be affected by any change in temperature.
7. How To Tell If A Diamond Is real Using Newspaper
Stones other than diamonds usually do not refract the light that falls onto them. Diamond has the property to show brilliancy. When a diamond has light falling on it, it refracts the light and the light gets trapped inside of it. This test can be used to test the refractivity of a diamond and determine if it is real or fake.
To check the refractivity, gently place the flat side of your diamond on a page of any newspaper usually in any area that has plenty of lettering. You have to make sure that there is bright lighting and any object or person is not casting their shadow in between.
Try to read the letters given in the newspaper. If you are able to read everything or even if they are slightly blurry to read- the diamond you have is fake because when a real diamond is present, all its facets will refract the light falling onto it in many different directions rather than diverting in a straight line.
Due to this refraction by all facets, you will not see anything clearly in a readout. This test is highly effective when you have a loose diamond. If you have a mounted diamond, using a fog test is brilliant to gain results to know how to tell if a diamond is real.
8. How To Tell If A Diamond Is Real Using A Sparkle test
This test will not require anything else other than your eyes. Hold the diamond you have under a lamp and observe how the light is falling on it. Watch how the light is reflected back. Did you notice any shimmery white light traveling across the diamond? or Do you see any colorful reflections of light?
A real diamond is able to reflect light extremely well. It will produce a dazzling and shimmery sparkle. Diamonds are also well-known and popular to reflect colored light including a fire in a magnificent way.
You can do this test using the diamond you have with cubic zirconia. The difference you will see between both will be very vast if your diamond is real.
9. How To Tell If A Diamond Is real Using An X-ray Examination
Diamond has some internal properties that other metals or carbons atoms do not show. If you feel you are not able to determine the properties to tell how to tell if a diamond is real or not, you can always think a step higher and take it to a professional to be reviewed under their guidance.
They have x-ray machines that you can easily use to test if the diamond is just a substitute or real. X-rays help to determine the material that stone is made up of. Diamonds usually have a radiolucent molecular structure while other materials like zircon or glass have radiopaque molecular structure.
10. How To Tell If A Diamond Is Real Using A Microscope
If you use magnification power that is quite higher, you can determine whether your diamond is real or fake. In the methods given, we have informed about magnifying glass and the use of a loupe to see it in an enlarged form. Using a 1200x magnification on a large power microscope or compound microscope, you can easily scrutinize the stone or diamond you have in detail. Jewelers also use this when in doubt. Using microscopes of this size, all the inclusions and very short differences are also visible that can enable us how to tell if a diamond is real or not.
11. How To Tell If A Diamond Is Real Using High Profile Weighting
You often see a weighing machine sort of thing smaller in size in jewelry shops. Various jewelers or germologists have a scale that is fine-tuned to measure very small differences that cannot be determined ordinarily.
A real diamond weighs quite lower than fake stones such as cubic zirconia. If you are planning on deciding to take this test, always keep a fake diamond or stone with yourself having a similar size. Although the differences will not be very large you can determine a real diamond and distinguish it from a fake one.
12. How To Tell If A Diamond Is Real Using Conductivity test
You can also achieve results of testing a real diamond through electrical conductivity. Gemologists and jewelers use this test to carry out the differences between both. Diamond is formed from carbon and we all know that carbon is a great form of the conductor. Diamond is also great and conducts electricity better than most stones like synthetic moissanite.
A diamond will conduct electricity while other stones will not. Do not perform this on your own, seek help from a jewelry shop to maintain safety.
These were 12 ways you can easily determine how to tell if a diamond is real or not. If you wish to read more about jewels and bangles, follow this amazing piece of information.
