I’ll look for that. I’ve been using hot water and dish soap, then Vinegar, then Oxyclean, then Iron out (going from level to level of cleaning ~ iron out may remove things you want to keep. I’ll look for citric acid today, give that a try with a bicarb finish.
I use lemon juice to clean my agates with peroxide and CLR. If you have unwanted calcite you can use white vinegar to dissolve it. Also, the citric acid crystals you used needs to be dissolved in hot water or it may just crystalize and not do it's job. Another tip to remove rust stains from agate because of iron content is to use something called Rust Out. It won't damage agate. Let them soak for 24 hours ( maybe longer ) and toothbrush them and they look great! You can also use Barkeepers Friend, ( it's a powder cleaner for your sink and tub etc.), has oxalic acid as an ingredient but much more gentle than a heavy solution of pure oxalic acid. I also use baking soda to neutralize the acid from the lemons or any acid I use, this way when you empty your solution it won't continue to etch anything, like your driveway or concrete. Be careful mixing different acids and solutions, that smell you smelled was probably sulphuric acid so don't inhale this. After I rinse them thoroughly, I dry and soak them in mineral oil which fills inclusions and then wipe the excess off and they looked almost polished. I love the rough stone. Beautiful finds guys!
lizzymoore54 Hey thank you for the brilliant tips! I’ve had a go at rust out, which was brilliant for the oxidisation stains. But the mineral oil is something I haven’t tried yet... I think I’m gonna have to give that a go for sure because I love the rough stone but even more if it’s shiny 😁 Thanks so much for your help! I’ve pinned your comment to help others too! Legend! Cheers!
Rookie Rockhounding , thank you for your response! You're the only other person I've seen that uses real lemons for their cleaning and bleaching properties, most folks use bleach but lemons smell so much better, don't you think? The peroxide boosts the oxygen in the lemon solution and it has bleaching properties also and no nasty chemical reactions. The Rust Out only works for staining and takes a while to work. The vinegar is so much safer than muriatic acid but will need to be changed and takes longer to work but I'm all about safe and natural. We are working with nature and her beauties you know. I'm looking forward to seeing your next video and seeing what other beauties you find. Happy hunting!
Thank You very much I recently came back from Saddle Mountain, AZ. with a boat load of fire agate and plenty of white chalcedony and the rocks are filled with a bunch of desert varnish. and with all the agate I got will help me so much. I was over scrubbing them. so lemon juice peroxide and CLR. I did use peroxide but the slim still didn't clean it off. I will soak them for 24 hrs. and make the concentration strong. There is a lot of volcanic ash on the rocks.
The "black" stuff is called desert varnish. It is a thin layer of residue, usually manganese and clay, that is laid down over centuries by microbial metabolism. The lemon acid actually kills the microbes and thus releases the residue. When the black spots are down in the pits or cracks in the rock, it protects the microbes from the harsh environment. Microbes are then called "endolithic"... inside the rock!!
Rhyannon Lallatin If I could double like this comment I would do it at least a hundred times! You have no idea how many different times and different phrases I’ve used on google to try and find out what it is called, I finally can say I know what this is!!!!!!!! Thank you thank you thank you!!!!
@@Rookie_Rockounding You are so welcome. I wandered into your cool agates from a very new geology field called geomicrobiology, a part of astrobiology. It is the study of the extensive relationships between microbes and minerals. Endolithic stuff is the life we're looking for on Mars. Agate acts as a skylight for living microbes! :))
Rookie Rockhounding Not to be too crude, but the desert varnish residue is metabolic waste product.... or in other words, microbe doo doo!! :)) They can even poop calcium, iron or even stuff like gypsum crusts on the rocks, depending on what kinds of microbes are growing and what they produce as waste products. :)) Microbes are pooping rocks!! :))
Thank You for your videos, I have a boat load of fire agate and chalcedony with the scum ( desert varnish) and volcanic ash. One of your reply's said CRL, lemon juice and peroxide. I am going to give that a try. If is wasn't for your video I would be lost, I was over scrubbing the rocks. Thank You!
I loved your video, and am so glad you shared. The rocks are so pretty. I could have watched you clean these and just look at them for hours....I didnt think this was long at all.
Very cool and strange. I never like to use acids I've had a bad experience with vinegar before, It clouded the surface after and dimmed the sparkle. I just use a metal tool really for getting the main stuff off other than that I am true to Soap and water, The impurity staining and colorization to me adds a bit of character so not all of my formations are spotless but they do shine in the sun and sparkle like crazy.
Thanks for the suggestion. I have a bag in my cupboard that I bought awhile ago for what not. I did the lemon rest before too (lol). Iron out I would warn against for anything colored. It will suck the color right out. It also didn't get rust out of white quartz that well. It also dulls any luster. Maybe I'll use it on white clothes...
Hahaha! Iron out on white clothes 😂🤣 you never know! Yeah this stuff won’t touch the oxidisation stains but it will help clean organic stuff off and give you a better idea of what’s beneath. Good luck!!!!
Thank you Thank you! I have been endlessly scrubbing creek rocks and like you pockets of that icky stuff just would not come off! Now I can just dump them in citric acid and then neutralize with bi carb! Great Video! Genius!
Critic acid works well for desert varnish, but sulfuric acid is faster and gets a nice deep clean. I am a rookie geologist also, I learned quite a bit from,meMiner. Its definitely a fun hobby. This spring I'm going to try prospecting for gold. But first step is to identify your rocks and minerals. Good luck bro
Ah awesome, thanks for sharing the great advice peter! And how good is meMiner right. He’s a guru of rocks 😁 All the best with the prospecting this spring, it’s so much fun hey 👍👍👍
I stirred the citric acid well with hot water and than soaked the agates in them. The agates now have a white coating. Any idea what it is and how to get rid of it?
@@petekobraoutdoors7324 I seen so many people with good results of citric acid so I used it. I did something wrong and I'm trying to figure a way to reverse it without using something like muriatic acid.
Great teachings of cleaning your rocks and with what worked for the first time. I liked your green one. Others as well. Thanks for sharing your video with us. Good hunting for the next video. God Bless.
Heyyyyyyyyyyya! I loved how this all accidentally happened. It’s my go to for cleaning the creek scum off of them with little to no damage to the minerals. 😉👍
Found a bunch of carnelian yesterday on the masa and their all covered in this black/browns stuff. I’ve tried cleaning with Muriatic Acid, IronOut, Vinegar, bleach and nothing will take it off. So thanks to you I will try the lemon idea lol.
Hey mate, hopefully it’ll work! Normally vinegar and citric acid have pretty similar results so I’m crossing my fingers it works dude!!!! Keep me posted 👍👍👍
Thanks for the video! I have 7 buckets of agate to clean from last week and I tested citric acid on a few of them with great results. One really large piece in particular about twelve lbs which was 3/4 of the way buried so it is a challenge. Bought citric acid in the grocery store in small bottles but just found on Amazon it is available in 5lb and 10lb bags. Thanks!
Ohhhh snap! Chris that’s a great idea getting the stuff from amazon! Vinegar is pretty good at it as well but I haven’t compared the two yet. I might do that.
@@Rookie_Rockounding I have found vinegar is pretty good at dissolving or loosening desert varnish but you still have to scrub. Use 9% vinegar for better effect.
Love it, Rookie! I too, worried a little bit about putting our most beautiful specimens in Muriatic, so this is pretty cool. I do love the look of some of the matrix on there, just not when its dirty as all get out.
Just sharing the love...I became POISONED by noxious gasses..mixing common household cleansers Willy Nilly...really quite sick..I get migraines years later if I smell bleach or amonia or oven cleaner...just a heads up!! about mixing :)
Great comment! Super important! Thank you for letting us all know the dangers you’ve experienced first hand. I really am sorry you have gone through that and have to endure the migraines too. I suffered them regularly as a child and couldn’t imagine being in your position Michele. I hope it cures itself for you soon!!!!
Hi Friend, just skimmed the video as of now as it is late and Im off to bed. Will check out tomorrow. For now I want to give you some tips you can try out on your rocks and crystals that I use, especially on my agates/chalcedony that are rusty, rocky, etc. The typical process I go through is the soap and scrubbing, then I may use iron out powder in warm water bath for rust and works like a charm. Then I may soak them for 2-3 days in a water and muratic acid bath to further get anything off, though at times even this process doesnt get all the "stuff" off. I heard to use oxalic (spelling) acid as that works and love your lemon experiment. I do 5% vinegar at times when I dont want to do acid. Just note that anything acid, even vinegar will dissolve and calcite crystals formations, glaze or carbonates from your finds. At times I use my hand held Dremel Tool with certain bits to get in the tiny cracks to chip away spots or sanding or grinding bits. Even a fine sowing needle, dental pick, etc will help scrape off tiny spots to get them clean. Love those big guys you found, great stuff and thanks for the video. Will view it fully tomorrow. Love Chris
@@Rookie_Rockounding Sure thing My Friend and your creeks and rivers are insane compared to what my rivers have here in Mount Shasta Ca! I actually find some cool calcite, agate and chalcedony when walking the railroad tracks and even rocks they dump along exit ramps of the highways for drainage ditches, give it a look by you to see if you have hidden treasure there as well. Hey not sure if you know, but I learned from a guy on YT called "MeMiner" how to use muratic acid and water bath to dissolve calcite covering or glazes on rocks that look like nothing special and he finds cool things like nice cubed iron pyrite, garnets and so on. I did about 7 rocks this past summer and I found tiny wonderful Quartz Point growing inside about 5 out of 7 or 8 rocks I did. They are tiny, like ranging from 1/8 inch to 1/2 in, but usually are all immaculate and like "ice" looking since they were formed and the calcite glaze or carbonate glaze sealed them up for protection. Check out his channel and scroll through his video if you want to see what I mean, gives you and added bonus when out looking for your normal treasure. I guess you guys are in Australia, if so, do you have run in with lots of cool animals or poisonous snakes when out and about? Cheers "Mate" lol.
Hey Chris! Yeah we are definitely spoilt out here with the creeks and rivers. Just beautiful country. But oh man that sounds like a great way to find treasures on the tracks and roadsides! It sounds like it must have been brought in from somewhere else but still just as fun I reckon! Nice work with the Urban rockhounding!! We always keep our eyes open in gravel anywhere out here but most of the time it’s crushed quartz or other river stones, I haven’t been lucky enough yet to find them in any of those types of areas but it would be awesome if we could! That’s great about your rocks after the muriatic acid bath! Very cool! As for @meMiner, oh man he is a legend! Just knows his stuff and shares it through great vids. I always love seeing one of his pop up in my notifications! He’s one of the guys I’ve learnt the most from, pretty much a guru! And super entertaining too! Ah yes, we’re in Australia, and definitely come across some beautiful animals and are always on the look out for snakes. Some areas we won’t even try if they have long grass and it’s summer, cause there’s bound to be plenty of snakes hiding in there. And nasty ones too. They’re amazing creatures, but need to be treated with caution. We’ve got some deadly ones. Thanks for watching and for your comment mate! Happy hounding!!!!!!
That’s so cool regarding the lemons because they are one of the highest in alkaline! Fun discovery for sure. I’m going to have to try that with a lime because they are super high in acid on the pH scale…. Thanks!!!!
Great video Rookie! Thanks for going through those tests for us all, very good to know. So far all I've ever done is wash/scrub them then cut/cab/polish etc to expose them thar rocks for what they really are! Look forward to seeing more, appreciate you sharing your rock candy with us tubers~
Backcountry with Shaughn Oh man thanks for watching and commenting hey, I just have so much fun looking for rocks and playin with them, and I love watching others share their stuff, it’s a cool community of people to be a part of hey. And I so can’t wait to have the means to cut them rocks open and one day do some cabbing. If I get some time I’m hoping to join my local club to learn about that side of rock work. Thanks again dude! Happy adventures good times and houndin to you bud 👍
Thanks Dayton! So that’s why it smells funny, I’ve learnt that I need to be careful with rinsing Acid washes on concrete since this video. It can totally clean it off way too much!
I've subscribed. Enjoying your videos. I love getting out into nature and rock hounding. Still learning as I go and I love the upliftment and meditative feelings it brings. Thanks 🐞
june jones Hi June! Thanks for coming along for the ride!! Yeah rockhounding and nature are the best! And learning is what keeps it interesting. Hence the name “Rookie” haha! I hope you enjoy.
We've tried both the vinager and ketchup method and have had limited success with both. I like how fast (relatively speaking) your citrus method works!
OMG!!!! Thanks so very much for sharing the citric acid trick, and ...Those are some awesome Agate finds! Wish I was there too. Happy Hunting and many blessings! Namaste!
Syrena White Feathers Hey syrena! Thanks for watching, I’m glad I was able to share this cool little trick. I couldn’t see much info online about it so was super stoked when I stumbled across how easy this stuff is to use. I think vinegar does a similar thing too. Or like in the vid, plain ol lemons haha! Happy huntings and namaste to you too!
Great alternative! I can't be mucking about with muriatic acid, it's dangerous and I'm too clumsy. Knew there had to be something less noxious. Thank you so much for this!! Much appreciated!♥️ It'll save me poor hands
It’s absolutely a pleasure to share Alice! I literally had the same thought, and that’s why I tried a lemon before I went out and got the heavy duty stuff. I swear by it. If you can’t get citric acid, vinegar is just as good 😉👍
It's definitely part of the host rock bro it's iron it's what makes the fire 🔥 in the Agate I know this because I hunt them and cut them beautiful collection 😎👍
You can find citric acid in Comet bathroom cleaner. If you're going to use muriatic acid be aware it's a much stronger acid that can destroy gems and injure you severely. Muriatic acid is a old name for hydrochloric acid. Always have a water source near by before beginning to work with this acid.
Oh my goodness you find some amazing stones. Cheers from Michigan. I would love to show a video soon of my collection. I used apple cider vinegar for my Petoskey stones and it cleared them right up after leaving them sit for 48hrs. Can't wait to try it out on my chunks of Chalcedony. Nice video! Beautiful stones & gems
I've been experimenting with a cleaner called C.L.R.....I've tries the vinegar so I figured let's try...and it workes... you have to be careful not to leave soft rocks in to long or it's gonna mess up the rock...I've got before and after pics if you want to see them
CLR! Yet another application. I have used it to clean carbon from firearms and to clean crude from glass panes where nothing else worked. BTW, Rookie Rockhounding thanks for the tips. We just collected some agates from the Oregon coast.
Oh thanks Jo! I’m so glad I stumbled across it and had to share it. I wasn’t the first of course, I just never heard about it and was blown away by how wel it worked. Vinegar does a great job of it too. Very similar results. 😁
Oh awesome! Let me know how that works out. Hopefully it’ll clean some of the creek scum and organic stains off the outside. Fingers crossed for a great result!
Don’t forget to neutralise them in a soak of bicarb soda or baking soda and water. It’s best to do that with those heavier acids. But yeah, this was more of a safer way to do it. A lot of people don’t like using the stronger acids. I’ve tried it though and it works a treat on oxidised areas hey! Thanks Angela 👍
I can't believe I've not seen this video before, well I'm glad I found it 😃 . I have Muriatic Acid and I've also used Vinegar but I've not used Citric Acid before, I am now . Take care and wishing you well as always, best regards from your Canadian mate .
Where did you find the Chalcedony at? You said a river or pond. Man I'm from Maine, an I love checking out Rivers and what bot for stines I should clean some of them with lemon juice to see if I found anything good. would love to find what you found in the creek, pond or river, I'm a collector myself and recently wanted to start "hounding" for crystals and stones my welf
Usually agate, jasper, and chalcedony are all silicate deposited in either cracks or open areas inside of other rocks, especially in igneous (volcanic) rocks. So you would have to look near streams that are close by mountains, for the most part.
Rob Rabbit Thanks man, I know there’s other acids out there that can help clean up rocks, like Iron Out etc, but this was just a fun and easy way to clean them cheaply without scrubbing too much and with something in the kitchen cupboard haha! Thanks for watching bud.
I can’t seem to reply to the email you sent me I had r photos for you to look at I tried also attaching photos here with this message but can’t. I found chalcedony & fire agates I think in Arizona and want them to look shiny like yours! Does sitting in the baking soda water for double the time of muradic acid create the shine? I put some different ones in the citric acid last night. What is your best guess to help make them shine? They are beautiful wet. Thanks, Kara
It's amazing how similar our stones are. I thought you must be located somewhat near to my proximity. You are on the other side of the world if you are in the Land Down Under. Very surprising!
OMG wow, that worked so amazing. Thats the trick right there. That's worked so amazing compared to scrubbing or other chemicals. I was wondering if Hydrogen Peroxide would work, but might mess of the rock, IDK. But hey can't beat these results, just so impressive.
Can you do a short video sometime just showing us all of the amazing red and orange ones you have found? I have a good friend in Australia and one of these days I’m gonna go see her and go hounding!
Hey I’ll have a try one time of just the carnelian ones, (the red/orange coloured ones). Oh heck yeah! What state or area is she in? If it’s se qld let us know 😁
Citric acid is great stuff but extremely expensive in those little containers. Im getting 1 kg packets for $12au from a wholesale food supplier. Also great for rust removal
Ya no my trick isbto wash with dawn dish soap pver night soak. Then put in ziplock baggie with small amount of reg cookin oil for couple days n they come very clean.
Before you decide to put concrete with lemon juice you might want to drain that down the toilet and the baking soda you didn't have to hold it for 24 hours it does its work almost immediately
Ohhhhhh thank you! I actually never knew the baking soda was pretty much instant. That saves so much time hahaha! Seriously thank you, and also for the tip of pouring it down the toilet... I honestly never thought of that, I’ll be doing that next time for sure. Thank you again mate 👍👌
be careful pouring it out on cement it will definitely react I put a hole in my dad's driveway one time with muriatic acid did not use the baking soda quick enough took the top finish right off
Paulette Campbell 😳 thanks for the heads up, I’m going to be trying some muriatic Acid soon so I’ll be sure to pour it out in the right area. Where should you pour it out I wonder? I’m guessing it’s gonna kill the grass and probably ruin soil. Hmmm, sounds like a job for google 🤣 Happy rock times!
I discovered that Citric acid cleans off the creek scum without scrubbing! It saves so much time! Just a cool discovery I thought I had to share!
How much is its price
I’ll look for that. I’ve been using hot water and dish soap, then Vinegar, then Oxyclean, then Iron out (going from level to level of cleaning ~ iron out may remove things you want to keep. I’ll look for citric acid today, give that a try with a bicarb finish.
Where do you sell ur gems at
Where do you go to get these??
kirsten burnett I ordered citric acid on amazon (food grade). Iron out at a local hardware store. Oxyclean and vinegar at the grocery.
I use lemon juice to clean my agates with peroxide and CLR. If you have unwanted calcite you can use white vinegar to dissolve it. Also, the citric acid crystals you used needs to be dissolved in hot water or it may just crystalize and not do it's job. Another tip to remove rust stains from agate because of iron content is to use something called Rust Out. It won't damage agate. Let them soak for 24 hours ( maybe longer ) and toothbrush them and they look great! You can also use Barkeepers Friend, ( it's a powder cleaner for your sink and tub etc.), has oxalic acid as an ingredient but much more gentle than a heavy solution of pure oxalic acid. I also use baking soda to neutralize the acid from the lemons or any acid I use, this way when you empty your solution it won't continue to etch anything, like your driveway or concrete. Be careful mixing different acids and solutions, that smell you smelled was probably sulphuric acid so don't inhale this. After I rinse them thoroughly, I dry and soak them in mineral oil which fills inclusions and then wipe the excess off and they looked almost polished. I love the rough stone. Beautiful finds guys!
lizzymoore54
Hey thank you for the brilliant tips! I’ve had a go at rust out, which was brilliant for the oxidisation stains. But the mineral oil is something I haven’t tried yet... I think I’m gonna have to give that a go for sure because I love the rough stone but even more if it’s shiny 😁
Thanks so much for your help! I’ve pinned your comment to help others too!
Legend! Cheers!
Rookie Rockhounding , thank you for your response! You're the only other person I've seen that uses real lemons for their cleaning and bleaching properties, most folks use bleach but lemons smell so much better, don't you think? The peroxide boosts the oxygen in the lemon solution and it has bleaching properties also and no nasty chemical reactions. The Rust Out only works for staining and takes a while to work. The vinegar is so much safer than muriatic acid but will need to be changed and takes longer to work but I'm all about safe and natural. We are working with nature and her beauties you know. I'm looking forward to seeing your next video and seeing what other beauties you find. Happy hunting!
lizzymoore54
I’m just glad I stumbled across the wonderful property of lemons when I did haha! Tah!
Thank You very much I recently came back from Saddle Mountain, AZ. with a boat load of fire agate and plenty of white chalcedony and the rocks are filled with a bunch of desert varnish. and with all the agate I got will help me so much. I was over scrubbing them. so lemon juice peroxide and CLR. I did use peroxide but the slim still didn't clean it off. I will soak them for 24 hrs. and make the concentration strong. There is a lot of volcanic ash on the rocks.
Oh that’s great!!!! I hope it works well for you Odie, or at least saves you some scrubbing time 😁
Wow. Thank you all so much.Im right in the middle of doing this right now and you just saved me a bunch of money & time.
Hey that’s awesome!!! I hope it works out well 😊👍
The "black" stuff is called desert varnish. It is a thin layer of residue, usually manganese and clay, that is laid down over centuries by microbial metabolism. The lemon acid actually kills the microbes and thus releases the residue. When the black spots are down in the pits or cracks in the rock, it protects the microbes from the harsh environment. Microbes are then called "endolithic"... inside the rock!!
Rhyannon Lallatin
If I could double like this comment I would do it at least a hundred times! You have no idea how many different times and different phrases I’ve used on google to try and find out what it is called, I finally can say I know what this is!!!!!!!! Thank you thank you thank you!!!!
@@Rookie_Rockounding You are so welcome. I wandered into your cool agates from a very new geology field called geomicrobiology, a part of astrobiology. It is the study of the extensive relationships between microbes and minerals. Endolithic stuff is the life we're looking for on Mars. Agate acts as a skylight for living microbes! :))
😳😳😳
Wow! That sounds so up my alley! Time to fall into a google wormhole again hahaha!
Rookie Rockhounding Not to be too crude, but the desert varnish residue is metabolic waste product.... or in other words, microbe doo doo!! :)) They can even poop calcium, iron or even stuff like gypsum crusts on the rocks, depending on what kinds of microbes are growing and what they produce as waste products. :)) Microbes are pooping rocks!! :))
Whaaaaaaaaat!? Hahaha! A rock pooping microbe! This world is so awesome!!!!!!!!!!
Thank You for your videos, I have a boat load of fire agate and chalcedony with the scum ( desert varnish) and volcanic ash. One of your reply's said CRL, lemon juice and peroxide. I am going to give that a try. If is wasn't for your video I would be lost, I was over scrubbing the rocks. Thank You!
Haha! Yeah the scrubbing can take it’s toll. Hopefully it works awesome for you 👍👍👍 let me know how it goes 😁 have fun!
That's what I'm going to try too
Awesome agates and tips. Thank you for sharing.👍😊
I loved your video, and am so glad you shared. The rocks are so pretty. I could have watched you clean these and just look at them for hours....I didnt think this was long at all.
Oh thank you Jody!
Uk
Thanks for experimenting, love that this is stuff that I can get from my local store and it is less toxic. Great video, learned a lot.
Dude that was amazing!!!!! I can’t wait to start the process! Ok here I go!
Very cool and strange. I never like to use acids I've had a bad experience with vinegar before, It clouded the surface after and dimmed the sparkle. I just use a metal tool really for getting the main stuff off other than that I am true to Soap and water, The impurity staining and colorization to me adds a bit of character so not all of my formations are spotless but they do shine in the sun and sparkle like crazy.
Wow! What a difference! The stones are really beautiful. I use citric acid in my dishwasher and my dishes have never been cleaner.
Oh wow I never knew it could be used for dishes! I might just try that one out 😀 thanks!
Thanks for the suggestion. I have a bag in my cupboard that I bought awhile ago for what not. I did the lemon rest before too (lol). Iron out I would warn against for anything colored. It will suck the color right out. It also didn't get rust out of white quartz that well. It also dulls any luster. Maybe I'll use it on white clothes...
Hahaha! Iron out on white clothes 😂🤣 you never know! Yeah this stuff won’t touch the oxidisation stains but it will help clean organic stuff off and give you a better idea of what’s beneath. Good luck!!!!
Great specimens! I love the clear milky one that looks like a mini sofa. Such great impossible shapes. Thanks for sharing.
Its beautiful to feel the love❤with this beautiful stones❤
Thank you Thank you! I have been endlessly scrubbing creek rocks and like you pockets of that icky stuff just would not come off! Now I can just dump them in citric acid and then neutralize with bi carb! Great Video! Genius!
Critic acid works well for desert varnish, but sulfuric acid is faster and gets a nice deep clean. I am a rookie geologist also, I learned quite a bit from,meMiner.
Its definitely a fun hobby.
This spring I'm going to try prospecting for gold. But first step is to identify your rocks and minerals. Good luck bro
Ah awesome, thanks for sharing the great advice peter! And how good is meMiner right. He’s a guru of rocks 😁
All the best with the prospecting this spring, it’s so much fun hey 👍👍👍
I stirred the citric acid well with hot water and than soaked the agates in them. The agates now have a white coating. Any idea what it is and how to get rid of it?
@roxyscott1253 Hmmm,sounds like they got bleached? Nature is throwing a wrench into your hobby? 😆
@@petekobraoutdoors7324 I seen so many people with good results of citric acid so I used it.
I did something wrong and I'm trying to figure a way to reverse it without using something like muriatic acid.
I love it....seriously...i been struggling with the same questions thank u for posting this..learned something new
What would happen if you put an air bubbler under the rocks while they sit in the cleaner?
Could add enough agitation to help.
Great teachings of cleaning your rocks and with what worked for the first time. I liked your green one. Others as well. Thanks for sharing your video with us. Good hunting for the next video. God Bless.
That's so funny, I love discovering tricks like that. Awesome stuff thank you
Heyyyyyyyyyyya! I loved how this all accidentally happened. It’s my go to for cleaning the creek scum off of them with little to no damage to the minerals. 😉👍
Found a bunch of carnelian yesterday on the masa and their all covered in this black/browns stuff. I’ve tried cleaning with Muriatic Acid, IronOut, Vinegar, bleach and nothing will take it off. So thanks to you I will try the lemon idea lol.
Hey mate, hopefully it’ll work! Normally vinegar and citric acid have pretty similar results so I’m crossing my fingers it works dude!!!! Keep me posted 👍👍👍
Thanks for the video! I have 7 buckets of agate to clean from last week and I tested citric acid on a few of them with great results. One really large piece in particular about twelve lbs which was 3/4 of the way buried so it is a challenge. Bought citric acid in the grocery store in small bottles but just found on Amazon it is available in 5lb and 10lb bags. Thanks!
Ohhhh snap! Chris that’s a great idea getting the stuff from amazon! Vinegar is pretty good at it as well but I haven’t compared the two yet. I might do that.
@@Rookie_Rockounding I have found vinegar is pretty good at dissolving or loosening desert varnish but you still have to scrub. Use 9% vinegar for better effect.
Oh wow! That’s great. I was wondering if desert varnish is what you had stuck on your rocks. I just couldn’t remember the name haha!
Izin bertanya apakah batu akik seperti di dalam video ini berharga. Jika berharga di wilayah kami banyak sekali. Di Aliran Sungai..
Love it, Rookie! I too, worried a little bit about putting our most beautiful specimens in Muriatic, so this is pretty cool. I do love the look of some of the matrix on there, just not when its dirty as all get out.
You have some awesome looking rocks!
Just sharing the love...I became POISONED by noxious gasses..mixing common household cleansers Willy Nilly...really quite sick..I get migraines years later if I smell bleach or amonia or oven cleaner...just a heads up!! about mixing :)
Great comment! Super important! Thank you for letting us all know the dangers you’ve experienced first hand. I really am sorry you have gone through that and have to endure the migraines too. I suffered them regularly as a child and couldn’t imagine being in your position Michele. I hope it cures itself for you soon!!!!
Hi Friend, just skimmed the video as of now as it is late and Im off to bed. Will check out tomorrow. For now I want to give you some tips you can try out on your rocks and crystals that I use, especially on my agates/chalcedony that are rusty, rocky, etc. The typical process I go through is the soap and scrubbing, then I may use iron out powder in warm water bath for rust and works like a charm. Then I may soak them for 2-3 days in a water and muratic acid bath to further get anything off, though at times even this process doesnt get all the "stuff" off. I heard to use oxalic (spelling) acid as that works and love your lemon experiment. I do 5% vinegar at times when I dont want to do acid. Just note that anything acid, even vinegar will dissolve and calcite crystals formations, glaze or carbonates from your finds. At times I use my hand held Dremel Tool with certain bits to get in the tiny cracks to chip away spots or sanding or grinding bits. Even a fine sowing needle, dental pick, etc will help scrape off tiny spots to get them clean. Love those big guys you found, great stuff and thanks for the video. Will view it fully tomorrow. Love Chris
Oh thank you so much for all the helpful info in your comment mate! I hope others read this and find some great tips! Take care Christopher!
@@Rookie_Rockounding Sure thing My Friend and your creeks and rivers are insane compared to what my rivers have here in Mount Shasta Ca! I actually find some cool calcite, agate and chalcedony when walking the railroad tracks and even rocks they dump along exit ramps of the highways for drainage ditches, give it a look by you to see if you have hidden treasure there as well. Hey not sure if you know, but I learned from a guy on YT called "MeMiner" how to use muratic acid and water bath to dissolve calcite covering or glazes on rocks that look like nothing special and he finds cool things like nice cubed iron pyrite, garnets and so on. I did about 7 rocks this past summer and I found tiny wonderful Quartz Point growing inside about 5 out of 7 or 8 rocks I did. They are tiny, like ranging from 1/8 inch to 1/2 in, but usually are all immaculate and like "ice" looking since they were formed and the calcite glaze or carbonate glaze sealed them up for protection. Check out his channel and scroll through his video if you want to see what I mean, gives you and added bonus when out looking for your normal treasure. I guess you guys are in Australia, if so, do you have run in with lots of cool animals or poisonous snakes when out and about? Cheers "Mate" lol.
Hey Chris! Yeah we are definitely spoilt out here with the creeks and rivers. Just beautiful country. But oh man that sounds like a great way to find treasures on the tracks and roadsides! It sounds like it must have been brought in from somewhere else but still just as fun I reckon! Nice work with the Urban rockhounding!! We always keep our eyes open in gravel anywhere out here but most of the time it’s crushed quartz or other river stones, I haven’t been lucky enough yet to find them in any of those types of areas but it would be awesome if we could!
That’s great about your rocks after the muriatic acid bath! Very cool! As for @meMiner, oh man he is a legend! Just knows his stuff and shares it through great vids. I always love seeing one of his pop up in my notifications! He’s one of the guys I’ve learnt the most from, pretty much a guru! And super entertaining too!
Ah yes, we’re in Australia, and definitely come across some beautiful animals and are always on the look out for snakes. Some areas we won’t even try if they have long grass and it’s summer, cause there’s bound to be plenty of snakes hiding in there. And nasty ones too. They’re amazing creatures, but need to be treated with caution. We’ve got some deadly ones.
Thanks for watching and for your comment mate!
Happy hounding!!!!!!
Last week I got a uge agate I cal it a geraf agate couse it's the banding is arranged like the spots of a geraf
That’s so cool regarding the lemons because they are one of the highest in alkaline! Fun discovery for sure. I’m going to have to try that with a lime because they are super high in acid on the pH scale…. Thanks!!!!
very detailed stone washing, 👍🏿👍🏿👍🏿
The holes are where former crystals fell out. You can use Iron Out to remove a lot of discoloration and clean crusts off
Thank you, you did all the hard work and I benifit. ✌️♥️
Great video Rookie! Thanks for going through those tests for us all, very good to know. So far all I've ever done is wash/scrub them then cut/cab/polish etc to expose them thar rocks for what they really are! Look forward to seeing more, appreciate you sharing your rock candy with us tubers~
Backcountry with Shaughn
Oh man thanks for watching and commenting hey, I just have so much fun looking for rocks and playin with them, and I love watching others share their stuff, it’s a cool community of people to be a part of hey.
And I so can’t wait to have the means to cut them rocks open and one day do some cabbing. If I get some time I’m hoping to join my local club to learn about that side of rock work.
Thanks again dude! Happy adventures good times and houndin to you bud 👍
Concrete contains crushed limestone which dissolves in acid. Nice material
Thanks Dayton! So that’s why it smells funny, I’ve learnt that I need to be careful with rinsing Acid washes on concrete since this video. It can totally clean it off way too much!
Thank you for answering, that solved my curiosity hahaha.
throw in some volcanic ash for that roman feel
Well I dont have anything but lemon juice to clean my Crystal's so I guess I'll see how it goes thanks for the idea!!!♡
Thank you so much from one crystal lover to another 👍
Always fun to share 😉👍
I've subscribed. Enjoying your videos. I love getting out into nature and rock hounding. Still learning as I go and I love the upliftment and meditative feelings it brings. Thanks 🐞
june jones
Hi June! Thanks for coming along for the ride!! Yeah rockhounding and nature are the best! And learning is what keeps it interesting. Hence the name “Rookie” haha!
I hope you enjoy.
Qalabkadahb
❤
Nice rocks you got there man! Those agates are huge!! Nice chalcedony to!
Very cool idea, we will definitely try this...Nice video thank you
Thank you Seejay And Denny!
Vinegar works about the same also, but doesn’t act as fast initially. It just depends on which is cheaper I reckon. 👍
We've tried both the vinager and ketchup method and have had limited success with both. I like how fast (relatively speaking) your citrus method works!
Yeah I've been finding those like crazy!!
Yo
OMG!!!! Thanks so very much for sharing the citric acid trick, and ...Those are some awesome Agate finds! Wish I was there too. Happy Hunting and many blessings! Namaste!
Syrena White Feathers
Hey syrena! Thanks for watching, I’m glad I was able to share this cool little trick. I couldn’t see much info online about it so was super stoked when I stumbled across how easy this stuff is to use. I think vinegar does a similar thing too. Or like in the vid, plain ol lemons haha!
Happy huntings and namaste to you too!
wow,thats is awesome,thank you for sharing.
👍😊 thank you!
Nice trick for a beginner! I will definitely try this!,
Thank you for sharing and showing all the process! Nice results from an "experiment!"
Great alternative! I can't be mucking about with muriatic acid, it's dangerous and I'm too clumsy. Knew there had to be something less noxious.
Thank you so much for this!! Much appreciated!♥️ It'll save me poor hands
It’s absolutely a pleasure to share Alice! I literally had the same thought, and that’s why I tried a lemon before I went out and got the heavy duty stuff. I swear by it. If you can’t get citric acid, vinegar is just as good 😉👍
@@Rookie_Rockounding I've had situations where vinegar has left a dull surface on quartz. Have you ever had this happen?
I remember when this was uploaded, time flies.
I've been using iron out but they have a dry look after. I'll try this thanks for sharing
OK! I'm grabbing my lemon juice!! 😃
It's definitely part of the host rock bro it's iron it's what makes the fire 🔥 in the Agate I know this because I hunt them and cut them beautiful collection 😎👍
Thanks REDMAN!
Beautiful rocks man! I love em!
Spherical Rhyolite. That’s what I have!!! A Great Big Huge Thanks!!!
Great job thumbs up great video. They look like jewel's. Thanks
necro easy
Thank you very much necro! 👍👍👍
those are beautiful I'm going to try the trick you used.
You can find citric acid in Comet bathroom cleaner. If you're going to use muriatic acid be aware it's a much stronger acid that can destroy gems and injure you severely. Muriatic acid is a old name for hydrochloric acid. Always have a water source near by before beginning to work with this acid.
Hey mate! Thank you for the helpful tips my friend!!
Literally drooling the entire video!
Oh my goodness you find some amazing stones. Cheers from Michigan. I would love to show a video soon of my collection. I used apple cider vinegar for my Petoskey stones and it cleared them right up after leaving them sit for 48hrs. Can't wait to try it out on my chunks of Chalcedony. Nice video! Beautiful stones & gems
I found small piece of purple and orange stone...I found SUMTHING worth...I love collecting such stones
Awesome, totally gonna try this as not a fan of the serious chemically stuff and it gets boring scrubbing with a toothbrush for 3hours...
I've been experimenting with a cleaner called C.L.R.....I've tries the vinegar so I figured let's try...and it workes... you have to be careful not to leave soft rocks in to long or it's gonna mess up the rock...I've got before and after pics if you want to see them
CLR! Yet another application. I have used it to clean carbon from firearms and to clean crude from glass panes where nothing else worked. BTW, Rookie Rockhounding
thanks for the tips. We just collected some agates from the Oregon coast.
I’m gonna have to try some CLR, thank you for the help Jenn and mynr49r! 😁👌
I'd show you guys some pictures but cant post um on here...if I find anything else that works I'll let you guys know
That would be great. You can always post a link on here to a picture online if that works. I’m somewhat internet illiterate haha!
@@Rookie_Rockounding lol I never thought of that and I'm pretty computer savy.. guess the mind does go quicker after 40 lol
Love the lemon 🍋 idea
I so wish I saw this before I got there and did all the crazy stuff I did. Nice going.
Oh thanks Jo! I’m so glad I stumbled across it and had to share it. I wasn’t the first of course, I just never heard about it and was blown away by how wel it worked. Vinegar does a great job of it too. Very similar results. 😁
@@Rookie_Rockounding Hi again Rookie. Well as of now I have my rocks in the lemon juice now. I hope to see how they turn out. (:
Oh awesome! Let me know how that works out. Hopefully it’ll clean some of the creek scum and organic stains off the outside. Fingers crossed for a great result!
Soak in IRON OUT for 3 days and stir everyday. Afterwards, neutralize with baking soda, and rinse well.
Don’t forget to neutralise them in a soak of bicarb soda or baking soda and water. It’s best to do that with those heavier acids.
But yeah, this was more of a safer way to do it. A lot of people don’t like using the stronger acids. I’ve tried it though and it works a treat on oxidised areas hey! Thanks Angela 👍
Rookie Rockhounding yikes...you are right. I use baking soda
You got some beautiful pieces!
Cassandra Reed
Thank you, the creeks were kind out this way 😁
Nice video. I've got a peice of conglomerate that I believe has some crystals in it. Definitely going to try citric acid.
Very nice mineral ,they are beautiful .
You have a lot of type 2a rough diamonds in that lot... TH-cam huge rough diamonds... Your wealthy now! Where are you finding these?
Very cool. Thank you for the entertainment.
TroubledSpirit
Absolutely a pleasure brother 👊✨
Loved the vid well done
maaaaaate 👍👍👍🇦🇺👍👍..just bought some and gave it a crack on some heavy creek scummed stuff and BANG !!!
shit hot mate.. cheers
Ha!!!!! Yes!!!!! That’s awesome mate! So glad!
I can't believe I've not seen this video before, well I'm glad I found it 😃 . I have Muriatic Acid and I've also used Vinegar but I've not used Citric Acid before, I am now . Take care and wishing you well as always, best regards from your Canadian mate .
Where did you find the Chalcedony at? You said a river or pond. Man I'm from Maine, an I love checking out Rivers and what bot for stines I should clean some of them with lemon juice to see if I found anything good. would love to find what you found in the creek, pond or river, I'm a collector myself and recently wanted to start "hounding" for crystals and stones my welf
Usually agate, jasper, and chalcedony are all silicate deposited in either cracks or open areas inside of other rocks, especially in igneous (volcanic) rocks. So you would have to look near streams that are close by mountains, for the most part.
White vinegar (as long as your rock isn't limestone)
go to your local grocery , it is used for canning and you should find it there . it costs little.
Awesome tip with the Citric acid!
Rob Rabbit
Thanks man, I know there’s other acids out there that can help clean up rocks, like Iron Out etc, but this was just a fun and easy way to clean them cheaply without scrubbing too much and with something in the kitchen cupboard haha! Thanks for watching bud.
i could use this for my collections. thnx bro. ur great.
Add an ultrasonic jewel cleaner vibration with your citric acid.. BOOM perfect clean rough gems
That's some good sciencing. I'm gonna try that with some rocks I found at the beach.
I can’t seem to reply to the email you sent me I had r photos for you to look at I tried also attaching photos here with this message but can’t. I found chalcedony & fire agates I think in Arizona and want them to look shiny like yours! Does sitting in the baking soda water for double the time of muradic acid create the shine? I put some different ones in the citric acid last night. What is your best guess to help make them shine? They are beautiful wet. Thanks, Kara
Try dryer sheets. It works on baked on burnt on stuff on pots and pans.
It's amazing how similar our stones are. I thought you must be located somewhat near to my proximity. You are on the other side of the world if you are in the Land Down Under. Very surprising!
I know right! That’s what I’ve been noticing.The similarity to what others are finding is nuts. 🤓
i found similiar stones near italy
Ditto. Very similar pieces to the ones we find in my neck of the woods on the Oregon coastline in the US. 😊
Thanks
At 4:42 it looks like a pair with a bite taken out of it, ha ha love it bro good finds 🍻
Haha! So does! Didn’t even think of that before now haha!
Cheers brother!
Awesome video thank you love all your videos!! I’m from California cheers..
OMG wow, that worked so amazing. Thats the trick right there. That's worked so amazing compared to scrubbing or other chemicals. I was wondering if Hydrogen Peroxide would work, but might mess of the rock, IDK. But hey can't beat these results, just so impressive.
Now like with the peroxide centric acid will dissolve some rocks completely
Can you do a short video sometime just showing us all of the amazing red and orange ones you have found? I have a good friend in Australia and one of these days I’m gonna go see her and go hounding!
Hey I’ll have a try one time of just the carnelian ones, (the red/orange coloured ones).
Oh heck yeah! What state or area is she in? If it’s se qld let us know 😁
Thank you for a new idea to try.
Nicely done and thanks for sharing
Thank you mate!
Citric acid is great stuff but extremely expensive in those little containers. Im getting 1 kg packets for $12au from a wholesale food supplier. Also great for rust removal
Oh woah! That’s a great idea thank you mate! Thank you heaps!
Oh, I get it. In Australia people don't have vinegar on hand...
Vinegar works a bit slower. The end result is the same, but I didn’t know that vinegar was an option at the time. And vinegar smells funky
gracias por tuvideo... me diste una excelenteidea para limpiar mis rocas, aver si me animo a subir un video, saludos desde Mexico.
So helpful and informative. Thank you! Love your work.
Thank you SOS, it’s honestly always always a pleasure to share such beauty created by Mother Nature herself. I’m very fortunate! Very very fortunate!
Ya no my trick isbto wash with dawn dish soap pver night soak. Then put in ziplock baggie with small amount of reg cookin oil for couple days n they come very clean.
Oh very cool idea mate. I’d like to try that 👍
Check your local health food store for citric acid. Here in the US it's cheap there.
I would scrub it with a toothbrush too
Very beautiful.
learned so much. Thank you.
Oh rad! Thanks dude!
your dog was like wow whats that smell
WOW! This is a good thing to know, Thank you for sharing this I for one appreciate it. Just found your channel and I am going to subscribe.
It’s my pleasure americanrebel ! I’m glad it was helpful 😁 thank you for subscribing and I hope you enjoy the videos 😉
کیرم دهنت
Before you decide to put concrete with lemon juice you might want to drain that down the toilet and the baking soda you didn't have to hold it for 24 hours it does its work almost immediately
Ohhhhhh thank you! I actually never knew the baking soda was pretty much instant. That saves so much time hahaha! Seriously thank you, and also for the tip of pouring it down the toilet... I honestly never thought of that, I’ll be doing that next time for sure. Thank you again mate 👍👌
be careful pouring it out on cement it will definitely react I put a hole in my dad's driveway one time with muriatic acid did not use the baking soda quick enough took the top finish right off
Paulette Campbell
😳 thanks for the heads up, I’m going to be trying some muriatic Acid soon so I’ll be sure to pour it out in the right area. Where should you pour it out I wonder? I’m guessing it’s gonna kill the grass and probably ruin soil. Hmmm, sounds like a job for google 🤣
Happy rock times!
Oops! Guess you owed your dad! :-)