Gold Dredge Size & Type |
Dredge Pros |
Dredge Cons |
| 2 inch – backpack dredge:
.5-2 cubic-yd/hr |
Light and easy to pack in and out of the
location. Good for prospecting and sampling. With suction nozzle it can
be used in very shallow water. |
Cant move much material so dredging is harder to do if you want to move a lot of sand and gravel. Not good for production. |
| 3 inch – Sampling dredge:
1-3 cubic-yd/hr |
Still lighter and smaller than a 4 inch and can move a lot more material than the 2 inch. |
Still low on production for a serious operation. Portability is pretty good for remote places.
|
| 4 inch – Sampling/small scale production dredge
1-4 cubic-yd/hr |
The smallest of the production dredges but still good at sampling for pay streaks. |
A bit harder to lug around, it is heavier
and more work to put together and take apart. Fairly mobile still,
this makes it good for more remote sites.
|
| 5 inch – larger scale sampling/production dredge
2-10 cubic-yd/hr |
Good for larger operations and can move
more dirt than all the other smaller dredges. Still good for sampling
but on a larger scale. Hose is flexible and can be operated by a single
dredger.
|
Heavier to disassemble and move around. May have multiple or larger engines.
|
| 6 inch – a good dredge for the serious prospector/smaller commercial production dredge
6-15 cubic-yd/hr |
A useful size for someone who has found a sizable pay streak and wants to get all the gold out that you can.
You can move rocks gravel and sand up to about 5 inches across without a plug up of the hose or jet.
|
Larger nozzle makes it harder to sample with, although you still can sample larger rivers to locate gold in bigger areas.
This hose isn't as flexible as a smaller dredge
although one person can handle it well enough for production. Two man
teams are better because the rocks are uncovered so quickly by a 6"
unit that a single dredger can be overwhelmed with the work of clearing
of large cobbles and small boulders that don't fit in the suction
nozzle.
Can have multiple engines or engines in the 15-20 Hp range. This is a heavier beast to haul. Be ready for 2 or more assistants. |
8 inch – a commercial dredge designed to process large amounts of sand, gravel and rock.
10-30 cubic-yd/hr |
For commercial operations this is a good
size. It can suck up quite a lot of rocks, gravel and sand and in a
short period of time. |
For the recreational prospector looking for the fun of the outdoors and the reward of finding gold, this is not the right size.
It is typically used for commercial projects. Manning
the hose and moving the rocks that an 8" dredge will need at least two
men to make productive use.
Dredges this size are legally limited in which waters they can be used. |
| 10 to 12 inch – definitely a commercial dredge
20-50 cubic-yd/hr |
Good for larger commercial operations.
Moves a lot of rocks, gravel & sand allowing for greater quantity's
of gold to be collected. |
Commercial dredge only. A lot of work to keep running and to move around.
Lot's of rocks to move, needs a team of underwater worker$.
See 8" limits above
Can you say 80+ hp VW engine!
|
Dredge Selection
