Guide
The ice test for silver.
Silver conducts heat better than any other metal, so an ice cube set on a silver bar or coin starts melting almost at once. It's a quick check, but copper and aluminum melt ice quickly too.
Updated October 28, 2026
How to do it
Set an ice cube on the piece, and another on a steel or plastic surface beside it for comparison. On silver, the cube starts melting right away and keeps going, because the metal pulls heat from the room into the ice. Thicker pieces, like bars and dollar coins, show it best.
How metals compare
| Metal | Thermal conductivity (W/m·K) |
|---|---|
| Silver | 429 |
| Copper | 401 |
| Gold | 317 |
| Aluminum | 237 |
| Brass | 121 |
| Nickel silver | 33 |
| Stainless steel | about 15 |
What it can't tell you
Copper conducts heat almost as well as silver, and aluminum well enough to melt ice fast, so the test can't tell silver from either. A silver-plated piece of a poor conductor melts ice slowly, and so can a thin piece of real silver, so the test works best on thick coins and bars. Use it to rule out steel, nickel silver, and other slow conductors, then try a test that sees more: see how to test silver.
Sources
- NIST, Thermal conductivity of the elements (Ho, Powell, and Liley, 1972).
- U.S. Geological Survey, Silver statistics and information.
- NIST cryogenic materials data, 304 stainless steel.
Silver tests: How to test silver · Specific gravity · XRF · Sigma verifier · Magnet · Acid · Ice · Ping · Is my silver real? · Silver stamps
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