How To Spot Authentic Himalayan Pink Salt Lamps

This article was inspired by one of our amazing readers who asked about the authenticity of the Himalayan Salt Lamps we got over the recent holidays. There are a lot of fake ones that have been popping out here and there, so her concern is quite reasonable. Every single time a product starts to rise in popularity, counterfeits come out next and we can't stop it. The demand becomes so high once people realized the health benefits of owning a Himalayan Salt Lamp that it created the perfect opportunity for some people to profit from it by selling cheaply made salt lamp phonies. So the best we can do is be alert and aware of how to recognize the genuine ones from the fake so we won't become victims to forgeries. While it may not always be so obvious, there are a couple of easy ways to tell if your Himalayan salt lamp is a fake or the real deal.

Here's what you should be looking for when purchasing a Himalayan Salt Lamp:

1. Price Range
   
   
   Too cheap it makes one uneasy, especially the white crystal variety which is the rarest and has the highest price tag. A 4kg sized Himalayan salt lamp costs around 1.6-1.8k pesos, this is based on different suppliers that I have found online when I was still canvasing (all had glowing feedback from past clients by the way). Authentic Himalayan Pink Salt Lamps won't cost next to nothing.
   
   
2. Moisture
   
   
   Himalayan pink salt lamps cleanse the air a room by absorbing moisture and any attached airborne material then evaporating pure water back out. This process is called hygroscopy and is responsible for one of the most common problems genuine Himalayan pink salt lamps have – sweating which leads to shrinking.
   
   You can test your lamp by taking a damp cloth and gently rubbing the surface of the lamp. The part of the cloth you’ve rubbed with should have noticeable discoloration and the lamp should look like it’s sweating.
   
   Genuine Himalayan salt manufacturers recommend that their products be placed in a cool, dry area. That’s because the salt will absorb any moisture around it and begin to shrink. So, if it doesn't sweat, it's probably fake.
   
   
3. Soft Uneven Glow
   
   
   Himalayan salt crystals typically range in color from medium pink to dark orange. Also, because the salt is full of various different minerals, light emanating from the lamp is muted and uneven. For these reasons, the average salt lamp emits only a soft warm glow, that’s just the nature of genuine Himalayan salt. If your lamp gives off enough light to fully illuminate the room that it is placed in, this is a fairly good sign that your Himalayan salt lamp is made from something other than real salt.
   
   
4. Experience Health Benefits
   
   All of your life’s problems are not going to be solved by a Himalayan salt lamp. But after a couple weeks of using one in your home, you should notice a few things, including:
   
   
   • Reduced allergy or asthma symptoms
   • Cleaner smelling, fresher air in the room
   • You can breathe better
   • Increased energy levels
   • Better sleep
   • Improved depression
   • Reduced stress
   
   
   Miners of Himalayan salt are among the happiest people in the world, they rarely suffer from allergies, asthma, and other respiratory ailments. This is because they spend their days in an environment saturated with negative ions, which Himalayan Salt releases naturally. The air we breathe every day is filled with negative and positive ions and, in order to maintain a healthy living atmosphere, these negative and positive ions must remain in balance. Unfortunately, many of the conveniences of modern living, such as our wireless electronic devices and heating and cooling systems, produce a huge amount of positive ions which throw the air we breathe completely out of balance. That, in turn, can contribute to the development of allergies, asthma, stress, insomnia and other sleep disorders, sinus and migraine headaches, and a host of other health problems for many individuals.
   
   If you’ve had salt lamp with no results after a few weeks of using it in your home, it is most probably a counterfeit.
   
   
5. Fragile
   
   
   Himalayan salt lamps – especially the white variety – tend to be rather fragile. In fact, it's actually a common thing for these salt lamps to be damaged during shipping due to poor packaging or improper handling. It was one of my biggest concerns since we couldn't pick 'em up and had to resort to having them shipped to our house. Accidentally dropping or bumping a genuine Himalayan salt lamp into another solid object is a sure fire way to ding or chip away pieces of the salt crystal. If this ever happened or anything else that would otherwise damage a fragile chunk of Himalayan pink salt and your lamp held up exceptionally well or looks good as new, then it's a fake one for sure!
   
   
6. From Pakistan
   
   
   Real Himalayan pink salt is found deep underground in the mines of Khewra, Pakistan. Khewra is located on the western edge of the Himalayan mountains and it is the only place where true Himalayan pink salt can be obtained. So if you aren’t sure about the authenticity of your lamp, you can always inquire about the salt crystal’s country of origin from your supplier to determine if your lamp is a fake or the real deal.

Check out the ones that we got:

Here are 2 of the 6 salt lamps that were recently delivered to our doorstep, our second purchase of this amazing product. Still sealed, they were shipped in individual boxes with a dimmer cord plug and light bulb in each set.

There's a hole underneath where you insert the bulb.

Even though I treated it like thin glass when I was unwrapping it, you can see that small grains of salt still chipped off, that's how fragile it is.

Looks so lovely once you turn the lamp on, the soft uneven glow it emits serves as the perfect night light in our kids' rooms and ours too.

If you're considering getting one of these for your home, then make sure to check for its authenticity so you won't get ripped off. For online shoppers like myself, the best way is to check client feedback of the supplier. It's better to be safe than sorry. Got ours here.

For us, Himalayan Pink Salt Lamps, the genuine ones, can definitely stretch your peso!