Shaker Guide

The first gold machine in Sandustry — a Tier 1 building that turns Wet Sand into Residue with a 25% chance to extract Gold. Here is how it works and how to lay it out properly.

Overview

Shakers are the first way to obtain Gold. Drop Wet Sand on top: every pixel always becomes Residue, and one in four also drops a Gold that falls through the machine and out the bottom. Everything that is not Gold stays on top until it is pushed off the side.

• Research: Tier 1 — 20 Gold ("Unlocks the Shaker, which can separate Gold and Residue from Wet Sand.")
• Input: Wet Sand (dropped on top)
• Outputs: Residue (always) + Gold (25% chance, falls through)

How It Works

Each Wet Sand will always turn into a Residue but only has a 1/4 chance to also drop a Gold. The only solid pixel that can pass through the Shaker is Gold — everything else rests on top.

The Shaker has a built-in conveyor: Residue is very slowly pushed off the top, like a Conveyor Belt. If you drag non-gold material into the body of the machine, it becomes trapped until you remove it manually.

The Diagonal Staircase Layout

Because Shakers push Residue along extremely slowly, the official wiki recommends placing them in a downward diagonal from your Wet Sand supply. Wet Sand is denser than Residue, so as you pour more in, it flows down the staircase and settles on each Shaker in a thin layer — raising the Residue to the top, where it flows on toward your output.

Data Table