The Shaker is the first production building that turns Wet Sand into research currency. It creates two outputs in different directions: Gold falls through the building, while Residue remains above and is pushed slowly toward the facing side.
Sandustry Shaker facts
| Property | Confirmed value |
|---|---|
| Input | Wet Sand |
| Guaranteed output | 1 Residue |
| Gold chance | 25% |
| Passes through | Gold only |
| Blocks player | Yes |
Input and output flow
Read the flow together with the placement rules below. In Sandustry, the correct material can still fail when it enters from the wrong side, at the wrong speed, or in the wrong physical state.
How the Shaker works
Every Wet Sand pixel becomes one Residue and has a one-in-four chance to also create one Gold. Gold is the only solid that passes through the Shaker. Any other solid dragged into its body can remain trapped, while excess Residue on top prevents fresh Wet Sand from reaching the processing surface.
How to build a working Sandustry Shaker
Make Wet Sand before the machine
Let Sand and Water meet in a small chamber above the line. The confirmed reaction is one Sand plus one Water producing two Wet Sand. Keep the bulk inputs separate so the reaction does not move backward into storage.
Success check: only Wet Sand reaches the top of the first Shaker.
Leave two different exits
Excavate below the building for Gold and leave a side route across the top for Residue. These are not interchangeable outputs: Gold passes through the Shaker, while Residue stays above and is pushed toward the facing side.
Success check: the lower route reaches a Collector and the upper route ends away from the Wet Sand inlet.
Feed a thin layer
Start with a small batch and watch which way Residue moves. For multiple machines, use a descending diagonal staircase. Denser Wet Sand can settle toward successive working surfaces while lighter Residue rises and continues toward the side outlet.
Success check: fresh Wet Sand reaches more than one Shaker instead of forming a deep pile on the first.
Verify collection, not just production
Observe the bottom route across a larger sample because each Wet Sand has a 25% Gold chance, not a guaranteed sequence. A visible Gold pixel only becomes spendable research after it enters a Collector.
Success check: the research balance rises when Gold reaches the end of the lower route.
If the Shaker consumes Wet Sand and produces Residue, the processing surface works. Diagnose the Gold route and sample size before replacing the machine.
Recommended factory layout
Arrange Shakers in a descending diagonal so dense Wet Sand reaches multiple processing surfaces and lighter Residue moves toward a shared side output. Leave a clean lower channel for Gold and send it to a Collector. The top route should continue toward a burn chamber rather than dead-end storage.
Common Shaker problems
| Symptom | Likely cause or check |
|---|---|
| No Gold appears | A short dry spell is possible because the Gold output is probabilistic. |
| Wet Sand piles above the machine | Residue is not being cleared or the Shaker is facing the wrong direction. |
| Material is trapped inside | A non-Gold solid entered the Shaker body and must be removed manually. |
Use this Shaker diagnosis order
- Confirm the input is Wet Sand, not dry Sand, Residue, or another solid.
- Check whether Wet Sand is consumed and Residue appears; that proves processing is occurring.
- Clear backed-up Residue from the top and verify the Shaker faces the open side route.
- Inspect the body and lower cells for a trapped non-Gold solid.
- Trace the lower route all the way into a Collector, then observe enough input to account for random Gold output.
For the complete input, output, and collection workflow, use the Sandustry Gold production guide.
Related Sandustry guides and source
Mechanics were checked against the official Sandustry Wiki page for the Shaker. Recheck research costs and balance-sensitive behavior in the current Early Access build.