© 2026 Della Group. All Rights Reserved.
Okay, look. Most tutorials out there treat Nighthawk like it's some clunky desktop thing you gotta compile from source. Or they skip the privacy part entirely, acting like ZEC is just another coin. But Nighthawk's a mobile app - super simple for iOS and Android - and it's all about shielded transactions by default. That's Zcash's killer feature. No one explains how to actually shield your funds without fees eating you alive or waiting forever for sync. In my experience, that's where newbies lose money or quit. So we're fixing that right now. You'll be sending private ZEC in under 30 minutes.
Why does this matter? Shielded means your balance and sends stay hidden. Transparent? Everyone sees it on the blockchain. Nighthawk makes shielding dead easy, but you gotta know the steps. Sound familiar? You've probably tried a wallet that scanned forever. Not here.
Pro tip: Enable 2FA on your phone first. And turn off auto updates if you're paranoid - but honestly, updates fix bugs fast.
Fire it up. Boom, two choices: New Wallet or Recover. New one's for fresh starts. Recover if you got a seed from before.
For new wallet - tap that. It'll spit out 24 seed words. Write 'em down on paper. Not your phone notes. Not a screenshot. Hide it good. Lose it? Your ZEC's gone forever. No customer service bailout.
Confirm the seed by re entering a few words it asks for. Boom, you're in. Home screen shows balances: Transparent (t address, starts with t1), Sapling (shielded z address, starts with zs), Orchard (newer shielded, but Nighthawk sticks to Sapling mostly). All zero for now.
What's next? Syncing. It scans the blockchain for your transactions. First time? 5-15 minutes. Coffee break. If it's slow, check your internet - needs decent speed, like 10Mbps up/down.
In my experience, 90% of sync issues are WiFi glitches. Fixed mine last week that way.
Don't buy direct in app. Exchanges first. Coinbase, Kraken, Binance - all list ZEC. Fees? Card buy: 2-4%. Bank transfer: 0.5-1%, but 1-3 days.
I usually go Kraken for US folks. Low fees, solid ZEC support. Steps:
| Exchange | Buy Fee | Withdraw Fee | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coinbase | 1.49% card | 0.001 ZEC | Instant card |
| Kraken | 0.9% card / 0% ACH | 0.0005 ZEC | 1 day ACH |
| Binance.US | 0.1% spot | 0.0001 ZEC | Fast P2P |
Withdraw min? Usually 0.1 ZEC. Network fee on Zcash side: tiny, like 0.0001 ZEC (~$0.006). Confirmations: 1 for spendable.
Funds hit? Refresh Nighthawk. See 'em in Transparent balance. But wait - that's public. Shield 'em now.
Here's where Nighthawk shines. Most wallets make this a hassle. Not this one. Home screen shows "Shield transparent funds" button if you got t ZEC.
Tap it. Enter amount - all or partial. Fee? ~0.00005 ZEC flat, plus tiny network. Takes 1 confirmation, 2.5 mins average block time.
Watch history. "Shielding.." then "Confirmed". ZEC moves to your zs address. Private now. No one sees balance or history.
Why bother? Exchanges spit t addresses. Shielding hides it from chain analysis. I shield everything over 0.01 ZEC. Thing is, once shielded, it stays private unless you des Shield (rare).
Potential snag: Low balance fee error? Need at least 0.001 ZEC extra for fee. Solve: Send more or wait.
Want ZEC? Tap Receive. Pick shielded (zs) for privacy. Or unified (newer, but stick to zs).
QR code pops. Address like zs1qqqq.. Copy or share. Send the QR via text - scans perfect.
Pro move: Amount pre fill. "Send 0.5 ZEC to my Nighthawk?" Boom, link with amount.
Funds arrive: Instant show pending, spend after 1 conf. Refresh if lazy.
Okay, core stuff. Home screen, tap Send. Pick shielded recipient (zs address). Enter amount.
Fee slider: Default low, ~0.0001 ZEC. High for priority. Review: From shielded pool. Private sender too if they shielded.
Tx ID shows in history. Explorer.zcha.in to track - but shielded? Just "shielded pool". Private AF.
Common mess up: Wrong address type. t to zs? Fails. Always match. Fees wrong chain? Zcash only, no ETH gas here.
Your seed: 24 words. Screenshot? Dumb. I laminate mine, split in two safes. Nighthawk > Settings > Show Seed. Verify twice.
App lock: PIN, FaceID. Auto lock 1 min. Done.
Big amounts? Hardware like Ledger, but Nighthawk's mobile only. Export to Zashi if needed. UNS? Opt in under Settings for Unified addresses - future proof.
Phishing? Only official app. Fake sites steal seeds. Update? Yes, patches zero days.
Lost phone? New device, Recover, enter seed. Scans fresh. All ZEC there. Tested it - works flawless.
But if seed compromised? Move funds fast. New wallet, shield elsewhere.
Zcash fees rock. Send shielded: 0.00005-0.0002 ZEC. That's $0.003-$0.013 at $65/ZEC. Shielding same.
Exchange withdraw: 0.0001-0.001 ZEC. No gas wars like ETH (where it's $5+ sometimes).
Sync data? 50MB/month light mode. Full node? Desktop only, 100GB+ chain. Skip unless miner.
Table for ya:
| Action | Fee (ZEC) | USD (~$65/ZEC) | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shield Funds | 0.0001 | $0.006 | 2.5 mins |
| Send Shielded | 0.00005-0.0003 | $0.003-$0.02 | 2.5 mins |
| Exchange Withdraw | 0.0005 avg | $0.03 | 10-30 mins |
Batch sends? Not native, but copy paste memos.
Watch only? No, full control only.
Integrate? Payment URIs. Share "zcash:zs1..amount=0.1" links. Apps parse it.
Issues? History shows tx details. Stuck tx? Rare, bump fee not supported yet. Wait or support@electriccoin.co.
In my experience, Nighthawk's lightest Zcash wallet. Zashi's good too, but Nighthawk's UI? Chef's kiss. No fluff.
Trading ZEC in wallet? Nah, hold or swap on DEX later. For now, master send/receive.
"No funds show"? Rescan Settings > Rescan. Or wrong seed.
"Shield fails"? Insufficient fee - add 0.001 buffer.
"App crashes"? Clear cache, reinstall. Seed safe.
Network down? Zcash 99.9% uptime. Check status.z.cash.
Honestly, it's rock solid. Been daily driving for months. Zero losses.
Scaling? Orchard addresses incoming. Settings toggle if ready. But Sapling's fine, private as hell.
© 2026 Della Group. All Rights Reserved.