NaOH

[StrikinglyKOntraversal]

Hi folks.

Recently i've become interested in making soap products infused with sacred plants.Plants of all different kinds such as holy basil and aloe make wonderful essences for natural soaps.

The problem i'm having is finding caustic soda or lye.I've looked all over the place for the stuff up and down to no avail.I heard from a number of sources that the stuff has been pulled off the shelf due to safety concerns and also due to being used in the production of Meth Amphetamine.The only shops that sell it are online and require that you sign a waver and your purchase is id'd.I don't like the idea of my name being stored and my purchase being filed.You never know what they can do with your information and who they might give it out to.Besides that it seems silly that you would have to sign a waiver to purchase a cleaning product.

Do any of you kind souls have experiences with purchasing lye and getting around the whole waiver deal?
Furthermore should I need to worry about signing a waiver,or may it just be to confirm that you accept the risks involved with using the product at hand?

Please discuss

[laughingwillow]

Appearing on certain customer lists can lead to attention from undesirable parties. Even with perfectly legal uses for the product in question, other aspects of your life might not stand up to the scrutiny of the morality po-lice once they put their cleansing machine in motion....

lw

[Stonehenge]

Have you done a google search for it? They use to have froogle but now they have google product search and it's not on the main google page so you have to google froogle and it'll give you a link to the google service. Many places let you order for cash or MO payment and a few will take COD orders though not many of those.

Usually, you find the cost of the item plus your shipping then when they want you to fill in the CC number just get the mailing addy and close the window. Mail in a MO with the item name and number and have it sent to another name.

I've done that many times with various things though if you aren't super paranoid just go ahead and order with a CC. Have you tried a hobby soap making site? Ebay may have it.

[laughingwillow]

The po-po busted a nursery/greenhouse in rural Ioway a few years back due to a private  growing operation they had  out back. As the company in question also sold grow equipment, the authorities thought they had scored big upon discovering client purchase information. So, with visions of record busts in their thick heads, the po-po proceeded to raid the folks on the list. All they found was old folks growing orchids and such. But those good peeps did have to endure legal searches of their property before being acquitted of wrong doing due to being on the wrong lists.

lw

[Stonehenge]

I've bought potassium hydroxide on ebay before. Many times you can see an auction and contact the seller directly. Often they will be happy to do a private deal on the side and take a money order.

There is a big difference between buying a common chemical used for drain opening and countless other things and buying grow equipment. Even grow equipment alone will not normally cause a judge to issue a subpoena if asked. I'm surprised they got it in that case. There is too much paranoia floating around.

Where is winder? He usually knows  the best places to get stuff.

[StrikinglyKOntraversal]

Thanks guys.

I guess froogle might be an option,although I still think i'll have to sign or fax them a waiver before they will send the product.Believe me i've been on many soapmaking websites that sell lye and they all require signing a waiver before they will ship the product.Some places even want you to pick it up in person :?

I honestly don't know why such a common chemical is so hard to aquire.I mean you can basically make the stuff from wood ash and rainwater,so if you were going to use the stuff for making meth or something else wouldn't you avoid buying it and just make it yourself?

The closest thing i've found to pure NaOH in a hardware store was drano declogging crystals and it doesn't state on the container whether it's pure sodium hydroxide or not.Maybe i'll scrounge up the msds for the product.If it is pure NaOH then I guess it should do the trick.

I'm also curious as to whether red devil lye has been pulled off the shelves in the states or just in canada.Have any of you american folks been able to find it in your local hardware or cleaning stores?I think arm&hammer might have a brand of it too but i'm not sure.

I want to make my sacred soap already!

[spacehippie]

Red Devil has been pulled off the shelves in the USA.You probably won't see it unless somebody has a large backstock of it.There are still other options for pure NaOH out there.Lots of places online to purchase it.

[StrikinglyKOntraversal]

I'm so happy,I found lye crystals by the bucket at a home hardware!

It doesn't say if it's 99.9% pure,but i'm assuming it is as from what I can tell through the clear plastic it's just pure white crystal.

Thanks guys!

[panzuman]

i bye my lye at the local ace hardware store. its a great place. and its super cheap like 3$ per 1 lbs

[Amomynous]

Potassium hydroxide is better for soap-making than NaOH (and the original post was about soap). But yea, you can gen NaOH at big-box stores.  

For plant extraction, I prefer Calcium hydroxide, but the protocols will often have to be tweaked to work with it, as it is a less caustic base. The nice thing about Calcium hydroxide (aside from being less caustic) is that one can easily obtain food grade at just about any grocery store.

[panzuman]

amom where do you buy it in food stores? under what name?

[Amomynous]

amom where do you buy it in food stores? under what name?

Pickling lime. It's usually with the canning supplies.