Redone grandes going cloudy ?

[Jon]

Looks like the grandes i redid to fix the cloudy ones i recived while clear in pictures taken, when you shine them up to a light you can see particles in the water.

I rinsed and turned the lamps on for 10 hours and rinsed again and repeated this like 3-4 times now.  Whats causing these particles to show up in the water ?    Just curious.   Is it the surfactant breaking down the wax or what ?  Kinda curious

[Keith]

Yes, something is reacting with the wax and leaving that residue.

That's why I recommend SLS (sodium lauryl sulfate) instead of soaps for surfactant.  You know what you are adding and eliminate any problems that may arise from other additives.  

I had followed advice from others that said they used bubble solution for surf, but the one I used had fragrance plus other stuff.  I added it after I had the lamp running clear but I wanted to improve the stretchiness of the wax.  Started out with a clear globe and that sucker clouded up so that I couldn't even see through it.  So I'll stick with SLS and avoid the additives.

[Jon]

Ok where did you get the pure sls then ? The residue looks like tiny speckles of glass.. Like dust if that makes sense but not dust.. its like microscopic particles.

[Keith]

This is who I bought from.  One pound will do a lot of lamps.

Mix as follows:

A 1/4 tsp (level or slightly heaping) per six ounces of distilled water.  Use this mixture at 10 ml per quart of masterfluid, adjust for desired flow as needed

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Sodium-Lauryl-Sulfate-SLS-Powder-Surfactan...

[Jon]

wouldnt glycerin be better ?  I just tried the soap that claudej uses.. pouring it directly on the wax litterally tore the wax apart and made the water cloudy as hell.

I think its the sls thats causing the lamp to cloud as it eats up the wax... The sls works good to make the wax stringy and snake.. but at those cencentratiins it seems to eat it up as well.

I dunno i have pure sls coming in the mail from amazon..

Ill try that and if it still eats the wax into powder making it cloudy.. Ima just use distilled water and nothing else and just live with having large blobs vs snaking.

Because i cant keep deterioating my wax with these experiments and diff soaps.. 

[Keith]

SLS at concentrations that allow good wax flow won't deteriorate the wax or cause cloudiness.  You shouldn't have any issues arise from using it.

[Jon]

Hopefully... because the soaps are clearly pulling particles of wax off.

Pour8ng directly on the wax made a massive cloud bomb.. i was like whoah...  But this soap has both sls and the other laureth sulfate.. probly too strong.

Hum... Maybe im mixing it wrong.. i put the soap in first maybe its reacting to the wax by directly touching it in high concentrations then pouring the water in mixes the dust it caused around.

Il try mixing the soap in the gallon distilled water containers then pouring the dillueted mixture in.

my sls wint come fir awhile so i guess i might try keep experimenting.

side note.. lol the purple stock liquid from the grandes.. i saved even though they were so cloudy you couldnt see your hand against the glass lol..  They have been sitting for a week now.. and are like 70% clear....  the bottom of the clear container has the yellow wax powder settled.

Hrmmmmm lol  Guess the original stuff can be saved by letting it settle

[Keith]

If you let it settle you can siphon the liquid out so you don't disturb the settled residue.

[kero48]

All my redone grandes (newer ones) with only distilled water and surf have remained clear.

[Jon]

I think it might have been because i was adding the soap first..  What i would do is pour like 50ml of soap right on the wax then fill the container..   Claudejs dollar store soap is even more aggressive as it ate right through it..    So what i did this time was take the gal water jug.. pour like an inch or two out then fill it with 50ml of soap in it and mix it up good..  Thrn pour it into the grande..  Doing this my green grande ran for 13 hours yesturday through this morning and it was perfectly clear.

My 2nd grande the orange one.. im still having issues getting all the speckles out.. ive rinsed and rinsed and rinsed and i cant get everyone out like my other one but its like 95% clear.. did the same thing by mixing the soap in the gal container then pouring it in and so far it hasnt clouded up either.

I guess it was the way i was doing it.   The grandes sure take alot of soap to even begin to start snaking... 40-50ml of pure soap outa the dispensor...  Lol.

I noticed if you add the soap dir3ctly as its running.. and hot.. itll cloud it up as well i watched the soap sink fast to the bottom then a cloud formed. Telling you guys the sls when in its gel form from shampoo or hand soap eats through the wax like acid..  So i guess to add more to make it to snake you gatta drain a inch or two from the lamp.. mix the soap in water then pour it in.. just just pouring the soap directly in eats it up like battery acid if it touches the wax when consentrated

[Keith]

That makes sense

Jon said:

. . . Telling you guys the sls when in its gel form from shampoo or hand soap eats through the wax like acid..  So i guess to add more to make it to snake you gatta drain a inch or two from the lamp.. mix the soap in water then pour it in.. just just pouring the soap directly in eats it up like battery acid if it touches the wax when consentrated

[Mr MaGoo]

I always use the SLES in its purest form and have never had issues.  I just try to use the purest form of components, be it distilled water, SLES, epsom salt, whatever component is needed to minimize issues and start questioning what would be culprit causing cloudiness.  Keep it simple.  But, sounds like you have found a technique that works for you.  Great job!