Prepping Questions about Chemicals

[huntersarrow]

Hi. This question is directed at any Australians that might be here.

What brand of Hydrochloric Acid do you use? I've heard that the diggers brand from bunnings isn't very good,
that they have additives that make it hard to use..

Asking because im almost ready for my first batch, have a small amount (jam jar) of clean fingers and about 50 phone pcb's and 30 cpus, some pin some non pin, pin ones have been heated with torch, pins removed but magnetic, and have some solder in the mix too, so want to hot acid bath them. Phone pcb's i've depopulated as much as i can by hand but was thinking id sand bath / hot acid bath them as well (all to be done separately from pins and cpus)

Hydrogen Peroxide is available at any chemist but in small 60ml bottles, so looking for a source of
larger bottles.

Same question about what brand of bleach.. I know i need an unscented brand but most of the posts i've
read are mainly us based and have different stores / products ect...

So if you have any favorite brands or ones you know work well, please share and will post my findings as they come. Thanks for reading!!

 

[butcher]

HCl is also called Muriatic acid, look for it at concrete dealers, hardware stores, building supplies, pool and spa supplies...
Common unscented 6% sodium hypochlorite (household bleach), any brand look in grocery stores, or hardware, pool and spa supplies...

 

[Shark]

Look for deck cleaning bleach, it usually runs 10% but I have seen it as high as 12%. Butcher pretty much nailed the HCl (and bleach too). Many local stores carry 3% peroxide in the health and beauty aid departments. It is commonly used to dress minor cuts and scratch's.

 

[snoman701]

Anybody know if HCl is available as a standard item in 15 gal barrels outside of chemical suppliers?

Like, have you bought HCl or Muriatic in a 15 gal barrel? Or know your local concrete finishing company carries it?

Pool suppliers only carry 1 gallon, Hardware store 1 gallon, etc.

 

[Johnny5]

Look for deck cleaning bleach, it usually runs 10% but I have seen it as high as 12%. Butcher pretty much nailed the HCl (and bleach too). Many local stores carry 3% peroxide in the health and beauty aid departments. It is commonly used to dress minor cuts and scratch's.

Some deck cleaning bleaches contain surfactants. I always bought my "bleach" in the form of liquid pool chlorine. It's pretty inexpensive, can be upwards of 15%+ sodium hypochlorite, and I've never had a problem with contaminants. It can be found at just about any pool/spa supply stores, and you can buy larger quantities there without anyone looking at you suspiciously.
Some stores also carry 30%+ hydrogen peroxide. It's not cheap, but it's an amazing oxidizer.
If you do purchase any higher strength peroxide (above the standard 3%) be extremely careful. The higher the strength, the more violent the reaction can be, and you could easily dissolve gold if using it in AP.

 

[nickvc]

You can try hairdressing suppliers for the hydrogen peroxide as they sell it.

 

[anachronism]

You can try hairdressing suppliers for the hydrogen peroxide as they sell it.

Yeah and you can only buy 6% because the strong stuff is only for QUALIFIED HAIR DESIGN PROFESSIONALS. Go figure haha

 

[Deano]

The Diggers brand HCl is basically recycled acid which has been used for washing heavy mineral concentrates so as well as having some metals in solution the concentration is around 28% rather than the 32% of technical grade.

It will still function well for gold dissolution if you cannot get the 32% from pool supply shops or chemical supply stores.

If you want to use sodium hypochlorite then supermarket no frills brands are OK, check the expiry dates as they will degrade over time.

It is much cheaper to use granular pool calcium hypochlorite from a pool shop or Bunnings, this way you are not buying a lot of water.

Deano

 

[huntersarrow]

The Diggers brand HCl is basically recycled acid which has been used for washing heavy mineral concentrates so as well as having some metals in solution the concentration is around 28% rather than the 32% of technical grade.

It will still function well for gold dissolution if you cannot get the 32% from pool supply shops or chemical supply stores.

If you want to use sodium hypochlorite then supermarket no frills brands are OK, check the expiry dates as they will degrade over time.

It is much cheaper to use granular pool calcium hypochlorite from a pool shop or Bunnings, this way you are not buying a lot of water.

Deano

Thanks heaps mate Might use the diggers i have for hot acid baths and see if i can find some better stuff from clarke rubber for the mix..