[TheForge] Re: Flux, was rust & pickling
Chuck Robinson
[email protected]
Tue Aug 19 21:17:00 2003
Hey Bruce,
If you think it would, check out this site:
http://home.c2i.net/metaphor/mvpage.html
Chuck
----- Original Message -----
From: "Bruce Freeman" <[email protected]>
To: <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, August 19, 2003 2:38 PM
Subject: Re: [TheForge] Re: Flux, was rust & pickling
> Chemicals can be dried with microwave energy.
>
> I'd be concerned, however, that you might burn out your magnetron
> tube.
>
> Bruce
> NJ
>
> >>> [email protected] 08/19/03 03:16PM >>>
> Has anyone tried to dehydrate borax in a micro wave oven?
> Chuck
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Bruce Freeman" <[email protected]>
> To: <[email protected]>
> Sent: Tuesday, August 19, 2003 1:44 PM
> Subject: [TheForge] Re: Flux, was rust & pickling
>
>
> > This subject seems to come up repeatedly. I don't know specifically
> > about borax, but most inorganic chemicals start releasing their water
> at
> > temperatures much below their melting points. Working at about 350
> in a
> > standard oven would probably suffice. Again, I haven't tried this
> with
> > borax, but I'd suggest trying it before going to higher temperatures
> or
> > melting and regrinding it.
> >
> > Many anhydrous chemicals, probably including borax, will absorb
> water
> > from the air. However, the simple expedient of keeping it in a
> closed
> > container will protect it from air. The short time it is open for
> use
> > will generally not result in a massive uptake of water. I'd suggest
> you
> > keep your anhydrous borax in a large jar, and pour it into a smaller
> > jars for use.
> >
> > Bruce
> > NJ
> >
> > >>> [email protected] 08/19/03 12:45PM >>>
> >
> > > So are you telling me that melting borax on an iron cookie will
> pick
> > > up some of the iron?
> >
> > Following up to my own post...
> >
> > How do you melt borax on a cookie tin? The melting point is around
> > 1500F, a red heat.
> >
> > Checking in the handbook, borax loses 8 of its 10 bound water
> > molecules at 140F and the rest at about 400F. But it doesn't melt
> > until waayyy hotter than that.
> >
> > I never tried to dehydrate borax in the oven at, say, 450F. I
> melted
> > some up last night over the forge in a cast iron ladle (kinda
> messy),
> > poured it into a cast iron bowl where it turned to black glass.
> Broke
> > it up into pea size, then ran it through an old manual meat grinder
> > with the hamburger die modified to be more like a grain grinder.
> Nice
> > powdery stuff that should be good for flux.
> >
> > Someone said that anhydrous borax will quickly re-absorb water from
> > the air. I think a maybe the advantage to bothering with melting
> and
> > grinding the borax is that in the glassy state it doesn't do that
> very
> > readily.
> >
> > Just 'spearminting around...
> >
> > - Mike
> >
> > --
> > Michael Spencer Nova Scotia, Canada .~.
> >
> > /V\
> > [email protected]
> > /( )\
> > http://home.tallships.ca/mspencer/
> > ^^-^^
> >
> > --
> >
> >
> >
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