# Essential Depot Lye Sale Question



## soapballs (Mar 1, 2014)

I was wondering if they always offer free shipping on the select lye food grade bundles or is that a sale thing I should jump on?  I had a build it yourself website years ago when I made candles and it could be set up that way where it appears you are having a sale but its just a marketing strategy.  

On their site it has what appears to be the regular prices for the Lye in yellow that ALL are marked out then a price written next to it in red and then some are further marked out and carry on a list of price reductions.  

I never ordered from them and just wonder if they are having a awesome discounted sale for real or not.  Also well my city has a huge meth problem so Lye is not easy to come across like it use to be as a lot of places stopped selling it and the ones that do still carry it well can be dry for awhile and not in a hurry to stock it again. Also I do not like the asking for lye due to the stigma attached to it here locally ether for obvious reasons.  

This lye seems to be well respected and what is mostly used or so it appears in todays soaping crowd.


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## MarisaJensen (Mar 1, 2014)

They have good lye but be careful and measure everything you get from them. I ordered 16 2lb lye containers and each one has been less than 2 lbs by 2 or more ounces. Their 1keg essential oils as well. While they have good products there is some trickery with the amount you actually get. 

Just my own experience from multiple orders.


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## lsg (Mar 1, 2014)

I had to throw away a jar of lye from Essential Depot. Admittedly, it was over a year old, but I am now using some I got from Snowdrift Farm before they closed down and it is still good.


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## Seawolfe (Mar 1, 2014)

I was pricing potassium hydroxide yesterday and even with the free shipping yadda yadda at essentials depot, it was still cheaper at Brambleberry. 
Plus there were a few things on my wish list at Brambleberry....


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## new12soap (Mar 1, 2014)

to answer your question, every time I have looked at ED's website those sale prices look exactly the same.

also, if you look at the price of lye, then look at the price of "lye with free shipping!" they usually add $10 or more to the "free shipping" price, so it isn't really free.


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## alaskazimm (Mar 1, 2014)

For me in Alaska the not-so-free shipping is still the best way to go. The UPS shipping price puts the 32 pound more than 3 of the 10 pound free shipping - even taking into account various discounts and such. Of course, the USPS is a mess so one month later I'm still waiting on my order of lye. Maybe worth the extra for UPS :cry:


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## judymoody (Mar 1, 2014)

They always have some sort of offer or another.  They do vary from time to time.  I once got lye from them for less than $2 per lb. including the shipping but I believe I bought 32 lbs at one go.

I have found their lye to be good quality without clumping problems and the containers are easy to pour from.


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## Dennis (Mar 1, 2014)

MarisaJensen said:


> They have good lye but be careful and measure everything you get from them. I ordered 16 2lb lye containers and each one has been less than 2 lbs by 2 or more ounces. Their 1keg essential oils as well. While they have good products there is some trickery with the amount you actually get.
> 
> Just my own experience from multiple orders.



Did you contact them about the shortage?  Seems they should have the opportunity to make it right before accusing them of purposely shorting you. Just my opinion.


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## MarisaJensen (Mar 1, 2014)

I got ahold of Brittany, she wasn't very nice nor was she willing to correct the problem. I was told the owner is out of town as well. 

Personally they where a couple of hours from me where I can pick up my orders so they where super convenient and their product is good; however, I'll refuse to buy from them if I pay for xxx amount and get xx instead. 

I'll order elsewhere, it's not like they are the only company I'll just have to wait longer for supplies.


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## Dennis (Mar 1, 2014)

MarisaJensen said:


> I got ahold of Brittany, she wasn't very nice nor was she willing to correct the problem. I was told the owner is out of town as well.
> 
> Personally they where a couple of hours from me where I can pick up my orders so they where super convenient and their product is good; however, I'll refuse to buy from them if I pay for xxx amount and get xx instead.
> 
> I'll order elsewhere, it's not like they are the only company I'll just have to wait longer for supplies.



I understand how you feel.  I generally consider problems like this to be a new hobby and pursue resolution.  Probably consider me a general pain but I want to connect with someone who can do something.  Sounds like the owner in this case.


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## AnnaMarie (Mar 1, 2014)

I have been ordering from Essential Depot for a couple of years now as it is easier to do that then try to find lye locally (just trying to buy cold medicine or spray paint anymore is getting complicated!) They are almost always running the same sales, so I wouldn't worry about missing out. For me Essential Depot's food grade lye was cheaper then Brambleberry's (even though Brambleberry is fairly close to me).

-Brambleberry's lye (2 lbs for $10 w/o shipping cost added in due to variations there) is .3125 cents per oz
-Essential Depots lye (10 lbs for $35 plus free shipping) is .21875 cents per oz

Another point in their favor for me is the easy pourable quality of their lye whereas Brambleberry has large thick flakes that I'm not fond of. That being said, I still really like Brambleberry and they get the lion's share of my business.

My experience with Essential Depot, however, and their product quality has always been good, so it's interesting to hear some of these other comments. In the end, you will figure out what works for you. There are many great places to order lye from. Good luck!
Cheers!
Anna Marie


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## Lin (Mar 2, 2014)

MarisaJensen said:


> They have good lye but be careful and measure everything you get from them. I ordered 16 2lb lye containers and each one has been less than 2 lbs by 2 or more ounces. Their 1keg essential oils as well. While they have good products there is some trickery with the amount you actually get.
> 
> Just my own experience from multiple orders.


Eek, thank you for sharing. I'm about to place an order with them for lye. I was waiting for WSP to get lye in stock, and now its been removed from their website and when I emailed they said they have no clue when they'll carry it again but it won't be soon. So the next cheapest for me is ED. Thats where I've bought lye from before, but only 2lbs at a time. Since the shipping cost is most of that I'm looking to buy in bulk this time, 8 or 10 lbs (its bulk for me.) I definitely cannot afford to not get all that I'm paying for, so I'll weigh the lye when it arrives. I'm super sad as doing it this way I'm not able to order any colorants right now which I've been badly wanting! I think I'd snap if my lye comes in under...


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## soapballs (Mar 3, 2014)

MarisaJensen said:


> They have good lye but be careful and measure everything you get from them. I ordered 16 2lb lye containers and each one has been less than 2 lbs by 2 or more ounces. Their 1keg essential oils as well. While they have good products there is some trickery with the amount you actually get.
> 
> Just my own experience from multiple orders.


 
Wow yeah I would say some shady business is going on there then for sure!  Good to know- Thank you for sharing!!! Hum well checking them off my list.


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## soapballs (Mar 3, 2014)

lsg said:


> I had to throw away a jar of lye from Essential Depot. Admittedly, it was over a year old, but I am now using some I got from Snowdrift Farm before they closed down and it is still good.


 
Does Lye expire?  Or was your bottle just all clumped up or something? I never had lye in bulk so I never had any sit around so I guess I might not know if it was to go bad yikes!!! How do you know it needs discarded? :Kitten Love:


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## Lin (Mar 3, 2014)

Lye doesn't expire, but it can be neutralized by carbon dioxide in the air. So if you have a container thats say nearly empty with a ton of open air space and it sits around for ages, the lye is going to have lost strength. Lye being clumpy from humidity is also a sign that it may have lost strength.


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## Susie (Mar 3, 2014)

i don't use my lye very fast, and maybe I am paranoid just enough, but when I got my lye, I immediately put it into a zip-top freezer bag.  I did it to avoid any potential spills as I store it in a plastic tote, but now I am glad I did so it would not absorb extra moisture.

I would contact ED _*by mail*_ and be sure to mention in it that this is your _second_ attempt to rectify this situation.  If people keep allowing such behavior by companies, then there is no motivation for improvement.  And companies can't fix what they do not know is wrong.  I would also be sure to mention Brittany's lack of helpfulness, so they can fix that also.


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## soapballs (Mar 3, 2014)

Lin said:


> Lye doesn't expire, but it can be neutralized by carbon dioxide in the air. So if you have a container thats say nearly empty with a ton of open air space and it sits around for ages, the lye is going to have lost strength. Lye being clumpy from humidity is also a sign that it may have lost strength.


 
Thank you for explaining that to me I was not aware of any of that.  Motivation to keep on making soap and never let any lye sit too long ;-).


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## MarisaJensen (Mar 3, 2014)

*Update on Essential Depot*



Susie said:


> i don't use my lye very fast, and maybe I am paranoid just enough, but when I got my lye, I immediately put it into a zip-top freezer bag.  I did it to avoid any potential spills as I store it in a plastic tote, but now I am glad I did so it would not absorb extra moisture.
> 
> I would contact ED _*by mail*_ and be sure to mention in it that this is your _second_ attempt to rectify this situation.  If people keep allowing such behavior by companies, then there is no motivation for improvement.  And companies can't fix what they do not know is wrong.  I would also be sure to mention Brittany's lack of helpfulness, so they can fix that also.



I wanted to update everyone, because in all fairness, the owner of Essential Depot did contact me after I reached out to him. I have to say that while I didn't get very far with an employee at the company the owner is very nice and quite fair. He did make up for the shortage of lye with my order. 

I feel that he truly does care about his customers and I will order again from Essential Depot. Perhaps it was an employee mistake, perhaps a scale mistake, the good thing is… that it was handled properly. I feel much more comfortable ordering again knowing that the owner does care about his customers.


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