KOH Supplier

[LBussy]

Anyone have a favorite place to buy KOH? A few lbs at a time is all I need. I've a supplier but I thought I'd ask here too in case I'm missing a good deal.

 

[dosco]

I bought some from WSP when I ordered FOs. At $16.95 for 2 lb it wasn't the best price - Essential Depot has it for $10.00/2.5lb - but I seem to receall that WSP didn't have an extra charge for shipping.

Where do you get yours?

-Dave

 

[LBussy]

Essential Depot was where I bought my last batch.

 

[shunt2011]

I get mine at Essential Depot as well.

 

[pamielynn]

I got mine at Voyager, and there's a small charge because they are in Canada. But, I just bought a little 2 pounder while I learn this liquid soap thingy.

 

[DeeAnna]

The Lye Guy. If all you need is lye, Jim's prices overall are competitive with ED prices, at least for me in Iowa. http://www.thelyeguy.com/store.php?crn=210

 

[pamielynn]

The Lye Guy. If all you need is lye, Jim's prices overall are competitive with ED prices, at least for me in Iowa. http://www.thelyeguy.com/store.php?crn=210

I used to only get my lye from him, but the shipping was killing me Down here in Texas.

 

[LBussy]

The Lye Guy. If all you need is lye, Jim's prices overall are competitive with ED prices, at least for me in Iowa. http://www.thelyeguy.com/store.php?crn=210

Why are you not hovering over your keyboard, waiting to answer my every question immediately?! :crazy:

I just placed an order from ED but I'll give that site a look next time.

 

[LBussy]

Has anyone used "Certified Lye"?

http://www.certified-lye.com/index.html

The website brings up a point (which doesn't necessarily make them innocent about it) of being "manufactured in the USA". I have no idea if most all lye is actually made here anyway or if that is marketing. I do know in another hobby (pyrotechnics) that most of the chemicals that are easily available and the least expensive are from China, and often contain adulterants.

So there's two questions here; anyone used them (and willing to comment on them), and is there really a concern with getting "import lye"?

 

[dosco]

Has anyone used "Certified Lye"?

http://www.certified-lye.com/index.html

No, I haven't used them.

Did you notice at the bottom of the webpage where it says that 'Caustic Potash is $9.99/lb.' ...? Doesn't seem like a good price to me unless *all* of the shipping costs are already rolled into the per pound price.

-Dave

 

[LBussy]

No, I haven't used them.

Did you notice at the bottom of the webpage where it says that 'Caustic Potash is $9.99/lb.' ...? Doesn't seem like a good price to me unless *all* of the shipping costs are already rolled into the per pound price.

-Dave

The Lye Guy's prices are likewise higher than say ED. I guess I'm just wondering where the difference lies - because generally one gets what they pay for in life.

 

[dosco]

The Lye Guy's prices are likewise higher than say ED. I guess I'm just wondering where the difference lies - because generally one gets what they pay for in life.

Lol, this is true.

What we don't know - as you eluded to - is what's happening behind the scenes. Maybe ED and WSP get their stuff from China. Maybe they are connected to a different bulk supplier than The Lye Guy. Maybe The Lye Guy buys food grade lye and ED/WSP buy agricultural (or industrial) grade lye.

I guess if you really wanted to know you'd have to identify the manufacturers of NaOH and KOH, who their target customers are (food/medical/industrial/agricultural) then their distributors, etc. Once you had the bigger picture you'd probably be able to figure it out.

-Dave

 

[reinbeau]

The Lye Guy. If all you need is lye, Jim's prices overall are competitive with ED prices, at least for me in Iowa. http://www.thelyeguy.com/store.php?crn=210

I get Jim's KOH also - his shipping to me is extremely reasonable, he's in NY, I'm in MA. His KOH is high quality, 96% to 100% pure, and $7.95 for 32 oz. He has the same deal that he does for NaOH, you add 6 bottles to your cart and you're charged for 5. The Lye Guy. I am not a paid advertiser, I just really like his customer service.
http://www.soapmakingforum.com//www.pinterest.com/pin/create/extension/

 

[DeeAnna]

When I buy the Lye Guy's stuff using his special pricing -- buy 5 and get the 6th free -- plus ground shipping ends up costing me about the same as ED and I think I get much better service from Jim than what I have heard others get from ED.

I was just reading another thread tonight where someone said their ED lye came plastic bags that were not really tough enough for storing lye and the bags were packaged in a corrugated shipping box that was not sturdy enough for shipping a heavy, hazardous chemical. The discussion also touched on the unpleasant customer service that ED has been known to offer when anything is amiss. And I dislike being patronized -- ED's free shipping is not really free.

Jim makes his prices and special offers plain and simple. Jim's lye comes in sturdy, properly labeled PET containers that are suitable for long-term storage. The containers are packed in a sturdy box that is well sealed. I personally have not had any problems with the PET containers, but one soaper had a container arrive with a crack. Jim promptly replaced the container and made it right with his customer.

You are right in that a person usually gets what she pays for. I am quite willing to pay for pleasant and competent service, sensible pricing, fair policies, and good packaging appropriate for the product. Oh, and for product that is good quality.

 

[TRBeck]

I get Jim's KOH also - his shipping to me is extremely reasonable, he's in NY, I'm in MA. His KOH is high quality, 96% to 100% pure, and $7.95 for 32 oz. He has the same deal that he does for NaOH, you add 6 bottles to your cart and you're charged for 5. The Lye Guy. I am not a paid advertiser, I just really like his customer service.
http://www.soapmakingforum.com//www.pinterest.com/pin/create/extension/

I agree with all of this, but my last shipment from him was not 96-100% pure. It was 90%, pretty much standard. I just like his service and don't find his shipping exorbitant. If I get 96-100% pure KOH in the shipment I ordered earlier this week, I'll be ecstatic.

 

[HappyHomeSoapCo]

I get my lye from Bulk Apothecary. I haven't started making liquid soap so I don't know about their quality or price, but I do know they have some of the best prices on all my other soap making supplies. And great customer service. Worth checking out!

 

[LBussy]

I get that there is "institutional memory" when it comes to something like the adulterated lye. I was not doing soap then so I guess hearing about it now doesn't sway me one way or the other. My job is more about talking to clients than actually fixing thing (I do it/software) so I live that every day. A company is only as good as the person in front of you right now. Maybe they have new people, but when I had an issue with a product they made it right immediately.

When I receive my lye from ED it is in heavy heat-sealed screw top PET containers in a heat sealed 5 mil bag in an appropriate box. Will I some day be disappointed? I don't know. As far as I know ED may never disappoint me and Jim may piss me off on my first go.

I will put a sharper pencil to the prices when it comes time to buy again and see if it's closer than it looked at first blush.

 

[reinbeau]

Sadly Derek, the owner, was the miscreant in the ED fiasco.

 

[Susie]

I have always only used ED for KOH. I do have The Lye Guy's site bookmarked on my computer and the minute he becomes cheaper, I will probably switch. But, I have never had a problem with ED's KOH or packaging, ever. Boxes arrived in good shape, bags were intact, bottles were firmly closed and sturdy enough to tolerate a klutz(me) dropping them a time or two. The only thing I would change is for them to switch back to the zip top bags so I would not have to then use a separate bag to store the bottles in.(Really high humidity)

 

[LBussy]

Sadly Derek, the owner, was the miscreant in the ED fiasco.

The founder/CEO of the company I work for has his critics. He's not the guy you want in there when emotions are high. Harvard School of Business uses one of his emails from back in the day as the way NOT to motivate your managers. All that being said he hired the right people to make us successful so my stock portfolio is grateful for that.

Point being: Maybe Derek is a hothead that buried himself emotionally far too deep to allow himself to admit there was a fault. Lord knows I've done that, I'm as stubborn as they come. Provided they continue to provide good service I won't make the people that provide customer service NOW pay for the sins of their "fathers."

The only thing I would change is for them to switch back to the zip top bags so I would not have to then use a separate bag to store the bottles in.(Really high humidity)

Susie, here's a dirt cheap tip ... literally. Buy some old-fashioned kitty litter, the cheap granular kind that's neither clumping nor deodorizing. Bake it in the oven at 350 or so for a few hours depending on how much you dry at a time, stir it occasionally. Put that in the bottom of a seal-able container either just by pouring it in the bottom or tie it in a muslin sack. Store your lye containers in that.

That is the cheapest desiccant you will find and it works awesome. I've purchased commercial desiccant packs from ULine before only to find out they were just clay sealed in Kraft paper. By weight, clay is more effective than the other chemical-based desiccants. It's used less these days because it is dusty.

I purchased some in a plastic pail so I use that to store my lye containers in.