Randy Holmes-Farley
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Use RO/DI to make supplements for dosing. 
Chemical Purity
- Thread starter SaltyWaitress
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SaltyWaitress
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Wow if you turn NaHCO3 into Na2CO3 then you get 84g/106g= 79% more alk per weight out of soda ash right? So soda ash is much more economical!
Hmm why is NaHCO3 so popular is this is the case? Soda ash is more economical and gives a small ph increase. Only reason I see is to keep ph level but the increase/decrease is pretty small and I think would be outweighed by the cheaper cost of soda ash. If a big bucket from BRS is 100 dollars for either one, it's like getting 179 dollars worth of bicarbonate alk for 100 dollars if you buy the soda ash, can this be right?
Hmm why is NaHCO3 so popular is this is the case? Soda ash is more economical and gives a small ph increase. Only reason I see is to keep ph level but the increase/decrease is pretty small and I think would be outweighed by the cheaper cost of soda ash. If a big bucket from BRS is 100 dollars for either one, it's like getting 179 dollars worth of bicarbonate alk for 100 dollars if you buy the soda ash, can this be right?
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Randy Holmes-Farley
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Well, yes, per unit weight you get more from sodium carbonate, but food grade baking soda is readily available and cheap, whereas high quality sodium carbonate is less readily available for most folks. That is why my recipe suggests baking the baking soda instead of just buying washing soda.
