Borax (sodium borate)

By Annie B. Bond, author of Better Basics for the Home(Three Rivers Press, 1999). Borax, a natural mineral compound has a wide range of uses in the home, and I learn about more all the time. It has a pH of around 9, which is higher than baking soda (which is 8.1; 7 is neutral). It is a good deodorizer and mold inhibitor, as well as a successful way to kill cockroaches, fleas, and other insects. One of my favorite uses for it is as a toilet bowl cleaner and it is always my first choice for such a job. Learn here how I use borax for many jobs including deterring mice! 1. Toilet Bowl Cleaner

Pour 1 cup of borax into the toilet bowl at night before you go to sleep. The next morning clean out the toilet bowl with a brush. You will find the job effortless because the borax has loosened all the grime buildup. Note that this method of toilet cleaning works very well for rust rings. 2. Flea Killer

Sprinkle borax on dog beds, carpets, and other areas where you suspect that fleas are hatching. Borax releases boric acid, which is a poison (note that very high doses would need to be ingested to harm a pet or human). 3. Mold Inhibitor

This method of inhibiting mold is very good to use on areas where mold and mildew is growing but that you don't need to worry about paint being damaged. Make a thick borax and water paste. Smear it on the moldy area. Let set until dry (overnight or longer). Sweep up the powder, and rinse off the rest. 4. Mice Deterrent

Sprinkle borax on the floor along the walls (mice like to run along the side of walls). They don't like getting the borax on their feet, so they are less likely to return to that area of the house. 5. All Purpose Cleaner

Put 2 teaspoons of borax in a spray bottle with 2 cups of very hot water. Shake to blend.

Borax and boric acid are not the same thing, but there is a "relationship" between the two. Let's look at each and see the connection.

Borax

Borax is an important mineral, and it is goes under the names sodium borate, sodium tetraborate, or bisodium tetraborate. It's chemical formula will be written in basically one of two ways, depending on the water content. These formulae are:

Na2B4O7·10H2O and Na2[B4O5(OH)4]·8H2O

Boric acid

Boric acid has the chemical formula H3BO3, which is sometimes written B(OH)3 when referring to the naturally occurring mineral form of boric acid (sassolite). This weak acid will react to form a salt, and sodium borate (borax) is one of the salts that can result when boric acid reacts with other natural minerals, and that's the connection.

As borax can be a product of a boric acid reaction, we should not be surprised to find boric acid in borax, which we do. The fact that sodium borate is a product of a boric acid reaction and that boric acid can be found in borax (and several other minerals as well) connect the two substances. Links can be found below form more information.

ALUM CRYSTALS you can find alum in a grocery store under 'spices' it is used for pickleing

1. Pour 1/2 cup of hot tap water into a clean jar.
2. Slowly stir in alum, a little at a time, until it stops dissolving. Don't add the whole amount - just enough to saturate the water.
3. Loosely cover the jar with a coffee filter or paper towel (to keep dust out) and allow the jar to sit undisturbed overnight.
4. The next day, pour the alum solution from the first jar into the clean jar. You will see small alum crystals at the bottom of the jar. These are 'seed' crystals that you will use to grow a big crystal.
5. Tie nylon fishing line around the largest, best-shaped crystal. Tie the other end to a flat object (e.g., popsicle stick, ruler, pencil, butter knife). You will hang the seed crystal by this flat object into the jar far enough so that it will be covered in liquid, but won't touch the bottom or sides of the jar. It may take a few tries to get the length just right.
6. When you have the right string length, hang the seed crystal in the jar with the alum solution. Cover it with the coffee filter and grow a crystal!
7. Grow your crystal until you are satisfied with it. If you see crystals starting to grow on the sides or bottom of your jar, carefully remove your crystal, pour the liquid into the clean jar, and put the crystal in the new jar. Other crystals in the jar will compete with your crystal for alum, so it won't be able to get as big if you let these crystals grow.

1. You can use sewing thread or other string instead of nylon fishing line, but crystals will grow on the entire length of the submerged string. Crystals don't adhere to nylon, so if you use it, you can get bigger, better crystals.
2. Alum is an ingredient used to make pickles. It makes them crispy.

• 1/2 c hot tap water
• 2-1/2 T alum
• nylon fishing line
• pencil, ruler, or knife
• 2 clean jars
• spoon
• coffee filter/paper towel

FOR SUGAR CRYSTALS:

What You Need:1 cup water

3 cups table sugar (sucrose)

clean glass jar

pencil or butter knife

string

Gather your materials.You may wish to grow a seed crystal, a small crystal to weight your string and provide a surface for larger crystals to grow onto. A seed crystal is not necessary as long as you are using a rough string or yarn.

Tie the string to a pencil or butter knife. If you have made a seed crystal, tie it to the bottom of the string. Set the pencil or knife across the top of the glass jar and make sure that the string will hang into the jar without touching its sides or bottom. However, you want the string to hang nearly to the bottom. Adjust the length of the string, if necessary.

Boil the water. If you boil your water in the microwave, be very careful removing it to avoid getting splashed!

Stir in the sugar, a teaspoonful at a time. Keep adding sugar until it starts to accumulate at the bottom of the container and won't dissolve even with more stirring. This means your sugar solution is saturated. If you don't use a saturated solution, then your crystals won't grow quickly. On the other hand, if you add too much sugar, new crystals will grow on the undissolved sugar and not on your string.

If you want colored crystals, stir in a few drops of food coloring.

Pour your solution into the clear glass jar. If you have undissolved sugar at the bottom of your container, avoid getting it in the jar.

Place the pencil over the jar and allow the string to dangle into the liquid.

Set the jar somewhere where it can remain undisturbed. If you like, you can set a coffee filter or paper towel over the jar to prevent dust from falling into the jar.

Check on your crystals after a day. You should be able to see the beginnings of crystal growth on the string or seed crystal.

Let the crystals grow until they have reached the desired size or have stopped growing. At this point, you can pull out the string and allow the crystal to dry. You can eat them or keep them. Have fun!

If you are having trouble growing sugar crystals, you may want to try some special techniques. A video tutorial showing how to make rock candy is available, too.

Tips:Crystals will form on a cotton or wool string or yarn, but not on a nylon line. If you use a nylon line, tie a seed crystal to it to stimulate crystal growth.

If you are making the crystals to eat, please don't use a fishing weight to hold your string down. The lead from the weight will end up in the water -- it's toxic. Paper clips are a better choice, but still not great.