I don't bathe, but...

[iloga]

My daughter is the queen of soak and loves bath salts. Recently, I came upon a recipe that called for finely ground WATER SOFTENER PELLETS. Really startled me. Any thoughts?

[Gene]

If you get the water salt without additives it is just salt,and cheap too!!

[iloga]

As in the Morton water softener pellets sold at Lowe's? Seriously? Thanks, Gene.

[maryann]

Check this thread out there's a pic and everything towards the bottom http://www.candletech.com/forums/showthread.php?t=18587

[iloga]

Thanks so much! That just blows my mind!

[quietgirl2004]

Yes alot of people use Solar Salts. Can get at Walmart. I think they said was in a blue bag.

[cmille3]

I thought of this board last night. At KMart, the solar salt was $3 for 40 lbs!

[maryann]

... and I've been paying a little over $2 plus shipping for a lb of fancy EBS . I stopped using DDS because I couldn't get it to color right and it just went to mush after sitting around awhile EVEN in sealed glass containers.

So glad I saw that other thread I listed above !!

Is there a BIG difference in Morton Salt, European Bath Salts, and DDS??

[pixie*dust]

But dont they come in pellets? Mine do at any rate and I cant see my poor chopper trying to break them up into bits, I think the salts would win that battle with bent blades..

[ladysj]

Wow I'm going to have to get some of this. I found solar salt on a website it was so cheap was going to order some but wasn't sure what it was or the actual properties part of it. Anyone know the benefits of using it?

[cmille3]

Here you go from www.saltinstitute.org

Solar Salt Production

Solar salt is produced by the action of sun and wind on seawater ( 1 2 ) or natural brine in lakes; both temperature and salinity are important. The water evaporates in successive ponds until the brine is fully concentrated and salt crystallizes on the floor of the crystallizing ponds. Solar salt plants must be located in areas of low rainfall and high evaporation rates, and where suitable low-cost is available. In the Mediterranean, for example, saltworks succeed because evaporation exceeds rainfall by a factor of 3:1; that advantage is even greater in Australia where it can reach 15:1.

Seawater contains about 3.5% (by weight) dissolved minerals. Sodium chloride is 77% of that amount, or about 2.7% of seawater. The other 0.8% consists chiefly of calcium, magnesium and sulfate ions. As seawater evaporates, its volume decreases and the concentration of sodium chloride in the resulting brine increases. Thus, saltworks generally extract as sodium chloride a bit over 2% of the weight of the influent seawater. This means that solar saltworks are often quite extensive in area. Often, the concentrating ponds will have distinct coloration, a pink or red, depending on the salt concentration and what species of plants and animals find it habitable. Salt crystals begin to form when the brine concentration reaches 25.8 % sodium chloride (NaCl). As evaporation proceeds, a layer of salt builds up on the earthen crystallizer floors to a thickness of 10 to 25 cm (4-10 in). Sometimes, a layer of salt remains in the crystallizers as "salt floors" to provide support for "harvesting" equipment and to lessen the chance of clay or soil contamination of the salt. A modern, properly operated solar salt plant can produce salt that is more than 99.7 % NaCl (dry basis). In the Dead Sea, salt producers have to contend with "salt mushrooms."

After the salt "crop" reaches the appropriate thickness, the salt is harvested (usually once a year) with mobile equipment, washed, and placed on stockpile to drain. The principal impurities in solar salt are small amounts of calcium and magnesium sulfate, and magnesium chloride. Clean brine, made by dissolving fine salt, is used to wash the salt to remove small amounts of impurities such as these. Seawater can also be used, but salt losses increase due to dissolution. Depending on the intended use, solar salt may be crushed, screened and dried in kiln or fluidized-bed dryers. Because of its high purity and large crystal size, solar salt is widely used to regenerate water softeners.

[Late Night]

But dont they come in pellets? Mine do at any rate and I cant see my poor chopper trying to break them up into bits, I think the salts would win that battle with bent blades..

If you deside to use them you could put them in a bag and take a hammer to them first. Cheap therapy too!

[RobinInOR]

That was a neat description of the process. When I was little we used to go over to the south side of San Francisco Bay to get stuff for our boat. In the same area was the Morton saltworks. While my parents would be buying stuff at the marina, my friends and I would slide down the salt piles - they were huge, just like playing in the sand dunes

[Jennster]

Thanks for posting this. I bought some cargill water softner yesterday and am taking a shot at salt soap today!

[elle110]

So can you market these as sea salts?

[Gene]

Nearly all salt, with the exception of table salt, is sea salt

[elle110]

So, I am wondering, has anyone tried these yet with the Solar Salt? and if so, what did you think of the size of the crystal, dissolve time etc?