stix Posted April 2, 2015 Share Posted April 2, 2015 Hey Guys, I recently purchased some Sulfur from a different supplier - It came in prills about 2mm/16th" diameter (contrary to the image on the website which showed powder). I thought fine, I'll just mill it. It seemed to have milled reasonably ok but still left a lot of granules but worse, has caked itself to my 3/4" ceramic media, which is not coming off easily. I've soaked them in water for the last couple of days but it doesn't help. It almost seems worse. The sulfur, if believed is 99.5% pure - perhaps the other .5% is some sort of binder? So today I'm trying to scrub it off with a hard brush and a scourer - very tedious and a real PITA. I have to clean around 50 of them. Anyone got any good ideas how to remove the sh*t easier? Not Happy Cheers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stix Posted April 2, 2015 Author Share Posted April 2, 2015 (edited) All fixed I ended up soaking my balls in a shallow tray with some hot white vinegar, then a few heaped teaspoons of sodium bicarbonate. As it was fizzing I scrubbed hard over the top of them with a thick bristled nylon brush - the sulfur started coming away, so I did that a few more times then a couple of final washes with hot water and all nice and clean. Not sure if the vinegar/bicarb helped or the shallow tray and hard brushing, but before I tried that, it was caked on to the point that it was very hard to scape off, if at all, with my fingernail. The whole procedure took about 15mins. The only other Sulfur I've ever milled was lab grade powder. It was easily milled to fine airfloat powder with no problems at all. I reckon I probably won't have the same issue when it's milled with a basic bp mix. Annoying, but usable. [EDIT] Apparently it's also a good remedy for crabs. Cheers. Edited April 2, 2015 by stix Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rogeryermaw Posted April 2, 2015 Share Posted April 2, 2015 glad you got it sorted out. just so you know, sulfur can be dissolved in toluene. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlaMtnBkr Posted April 2, 2015 Share Posted April 2, 2015 If it happens in the future try milling some kitty litter or other rough material. It should come out looking brand new. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stix Posted April 2, 2015 Author Share Posted April 2, 2015 glad you got it sorted out. just so you know, sulfur can be dissolved in toluene. Hey thanks Roger. Washing by balls with toluene could be good, and your advice is much appreciated. I'm really not sure now what to think, but good advice is always muchly appreciated . Cheers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arthur Posted April 2, 2015 Share Posted April 2, 2015 Not sure how available toluene is in your country state or county, it's not retail in my country. Cleaning mill media is best done by a clearance milling of something non critical, clay, bentonite, rocket nozzle mix are the useful things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pyrojig Posted April 4, 2015 Share Posted April 4, 2015 Never tried washing my balls with toluene , sounds a bit on the painful side if you ask me . I like kno3 for cleaning the media.seems to do a good job, and the slight contamination is never a prob, if it is to be used for bp /. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pcm81 Posted April 4, 2015 Share Posted April 4, 2015 Hey thanks Roger. Washing by balls with toluene could be good, and your advice is much appreciated. Cheers. That did not sound right... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WSM Posted April 6, 2015 Share Posted April 6, 2015 That did not sound right... Maybe being more specific would be less alarming. Try calling them generically, "My milling media", instead . WSM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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