How to make saline solution

Status
Not open for further replies.

we2rcool

Ultra Member
ECF Veteran
Verified Member
Mar 31, 2013
1,179
1,462
Iowa, IA, USA
How To make Saline Solution .9%
1/2 t salt (no iodine)
8 oz water
-------------------------
Bring water to a Boil, Stir in salt
Microwave or boil for a few seconds

In our house, on our scales, 1/2 teaspoon of salt in 8oz of water does not equal a .9% solution.

8 fluid ounces (US) = 236 ml

.9% of 236 is 2.12

So a .9% solution would be 233.88 mls of water (or pg/vg) and 2.12 grams of salt

1/2 teaspoon of our table salt weighs 4.2 grams (in one of our measuring spoons)
1/2 teaspoon of our table salt weighs 3.3 grams (in a different measuring spoon).

If using water, one should always used distilled water (due to impurities & possible bacteria).

Moral of this story? NEVER trust your kitchen measuring spoons to be accurate (or anyone elses!). Get yourself a cheap, digital gram scale on eBay/somewhere and weigh/calculate your own solutions.
 

we2rcool

Ultra Member
ECF Veteran
Verified Member
Mar 31, 2013
1,179
1,462
Iowa, IA, USA
...and...common table salt is calcium silicate....

Salt is sodium chloride (NaCl); calcium silicate is an additive.

Calcium Silicate

It has a low bulk density and high physical water absorption. It is used in roads, insulation, bricks, roof tiles, table salt[4] and occurs in cements, where it is known as belite (or in cement chemist notation C2S).

It is used as an anti-caking agent in food preparation and an antacid. It is approved by the United Nations' FAO and WHO bodies as a safe food additive in a large variety of products.[5]​

From [4] Food Salt FAQs

Why is calcium silicate added to salt?
Calcium silicate is a white, odorless, tasteless, anti-caking agent with no nutritional characteristics. Anti-caking agents absorb moisture inside the package that would otherwise be absorbed by the salt. In this manner, it allows salt to keep its free-flowing characteristics. It is added at less than one half-percent.​
 

Sundodger

Super Member
ECF Veteran
Sep 22, 2013
351
964
All 57 States
In our house, on our scales, 1/2 teaspoon of salt in 8oz of water does not equal a .9% solution.

8 fluid ounces (US) = 236 ml

.9% of 236 is 2.12

So a .9% solution would be 233.88 mls of water (or pg/vg) and 2.12 grams of salt

1/2 teaspoon of our table salt weighs 4.2 grams (in one of our measuring spoons)
1/2 teaspoon of our table salt weighs 3.3 grams (in a different measuring spoon).

If using water, one should always used distilled water (due to impurities & possible bacteria).

Moral of this story? NEVER trust your kitchen measuring spoons to be accurate (or anyone elses!). Get yourself a cheap, digital gram scale on eBay/somewhere and weigh/calculate your own solutions.

Actually the OP's est is closer. You want to mix it 0.9% per VOLUME, not weight. You can't easily mix the two measurements and get the % correct without calibrated measure of the final product.
 

we2rcool

Ultra Member
ECF Veteran
Verified Member
Mar 31, 2013
1,179
1,462
Iowa, IA, USA
Actually the OP's est is closer. You want to mix it 0.9% per VOLUME, not weight. You can't easily mix the two measurements and get the % correct without calibrated measure of the final product.

From here: Saline Solution

Question: How can I make specific percentages of saline solution using grams of table salt to mililiters of tap water? (what is the recipe?)

Replies: Percentage solutions are easy to make up, because a milliliter of water has a mass of about a gram. So, for a 1% saline solution, dissolve 1 g salt in 99 mL water; for 2% saline, dissolve 2 g salt in 98 mL water, and so on.

Richard Barrans Jr., Ph.D.
Chemical Separations Group
Argonne National Laboratory​
 

yo han

Super Member
ECF Veteran
Verified Member
Apr 9, 2008
796
396
the Dutch mountains
Sundodger has a point though.
Look at the last part of that page. It says: You would have to specify whether the percentages are by weight or by volume.
Table salt (assuming people are using that) has a volumetric weight of around 2.165 grams per cubic centimeter meaning it weighs more than twice than the same (volumetric) amount of water. However, this is the particle density (not taking the air pockets between the individual grains of salt into account). To know how much a cubic centimeter of "real life" table salt is you need to know the bulk density, which is around 1.154 grams per cubic centimeter.

For 1 liter of 0.9% solution this means:
991 cm3 (ml) of water = 991 grams
9 cm3 of salt = 10.386 grams

Since it's not rocket science we're dealing with here, let's just say you should add 10 grams of salt to 991ml of water to make an 0.9 saline solution.

Happy now Sundodger? ;)
 
Last edited:

Sundodger

Super Member
ECF Veteran
Sep 22, 2013
351
964
All 57 States
Sundodger has a point though.
Look at the last part of that page. It says: You would have to specify whether the percentages are by weight or by volume.
Table salt (assuming people are using that) has a volumetric weight of around 2.165 grams per cubic centimeter meaning it weighs more than twice than the same (volumetric) amount of water. However, this is the particle density (not taking the air pockets between the individual grains of salt into account). To know how much a cubic centimeter of "real life" table salt is you need to know the bulk density, which is around 1.154 grams per cubic centimeter.

Y
For 1 liter of 0.9% solution this means:
991 cm3 (ml) of water = 991 grams
9 cm3 of salt = 10.386 grams

Since it's not rocket science we're dealing with here, let's just say you should add 10 grams of salt to 991ml of water to make an 0.9 saline solution.

Happy now Sundodger? ;)

Yes, I'm always happy, just ask my wife. ;).

Sorry it's in my nature and training. I do Instrumentation and Control work. I have to deal with specific gravity of fluids all the time to get exact measurement for calibration purposes. The one thing when teaching people getting into the craft is they can't understand why it makes a difference between volume and weight. Some times it makes very little difference, other times it can be disastrous.

For over 30 years I've also made my own homemade craft cheese's. Dealing with a lot of different dry chemicals and liquid it's essential to get it right, or the cows have just made a donation to a failed experiment.

On the metric system. Oh ya! I think the Imperial was invented by someone that had lost fingers or toes in battle and had to figure a different way to measure/count things.

Just my 2ml. :)
 

yo han

Super Member
ECF Veteran
Verified Member
Apr 9, 2008
796
396
the Dutch mountains
Not recommended. It contains lots of oher stuff.
If you want to go cheap then buy table salt without iodine. It does contain anti caking agent but in my opinion the amounts used are so small that you needn't worry about it. However, some people prefer pharmaceutical salt because it's 100% pure (and around 300 times more expensive).
 

gtbb

Super Member
ECF Veteran
Verified Member
Apr 22, 2012
955
611
Cape Coral,Florida
Not recommended. It contains lots of oher stuff.
If you want to go cheap then buy table salt without iodine. It does contain anti caking agent but in my opinion the amounts used are so small that you needn't worry about it. However, some people prefer pharmaceutical salt because it's 100% pure (and around 300 times more expensive).
Your right about that! I'll gladly spend 300 times more to know it is safe to vape.
 

twistedtimes

Senior Member
ECF Veteran
Nov 2, 2012
76
26
52
Santa Fe
And use the metric system ;-)

But why make it at all and risk impurities - I hope you don't mean tap water? I would definitely buy a sterile saline solution instead. It's not expensive.

Sorry I can't resist on these unbelievable posts of nonsense. So you are telling me that everytime you take a shower that the impurities in the water are going to kill you? So why aren't you bathing in distilled water? Same thing. Another example, why do you drink anything that doesn't have distilled water in it. Same thing. Whomever came up with this distilled water sold everyone snake oil.
 

LucentShadow

Super Member
ECF Veteran
Dec 28, 2011
936
2,436
Michigan, USA
I'm mostly posting to ask: Why the interest in saline solution? I guess I missed something. Is this intended as flavoring, or for it's chemical properties in solution?

Regarding tap water: I don't particularly care if anyone vapes tap water or not, but I accidentally thinned my VG e-liquid with it once, and found it quite caustic to vape. Didn't think much of it at the time, until I was trying to figure out what was going on with my airway distress, later, and remembered that I had used tap water in a hurry. I'd guess that the chlorine, fluoride, or trace heavy metals may not play well with vaping, for me.

Maybe it depends upon the quality of one's tap water, but I certainly would not call 'nonsense' on people seeking higher purity. What's the harm? Of course, if they are un-diplomatic about stating their preference, then I can understand some push-back. ;)
 

we2rcool

Ultra Member
ECF Veteran
Verified Member
Mar 31, 2013
1,179
1,462
Iowa, IA, USA
Our thoughts...

The reason we buy our saline solution premixed (commonly marketed as .9% sterile saline for irrigation) has nothing whatsoever to do with 'contamination'...it's because without the additives, tap water, and various impurities in ALL variations of 'table salt', we're assured of consistency in our juices (and assured of no 'unknowns' with our coils/tanks). We pay $5 for 1000ml locally.

Almost 20% of all our juice is comprised of 'water' (9% distilled water; 9% sterile saline solution). Having once been reliant upon 'tap water' for drinking & bathing, it's been my experience that at certain times of the 'processing cycle', the smell & taste of tap water intensifies substantially - particularly the chlorine smell/taste. I would never put 20% of that taste (no matter what chemical caused it) in an e-juice...because it would alter the taste of the juice.

I didn't mean to imply that Sundodger was incorrect. I only posted to show that 'even a PhD approves' of making a saline solution with 'grams & mls'. I tend to post 'to the crowd' - hoping to provide info that anybody can use to successfully DIY (and make their own additives, if they'd like to do that). Those educated in chemistry/science don't need that kind of assistance. On the other hand, many posters have difficulty even using an e-juice calculator, let alone being able to know how to 'do the math' regarding percentages and/or 'making a solution'. Volumetric weight & specific gravity is real, no doubt...but not something anyone needs to understand in order to make a simple saline solution. It IS imporant to know/remember that a teaspoon of cotton does not weigh the same as a teaspoon of BB's - and all powders do not weigh the same.

Sorry I can't resist on these unbelievable posts of nonsense. So you are telling me that everytime you take a shower that the impurities in the water are going to kill you? So why aren't you bathing in distilled water? Same thing. Another example, why do you drink anything that doesn't have distilled water in it. Same thing. Whomever came up with this distilled water sold everyone snake oil.

And I can't resist responding. It's not "nonsense" to make a solution with distilled water; try running the 'snake oil thing' past a chemist. The chemicals/substances in tap water (fluoride, chlorine, metals, pharmaceutical residues and other chemicals that aren't removed), do cause chemical interactions, and some do have a 'taste'.

Taking a shower or bath in tap water is definitely NOT the 'same thing' as making a solution for vaping with it. Yes, one does inhale a small amount of the water/chemical vapor when bathing, but that's nothing like sucking on a tank for x-16+ hours per day. And fwiw, one of the most common additives to tap water is fluoride - and fluoride is a very volatile toxin (and avoiding it is not nonsense). For anyone that would like to investigate the harmful effects of fluoride, here is A Bibliography of Scientific Literature on Fluoride. Here's a Google search on "sodium fluoride" (what's used in tap water) and "inhalation"

Everyone has a right to mix what they want to mix and vape what they want to vape....however they want to do it. Insulting others rudely...'not so much of a right.
 
  • Like
Reactions: mattiem
Status
Not open for further replies.

Users who are viewing this thread