Looking for heating Mantles Australia

the trick is not to buy a whole heating mantle unit, those are watched like a 5L RBF
you probs wont find them through ali, but if you google "aliexpress heating mantle sleeve" you can get just the elements alone for $15-35 for 250ml-2L and they last a good long time, i used to use my 2L sleeve practically like it was an oven sometimes. a drill or any rotary tool effortlessly drills through $5 terracotta from bunnings, and conveniently theres a pot size for every mantle size. you dont have to insulate it either.
Also buy some high temperature wire and some nickle or high temp crimps, you dont need a crimper though just pliers, and make sure to tie it in a knot so you cant pull on the mantle through the holes. the high temp wire is needed to interface it. then stick a screw on plug for whatever cable youd like, like a female C14 plug, C13 is the male version and its the cable most PSUs take, especially PC PSUs. plug that cable then into a 240V dimmer, virtually any will work since mantle sleeves are only 300-500W at most and any incandescent bulb dimmer will probably be rated high enough for it, though probably make your selection based on the probability that water will spill on or near the dimmer.
And thats that.
I actually have been raided for buying too much glassware all at the one time, but that worked out fine in the very end, buying a 250, 500, 1000 and 2000ml mantle all at the same time, where i got two 250 and two 1000ml just since they seemed like the ones id reuse the most and i was expecting like 6 month lifespan, no interest, because they are not regulated in the first place, unlike the huge condensers i bought because they were dirt cheap and there wasnt even an option to buy them affordably within the country. heating mantles on the other hand at very least require an EUD, the sleeves, they do not, but you probably wont find any sleeves in the first place locally.

Lastly, to address stirring, when i need stirring i sit the mantle pot on my hot plate with stirring, the bottom of the pot though doesnt get much heat, but my thin plastic stirrer doesnt have long-range magnets like the hot plate does, but if it did, a simple air gap would be enough to protect it.





edit - actually, since this one is sitting on a silicone mat, and this was from a diethyl ether synthesis, it was in fact sitting on my cheap plastic stirrer without any air gap, ether doesnt require especially high temps though, maybe 130C at most or something, and most of the mats role wasnt even insulation it was just not to press on the plastic and collide with the magnet stalling it since the entire setup was too heavy otherwise for the stirrer.

[Edited on 2-9-2025 by MrDoctor]

Quote: Originally posted by MrDoctor

the trick is not to buy a whole heating mantle unit, those are watched like a 5L RBF you probs wont find them through ali, but if you google "aliexpress heating mantle sleeve" you can get just the elements alone for $15-35 for 250ml-2L and they last a good long time, i used to use my 2L sleeve practically like it was an oven sometimes. a drill or any rotary tool effortlessly drills through $5 terracotta from bunnings, and conveniently theres a pot size for every mantle size. you dont have to insulate it either. Also buy some high temperature wire and some nickle or high temp crimps, you dont need a crimper though just pliers, and make sure to tie it in a knot so you cant pull on the mantle through the holes. the high temp wire is needed to interface it. then stick a screw on plug for whatever cable youd like, like a female C14 plug, C13 is the male version and its the cable most PSUs take, especially PC PSUs. plug that cable then into a 240V dimmer, virtually any will work since mantle sleeves are only 300-500W at most and any incandescent bulb dimmer will probably be rated high enough for it, though probably make your selection based on the probability that water will spill on or near the dimmer. And thats that. I actually have been raided for buying too much glassware all at the one time, but that worked out fine in the very end, buying a 250, 500, 1000 and 2000ml mantle all at the same time, where i got two 250 and two 1000ml just since they seemed like the ones id reuse the most and i was expecting like 6 month lifespan, no interest, because they are not regulated in the first place, unlike the huge condensers i bought because they were dirt cheap and there wasnt even an option to buy them affordably within the country. heating mantles on the other hand at very least require an EUD, the sleeves, they do not, but you probably wont find any sleeves in the first place locally. Lastly, to address stirring, when i need stirring i sit the mantle pot on my hot plate with stirring, the bottom of the pot though doesnt get much heat, but my thin plastic stirrer doesnt have long-range magnets like the hot plate does, but if it did, a simple air gap would be enough to protect it. edit - actually, since this one is sitting on a silicone mat, and this was from a diethyl ether synthesis, it was in fact sitting on my cheap plastic stirrer without any air gap, ether doesnt require especially high temps though, maybe 130C at most or something, and most of the mats role wasnt even insulation it was just not to press on the plastic and collide with the magnet stalling it since the entire setup was too heavy otherwise for the stirrer. [Edited on 2-9-2025 by MrDoctor]

Quote: Originally posted by greenlight

I think you would be fairly safe with domestic shipping. I just looked at the prices and I see what you mean about the 400 dollars for a tiny mantle scenario, it seems they know they are risky to source internationally so the price goes up. If you keep an eye on ebay and filter the results to Australia, they pop up secondhand sometimes, there's a glascol unit on there now without a controller for $120 AUD: https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/355802653399?itmmeta=01K45KRRGCE... There is often the cheaper Chinese models that come up on there too for a couple of hundred for a 500ml size. For some reason this health shop in Sydney has the same mantle Sciencequip has for a third of the price: https://au.navafresh.com/products/bexco-heating-mantle-1000-... I guess though if you really want a reliable one and your going to get a lot of use from it, you gotta fork out the money for the better more expensive units from domestic stores [Edited on 2-9-2025 by greenlight]

Quote: Originally posted by bariumbromate

get a cheap one from vevor.com they work well and you'll get a refund if it breaks