Sciencemadness Discussion Board - Purchase of sodium bromide

Purchase of sodium bromide

Hexavalent - 13-6-2012 at 10:25

IIRC, NaBr can be purchased cheaply as a swimming pool brominating agent - 'bromine base' - as a substitute for chlorine.

From what I've heard, it is readily available in the US and it is sold in 'The Range' department shop here in the UK.

[Edited on 14-6-2012 by ScienceSquirrel]

Purchase of sodium bromide

Endimion17 - 13-6-2012 at 11:25

Quote: Originally posted by Hexavalent

IIRC, NaBr can be purchased cheaply as a swimming pool brominating agent - 'bromine base' - as a substitute for chlorine.

From what I've heard, it is readily available in the US and it is sold in 'The Range' department shop here in the UK.

I don't think that's true.
Bromine has limited usage - in spas, and there it's used in an expensive organic form (1-Bromo-3-chloro-5, 5-dimethylhydantoin), just like chlorine is used attached to cyanuric acid.

I've actually tried to look for the bromide just about in every large pool supply store and there isn't any, simply because it's not used for pools.

My opinion is that the neccessity of usage of BCDMH in pools is artificial and inflated. Chlorine is enough and it's fine, but one day someone came with the idea for bromine and started advertising against "baaaaad chlorine". Because "chlorine is bad, it's poisonous". People suck on that.

But bromide? Where, for god sake? I want that, too.

genuinterest - 13-6-2012 at 11:47

IIRC Bromine is preferred to chlorine because of high temperature of spas, and also for people with allergy to chlorine.

woelen - 13-6-2012 at 11:54

Sodium bromide can be purchased at eBay for US and Canada people:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Bromine-Generator-salt-crystals-sodi...

This is a very low price. Over here in NL I have to pay EUR 4 or so per 100 gram.

Endimion17 - 14-6-2012 at 02:12

Quote: Originally posted by woelen

Sodium bromide can be purchased at eBay for US and Canada people:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Bromine-Generator-salt-crystals-sodi...

This is a very low price. Over here in NL I have to pay EUR 4 or so per 100 gram.

It's almost 3.5 € per 100 g in CRO, plus shipping. Analytical grade is all you can get. It's not very expensive, but on the other hand, it's not cheap at all for something that is produced on a large scale.

I suppose the shipping of the salt from your link from USA wouldn't be a viable solution, considering the purity.

woelen - 14-6-2012 at 03:44

The link I provided is intended for people in the USA or Canada. Shipping over the ocean most likely will be very expensive, probably two times the cost of the chemical itself.

Here is a link for EU-based members:

http://www.crystalgrowing-shop.com/shop/category_15/Chemikal...

1 kg of NaBr for EUR 23.80

I ordered from this place, together with other chemicals. He also sells NaBrO3, moderate purity, intended for crystal growing:

http://www.crystalgrowing-shop.com/shop/article_026/Natriumb...

With these two chemicals together and some acid you can make a lot of Br2. You need NaBr and NaBrO3 in a 5 : 1 molar ratio.

[Edited on 14-6-12 by woelen]

blogfast25 - 14-6-2012 at 07:18

Quote: Originally posted by woelen

The link I provided is intended for people in the USA or Canada. Shipping over the ocean most likely will be very expensive, probably two times the cost of the chemical itself.

Here is a link for EU-based members:

http://www.crystalgrowing-shop.com/shop/category_15/Chemikal...

1 kg of NaBr for EUR 23.80

I ordered from this place, together with other chemicals. He also sells NaBrO3, moderate purity, intended for crystal growing:

http://www.crystalgrowing-shop.com/shop/article_026/Natriumb...

With these two chemicals together and some acid you can make a lot of Br2. You need NaBr and NaBrO3 in a 5 : 1 molar ratio.

[Edited on 14-6-12 by woelen]

Interesting link, woelen. Never heard of these chaps before...

edgecase - 14-6-2012 at 11:20

I have seen a spa product called Brom Start, it's only listed ingredient is NaBr

Closest source I could find was online in BC, $25 for a couple kg in a small pail. The manufacturer HTH shows small 56g pouches but I haven't been able to find a local store that carries them.

http://www.poolgeek.com/HTH-Spa-Brom-Start-P3887.aspx

neptunium - 14-6-2012 at 12:32

i purchase mine from a spa and pool supplier named leissure time . i think its a canadian company that sale a 1 lb container of sodium bromide for pretty cheap on ebay...
but impossible to find it at wal mart !

MrHomeScientist - 14-6-2012 at 12:36

Quote: Originally posted by Endimion17

Quote: Originally posted by Hexavalent

NaBr certainly is used in spas, at least here in the US. I've bought 4 oz pouches from Leslie's Pool Supply quite easily - they also sell it online in larger quantities.
It claims to be solely NaBr, and I've used it to make bromine water before. I never tried to determine the actual purity, though.

m1tanker78 - 14-6-2012 at 15:22

What MrHomeScientist said about Leslie's Pool and I'll add that NaBr is also available at my local Lowe's. IIRC, Walmart sells the organic variety as opposed to NaBr.

I know this doesn't really help the UK people much... :/

Tank

vmelkon - 15-6-2012 at 06:24

Quote: Originally posted by neptunium

i purchase mine from a spa and pool supplier named leissure time . i think its a canadian company that sale a 1 lb container of sodium bromide for pretty cheap on ebay...
but impossible to find it at wal mart !

Not true. Visit walmart.ca and search SpaCare.
It is a cylindric bottle filled with a solution of NaBr. It is 1 L. Cost 8.96$.

I had estimated that it has 150 g of NaBr. A very very rough estimate.

I searched Canadian Tire as well and they don't have NaBr (not solution and not solid).

sodiumbromide - 16-8-2015 at 19:09

This is sodium bromide manufacturer in China, we export sodium bromide to many countries, we manufacture 99.5% sodium bromide, if anyone need the product, you can contact me, my email is: sophie@reanochem.com

sell sodium bromide

sodiumbromide - 16-8-2015 at 19:16

Reano Chemical Corp. is a sodium bromide manufacturer in China. We manufacture 99.5 sodium bromide, the quality of our sodium bromide is very good. If anyone want to import the sodium bromide, you can contact us. If you have a chance to come to China, welcome to visit our company.

My email is: sophie@reanochem.com

diddi - 16-8-2015 at 21:43

how much per kg?

TGT - 17-8-2015 at 01:48

I purchased mine at Canadian Tire in Sudbury Ontario for 9.99 for 1000 grams and it is a powder. I have seen it here in Hamilton also, but not lately. Cheap and 99.5 percent pure. Anyone want to trade for some potassium permanganate?

TGT

alive&kickin - 17-8-2015 at 04:57

If anyone is still looking for this, U2U me and I'll see if I can find some and get it to you. No cost, just trying to help someone out that might need it.

ave369 - 17-8-2015 at 06:21

In some countries, bromides are still OTC medicines and can be bought at a drugstore.

fluorescence - 18-8-2015 at 13:55

Is it that hard to get Bromides in the US

? Here in Germany that's no problem at all. I went to a local pharmacy and ordered a bottle of it. I've heard some people talk about the problem with a usefull Bromide source but I didn't know that it isn't sold in the US. And is there a reason for it ?

Texium - 18-8-2015 at 16:28

I bought 4 pounds of sodium bromide at a pool supply store for ~$20. I'm happy to sell small amounts of it to anyone interested for the price that I bought it for, as it's quite a bit more than I need.

j_sum1 - 18-8-2015 at 16:33

It does not seem to be readily available OTC in Australia. Unless someone can point me to a source that I have overlooked. I think that argenscientific has the best price that I have seen from local chem suppliers.

Quote: Originally posted by sodiumbromide

Reano Chemical Corp. is a sodium bromide manufacturer in China. We manufacture 99.5 sodium bromide, the quality of our sodium bromide is very good. If anyone want to import the sodium bromide, you can contact us. If you have a chance to come to China, welcome to visit our company.

My email is: sophie@reanochem.com

I have had some feedback from the contact at ReanoChem. It seems that they are interested in supplying at higher volumes than I would typically use. I have a few hundred grams to keep me going for a while.
Making Br2 is one of my favourites. :Þ

[Edited on 19-8-2015 by j_sum1]

diddi - 18-8-2015 at 16:44

what was the qty/price j_sum?

alive&kickin - 18-8-2015 at 21:10

Ok, I got some sodium bromide (99%), not sure how much I can ship at one time. U2U me and I'll get some out to you. Sodium bromide and postage free as always.

j_sum1 - 18-8-2015 at 21:19

Quote: Originally posted by diddi

what was the qty/price j_sum?

I wasn't given one. I mentioned that I would not be looking for more than a kg at a time. I got the following response:

Quote:

Since you need small amount of sodium bromide, we think it would be better for you to buy in Australia directly. It will save you time and money,If you buy from our company, the shipping cost is very expensive.

If anyone has a need for greater quantities than that then do investigate. I got the impression through my email conversation that they would be thorough and efficient and would seek to price competitively.

adk - 19-8-2015 at 02:42

Shameless plug alert:

If you are located in Australia or NZ, I sell it... I have approximately 15kg in stock - ACS reagent grade

www.argentscientific.com

5% discount for ScienceMadness members - use the following discount code at checkout "SCIMAD5"

I also sell it on eBay.

macckone - 9-9-2021 at 12:14

Canadian chemists may have trouble finding sodium bromide:

https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/consumer-pro...

Syn the Sizer - 9-9-2021 at 19:34

Yah, last year I had no problems finding it, this year all I can find is 1-bromo-3-chloro-5,5-dimethylhydanton and one other bromide product.

I just order it online now from whatever chem supplier I decide, tbh online price is not really much more expensivethan pool isle prices were anyway

Lion850 - 10-9-2021 at 00:35

J_sum1 have you tried Vanbar Imaging? Here is their potassium bromide listing:
https://www.vanbar.com.au/catalogue/product.php?id=128879

I ordered various chems from Vanbar and the process is hassle free apart from one instance when the Ammonium dichromate they sold me turned out to be potassium dichromate....they refunded me and I got to keep the chem, so now have too much potassium dichromate....

And of course if it must be sodium bromide (and not potassium) there is always Peter at Science Essentials.

j_sum1 - 10-9-2021 at 01:35

That post is a few years old now.
I have a vouple of kg now so I think that shojld last a while.

Fantasma4500 - 14-10-2021 at 07:00

it is indeed sold for pool supplies, ebay had it maybe 5 years ago
i believe it was even KBr, 1kg, rather cheap

Keras - 14-10-2021 at 22:48

In Europe, you can buy NaBr from here.

€15 for 1kg, seems rather a bargain.

Fantasma4500 - 15-10-2021 at 06:16

https://www.ebay.de/itm/274956995151?hash=item4004b6ca4f:g:m...

https://www.ebay.de/itm/133588524582?hash=item1f1a7f1e26:g:r...

Tsjerk - 15-10-2021 at 07:39

Quote: Originally posted by Keras

In Europe, you can buy NaBr from here.

€15 for 1kg, seems rather a bargain.

These people are cheap and quick. Sometimes their pictures don't match the chemicals and sometimes their labeling is off when it comes to hydrates for example. But hey, they are cheap.

Their customer service is nice though, and they immediately change their labels when you point out a mistake.

[Edited on 15-10-2021 by Tsjerk]

itsallgoodjames - 18-10-2021 at 12:05

Quote: Originally posted by macckone

Canadian chemists may have trouble finding sodium bromide:

https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/consumer-pro...

yeah... Bromides are hard to get now

. The only form of bromine that's still available for pools as far as I can tell is the weird organic hydantoin derivative, and that's like $30 per kilo. I recently paid $40 for 500g of sodium bromide on ebay, which was the best deal I could find after several weeks of searching. I wish it were available at pool shops still like it is in the US

edit- right after posting this I realized that the message I was replying to is 7 years old

edit2- no it isn't, that's how old macckone's account is. I can't read apparently

[Edited on 18-10-2021 by itsallgoodjames]

[Edited on 18-10-2021 by itsallgoodjames]

violet sin - 19-10-2021 at 10:28

https://www.amazon.com/SeaKlear-Yellow-Klear-Algae-Control/d...

This is what I bought earlier this year. I've a pool and buy mountains of chlorine each year

but 30$ for 2lb of 99% NaBr seems ok

macckone - 19-10-2021 at 12:31

I just bought 4 lbs at menard's.
2lb bottles for $20 each.
Cheapest I have seen, they are end of summer stock.