Date: Tue, 17 May 2011 11:59:40 -0500
Reply-To: mcneely4@COX.NET
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Dave Mcneely <mcneely4@COX.NET>
Subject: Re: Water tank
In-Reply-To: <E09776C1-EEFF-484D-8DEF-3E09EC4EFEF5@shaw.ca>
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Yeah, the bicarbonate will not get the lime. But less resistant salts, including other amphoteric ones, it will handle.
It is great for deodorizing of course, as it will adsorb lots of organics.
Main ingredient in baking powders (which you can make yourself with baking soda and a mild acid like buttermilk or even a somewhat stronger one like vinegar)
I keep it around, including in the camper. A small open container of it is in the Dometic at all times, for deodorizing purposes. It is good for suppressing small fires, too, just throw a handful on whatever is burning. The carbon dioxide released displaces air from the area.
The browning would be the Maillard reaction. How sodium bicarbonate helps with that, hmmmmmmmmmmm . Could be that it is making the batter a little "airy" due to the carbon dioxide. Do you also use buttermilk, or some other acidic source? I'd guess that is what is happening. Bubbles form in the batter, giving it a chance to crisp more completely.
Having Oklahoma/Texas heritage, I prefer fish dredged in corn meal for frying, with no egg or milk. Browns nicely, and has the crispy crunch, along with the corn taste, that folks from my part of the world go for. I keep corn meal in the camper kitchen at all times when camping or traveling with it.
mcneely
---- Alistair Bell <albell@shaw.ca> wrote:
> Dave,
>
> you're absolutely right about the amphoteric diss. but keeping the
> discussion on scale/lime removal, I don't find that bicarb soln does a
> good job.
> We are on well water here, and while the piped in water from
> reservoirs that most folk get in this area is slightly acid if
> anything, our well is smack in the middle of a limestone vein. So our
> water is hard as can be, with a dog's breakfast of dissolved minerals.
> That is the main reason I have the muriatic acid around, it really is
> as bad as that.
>
> CLR works, but only to a point. I haven't found that bicarb is worth
> the effort. Vinegar works in the kettle, esp. if you boil it.
>
> One cool ( I think anyway) use of bicarb in cooking is to add a tad to
> flour when coating fish/meat for frying. It will promote browning of
> the crust, via (I think) the maillard reaction).
>
> alistair
>
>
>
>
>
>
> On 17-May-11, at 9:21 AM, mcneely4@COX.NET wrote:
>
> > Yes, Alistair, it is mildly basic in pH response. But, of course
> > you are quite familiar with the amphoteric disassociation reaction
> > of sodium bicarbonate in water, and the reaction of that solution
> > with salts. We don't need to get overly technical on the list, but
> > you know what I am speaking about, and of course could write the
> > equations in your sleep. A strongly basic solution will have no
> > effect on lime or other basic salts, so far as dissolving them. An
> > amphoteric solution will. In using sodium bicarbonate, it is the
> > acidic ions present in the solution that dissolve the basic salts.
> > At least that's how I understand it. Please correct me if I am
> > wrong. But the list isn't interested in all this, so we should
> > take the discussion private or drop it, whatever you prefer. It may
> > be beyond my memory of chemistry anyway. mcneely
> >
> > ---- Alistair Bell <albell@shaw.ca> wrote:
> >> Yeah, I wondered too about folk using coke as a rust remover. More
> >> effective to get some Naval Jelly as a phosphoric acid source.
> >>
> >> btw, sodium bicarb. (baking soda) will makes a mildly alkaline, not
> >> acidic, solution.
> >>
> >> For safe (ie not using muriatic acid), de-liming, that CLR stuff is
> >> pretty good. Its a mix of a few mild organic acids, and removes rust
> >> stains too (but does not do the latter as well as the more toxic
> >> oxalic acid).
> >>
> >>
> >> alistair
> >>
> >>
> >> On 17-May-11, at 8:47 AM, mcneely4@COX.NET wrote:
> >>
> >>> Thanks Alistair. I should have remembered that, but haven't looked
> >>> at a soft drink label in a while. Seems odd to me that folks would
> >>> use a sugared drink for things like cleaning battery terminals and
> >>> brackets, but I know people who do. Why not just use something that
> >>> is less messy? Like a little baking soda in water, which is plenty
> >>> acidic for the purpose. Deliming is another matter, the lime
> >>> requires a more acidic material. mcneely
> >>>
> >>> ---- Alistair Bell <albell@shaw.ca> wrote:
> >>>> the carbonic acid produced as a result of carbonation of the soda
> >>>> pales in comparison to the phosphoric acid added to coke. There
> >>>> might
> >>>> be some citric added to coke, but the acid is mostly phosphoric.
> >>>>
> >>>> alistair
> >>>>
> >>>> On 17-May-11, at 6:31 AM, Dave Mcneely wrote:
> >>>>
> >>>>> ---- BenT Syncro <syncro@GMAIL.COM> wrote:
> >>>>>> Please get it right. Not Coke.
> >>>>>>
> >>>>>> Diet Coke with Lime. Whatever chemical they are using to mimic
> >>>>>> lime, I'm addicted to it. Makes my water taste great. Of course
> >>>>>> my
> >>>>>> water comes in 12oz. cans with poptabs.
> >>>>>
> >>>>> So far as the coke (whatever additional flavors) being a good
> >>>>> solvent (for lime of the hard variety for that matter ;-) ), so
> >>>>> would any other soft drink be. The carbonation is acidic, of
> >>>>> course, plus they use citric acid (says on the label, "for
> >>>>> tartness"). For all I know (I don't drink sodas, so don't have
> >>>>> any
> >>>>> handy to check) there is extra citric acid in the citrus flavors
> >>>>> compared to regular.
> >>>>>
> >>>>> Hi Jeff. enjoy.
> >>>>>
> >>>>> mcneely
> >>>>
> >>>
> >>> --
> >>> David McNeely
> >>
> >
> > --
> > David McNeely
>
--
David McNeely
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