Sources for water salts/minerals..

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GilaMinumBeer

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Thought it's be nice to compose a list of alternative sources for some water adjustment salts/minerals as I have had some difficulty in sourcing much of these from other than on-line HBS. I am curious if anyone knows of said sources.

In my search I did come across a FAQ that states the Crayola Anti-Dust chalk is compressed Calcium Carbonate (CaCO3). And that the non-dust free (sidewalk) versions are made of compressed Gypsum.

Gypsum (CaSO4: Crayola Sidewalk Chalk (White)
Cal. Carb (CaCO3): Crayola Anti-Dust Chalk (White)

Also as most know,

MgSO4 = Epsom Salt
NaHCO3 = Baking Soda

Anyone got a source for Calcium Chloride?
 
I don't know man, how can we be sure that there is nothing else in the crayola products and that it's safe to consume? It's not like the LHBS price for powdered CaCO3 etc is that much more expensive.
 
Yeah. I hear you on that. I did come across a MSDS that listed only CaCO3 as an ingredient on the anti-Dust stuff.

My problem is, with the calcium chloride, i'll be using quit a bit of it per brewday and the largest volume he has is maybe an ounce or two. He doesn't stock much of it so, I'd get 2 bottles at a time and I have to drive nearly a half hour to get there.

Just thought I'd look for some alternatives to paying shipping costs.

Edit:

Came across this on the Crayola. "Certified AP nontoxic by the Art and Craft Materials Institute and conforms to ASTM D-4236."

12 Sticks of the Crayola runs $0.79 at Office Depot. A 4 Ounce bag at (my) LHBS is $3.00.
 
Someone had talked of using dry-wall as a source for gypsum, I wouldn't do that though..

The raw gypsum, CaSO4·2 H2O, (mined or obtained from flue gas desulfurization (FGD)) must be calcined before use. Kettle or Flash calciners typically use natural gas today. The plaster is mixed with fiber (typically paper and/or fiberglass), plasticizer, foaming agent, potash as an accelerator, EDTA, starch or other chelate as a retarder, various additives that increase mildew and fire resistance (fiberglass or vermiculite), wax emulsion for lower water absorption and water. This is then formed by sandwiching a core of wet gypsum between two sheets of heavy paper or fiberglass mats. When the core sets and is dried in a large drying chamber, the sandwich becomes rigid and strong enough for use as a building material. [3]

As for getting calcium chloride, gypsum or other brewing salts in bulk, I just emailed Ed from BrewMasters Warehouse and he said he'd sell me a pound for a lot cheaper than the per oz price, so check out that as a source.
 
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