hst45 Posted January 17, 2008 Posted January 17, 2008 I asked why It is sold as nutrient "X" he said It was because by law we are not allowed to sell It as Potassium Nitrate.nick, congrats on the purchase. A guess a rose is a rose, unless of course we don't call it a rose. It's the same thing with firearms. I remember hearing that in some countries you couldn't purchase a rifle in 7.62 NATO because that's a military round. So just stamp your F.A.L. as a .308 and voila, you have a hunting rifle. If you're not a gun guy I apologize for the firearms reference. Think of it this way: accuse an organic gardener of dumping hundreds of gallons of hydroxic acid on the ground. Yup, he sure as hell did water his garden. I get frustrated when I hear people, especially the granola-munching organic-everything crowd talk with such derision about "chemicals." "Our vegetables are grown chemical free." "No chemicals added.", and such drivel. Take them at their exact word and their bean sprouts were grown without water, CO2 or nutrients. I just wish people would use the language correctly instead of fueling this artificial witch-hunt.
Mumbles Posted January 17, 2008 Posted January 17, 2008 Sorry to take this off topic, but the only requirement to be "organic" is that it has a sticker that says organic on it. Apparantly the potassium nitrate and urea formed in compost piles is so much healthier than the potassium nitrate and urea from a bag.
Flash04252 Posted January 18, 2008 Posted January 18, 2008 Not new to pyrotechnics by all means but new to this forum. I have to say that my day job is in the agriculture field and I how found that some of the chemicals that are used in the pyrotecnics field are readily available in the agriculture field and easily available. Here is an add from my local hydroponic store that i buy my sulfur from as well. BULK SULFUR POWDER 2.5 LB All sulfurs are not alike. This is 99.9% pure. The more pure, the less odor it will have. Specifically selected for use with our Sulfur Vaporizor My recomendation is to "Just do your homework thouroughly and enjoy your creations safely".
oldmanbeefjerky Posted August 31, 2011 Posted August 31, 2011 hello,i too am australian and am finding great difficulty in sourcing potassium nitrate. Being in the northenr territory i have to pay over $120 just to be buying the potassium nitrate in somewhat decent quanitites, since the only places i get it from sell it at a reasonable price for ridiculously high postage!Anyway, i have pretty muched solved my problem with getting nitrate, i buy in bulk and get it at an ok price, but i still snoop around for alternative sources, which is when i discovered some brand names of high KNO3 containing fertilizers still manufacturerd and sold around australia in privately owned stores and the odd Mitre 10.krista k plus (says it has a ph in solution of 8.5 yet is 30% K2O, but i have been told its 95% nitrate)calcinit (calcium nitrate, just boil and add potassium sulfate and you get potassium nitrate and insoluable calcium sulfateKrista mag (magnesium nitrate, add potassium carbonate to it and it will precipitate very insoluable magnesium carbonate)Unika Kali ( i dont know much about this one only that it is potassium nitrate, feild grade, and that its grade number is 13:0:37, which is the nitrogen:potassium ratio as it is 13N:37K)Haifa Multi-K prills (comes in many different grades)haifa Multi-K classic/prills/plus (13:0:46)There is one Haifa multi-K which is 13:0:44 , but it has some included magnesium oxide. After i knew what i was looking for i was able to get past that massive wall of rubbish that is the millions of posts and pages stating that fertilizers can sometimes have potassium nitrate, and questions of where people can get potassium nitrate.Almost immediately i found an online store catalogue which had 25Kg bag of multi-k for a decent price, which coincidentally is within range of my new house.South australia and NSW seem to stock these brands still in most generic gardening warehouses like miter 10 and bunnings and occasionally home hardwares garden section, but in most cases what your buying is just they hydroponics supplies, which is for maintaining the plants, not for actually selling. That at least was the story for 2 yowee members who sourced some potassium nitrate which worked in making smoke bombs, who bought at miter 10 and home hardware. haifa multi-k generic however is the most common and turns up the most. it is 13:5:0:46, and apparently is used directly, or is very easily cleaned. it is somewhat basic, so i think the non nitrate contents of it is just oxides and hydroxides.
ausfire Posted August 31, 2011 Posted August 31, 2011 I don’t quite get what you are trying to say there. You said you are having difficulties in sourcing potassium nitrate yet you then go on to say you have solved problem with getting nitrate in the space of three sentences? It is common knowledge that potassium nitrate, (along with many of the other oxidizers used in pyrotechnics) is readily available here in Australia. But more to the point why bring back a post from over 3 years ago?
oldmanbeefjerky Posted August 31, 2011 Posted August 31, 2011 (edited) whoops, i was meant to say that in past tense ( had not am) and as for why i decided to post, was because someone some day might see that post, and find it relevant, and it will solve their problem.I am sharing information, i dont see why the date of the last post should stop me from sharing what i know. Had i known that two years ago, it would have saved me the pain and money of importing 1lb of nitrate which took 3 months by seamail, which ended up not working, because it was stabilized. Edited August 31, 2011 by oldmanbeefjerky
NoPyroNoParty Posted May 11, 2015 Posted May 11, 2015 Just starting this topic up again because I am a fellow South australian and looking for KNO3. I've tried online but I don't want my parents knowing so I've reverted to hydroponics stores but I don't really know what to say or what store in general, are there any previous buyers in South Australia that can help me out?
Arthur Posted May 11, 2015 Posted May 11, 2015 It's relatively simple, You must learn to be capable and confident! Learn all the trade names for pot nitrate, learn about the standard ways if describing it in the fertiliser world. Sometimes you must be 18 to buy pot nitrate, Sometimes the seller will not sell it to some dithery kid who will not say what the intended use is. Hydroponics shops stock lots of things BUT the usual use for them is illegal smoking material cultivation.Nitric acid is used for pH down in hard water areas, this may be only 3% in some places.
NoPyroNoParty Posted May 11, 2015 Posted May 11, 2015 If I get someone who is 18+ to buy it it should be fine, but By the previous messages it is illegal to sell KNO3 by it's name, it's called something else, do I just say "saltpeter"?
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