The Variety of Soap
Solutions on the Web or "What do you mean - Add SALT?"
Having done nights of tests,
(see previous post) I was excited about the possibility of
brewing up my own mix. Especially when comparing some of
the test brews against store bought sauces. I figured it
was time to google "soap bubble solution" and see what
happened. Most interesting would be the sites dedicated to
bubbling created by bubblers. There were plenty of places
that listed numerous recipes too but I didn't figure they
were tested by those who had to pay their mortgage with
them, or even by people who used the recipes year round.
That said, I did look for any recipes I could find because
I thought by averaging the ratios of the ingredients and
comparing them to what the pros were offering, I would see
a trend. Perhaps I would stumble across a secret ingredient
or a mention of using those personal lubricants that I was
so hepped-up about.
I talk more about these recipes in the Bubble Juice
Solutions page of SoapBubbler.com, but let's take a quick
peek at the variety of solutions mentioned on all those
sites and also the books I found.
Lewis Pearl at Tangent Toy suggested:
Quick, Inexpensive bubble Recipe:
Just mix 2 oz. of Professional Line Dawn (not available in
ordinary supermarkets - go to a restaurant supply) or Ajax
Liquid (found in supermarkets) with 5-6 cups of water
(distilled works best). Add extra soap or water as needed.
Better Bubble Recipe:
Add 1 ounce of glycerine to above recipe. Glycerine is
available in most drug stores.
Industrial Strength Bubbles:
Add 4-16 oz. of Louis Pearl's Bubble Bubbles, or Mr.
Bubbles (Tootsietoy) to the Better Bubble Recipe. As of
now, this is about the world's finest bubble
solution...enjoy!
Sterling Johnson at Bubblesmith.com
Sterling's
Special Formula:This
is an excellent bubble recipe and turned out to be the one
I would later adapt to develop my favorite juice:
8 parts Mr. Bubbles
(from Strombecker/Tootsietoy), 1 part Dawn Pot and Pan (in
one gallon size, available on-line from Betty Mills), or
Joy Plus Liqui-Gel. (Note: Months later in an email
exchange with Sterling, he suggested Dawn Complete) 1 part
Glycerin 10 parts water
In Tom Noddy's Bubble Magic book, he says, "You can make
all of the bubbles described in this book using the
commercial bubble juice sold in dime stores. That's what I
use." He then mentions Wonder Bubbles (Mr. Bubbles now),
Pustefix and Bubble-Os.
Richard
Faverty in
his Professor Bubble's Official Bubble handbook:
Bubble solution #1. A jar of Mr. Bubbles solution.
Bubble solution #2. Start with an 8 oz. container of Mr.
Bubbles bubble solution. Mix in: 1 oz. of Dawn or Joy
liquid dishwashing detergent, 6 oz. distilled water, 1 oz.
of glycerine.
Bubble Solution #3. (Performer's bubble solution) 4 gallons
of Mr. Bubbles bubble solution., 1 quart of glycerine, 1
quart of Dawn, 1 quart of water.
John
Cassidy's
Unbelievable Bubble Book: This recipe is for big, outdoor
bubbles: 10 cups of water, 3 or 4 tablespoons of glycerine
(optional), 1 cup Joy (or Dawn).
Bubbles, by Bernie
Zubrowski: 8
tablespoons of dishwashing soap in 1 quart of warm water.
Longer lasting bubbles: Try adding different ingredients to
the soap solution to see which produce the most enduring
bubbles.. Glycerine, or Karo Syrup, Jell-O powder, or
Certo.
Magic with Soap Bubbles by Ormond
McGill: He
proposes a real old timers recipe that will get it's own
posting later...
Exploratorium
web site Bubble
Formula 2/3 cup Joy dishwashing soap 1 gallon water 2 to 3
tablespoons of glycerin
From Bigbubblemagic.com an excellent basic formula is
:
1 part
ultra-Joy brand or 1-1/2 parts "cooked" Dawn brand
8 parts pure
water (we used distilled)
¼ part or less light corn syrup
or glycerin
• They all say distilled water is good. Also aging the
mix overnight is a good thing. Stir the brew gently to
avoid foaming. Scoop foam off before use.
• Many suggested leaving the soap bubble solution in
an open container overnight so something would evaporate
out. That "something" was mysterious. It could be alcohol
from the detergent, or the fragrance.
Now, off of the non-pro
websites,
there was a real variety:
1 Cup of Water.
2 tbsp Liquid Detergent
1 Tbsp Glycerine
1/2 tsp sugar.
3 cups water
2 cups Joy Detergent
1/2 cup Karo Syrup
1/2 C. Water
1/2 C. Liquid Detergent
1 Tbl. Cooking Oil
2/3 cup liquid dish soap
1 gallon of water
1 tablespoon glycerine
1 cup granulated soap or soap powder
1 quart warm
water
liquid food coloring
1 C.
Warm Water
1/4 C. Blue Dishwashing
Liquid
1 Tsp. Salt!?!
And speaking of
salt, here's
a site: (http://www.madsci.org/posts/archives
feb2001/983550047.Ch.r.html) that talks about why salt will
kill a bubble mix. (The next paragraph, in quotes, is a
snippet from the above address.) Basically, it's adding in
mineral/crystal content to distilled water. You use
distilled water because it's void of most of that junk.
However, I read in some some water based liquids, not soap
bubble solutions, salt is used to increase viscosity.
That's where the confusion comes in I'll bet. We're all
looking to boost viscosity to the solutions in one way or
another. Interesting to note too that salt is a major
component of an anti-bubble soap solution, but that's a
whole other ball of wax.
I told you there would be diverse opinions...
"Soap, Water and Bubbles. I
love bubbles. One of the things I like to talk about is how
a bubble (like a soap bubble) is formed. Molecules of pure
water are attracted to other molecules of pure water. You
can think of these molecules like being tiny magnets. Now
these magnets only work in pure water, as the sodium and
chloride ions (the stuff that make up salt) block the
magnets from linking up in salty water. This feature of
water, by the way, is called polarity. This polarity gives
pure water another cool feature (and another cool word):
elasticity. Elasticity makes liquid, pure water squeeze
together into the smallest possible surface area. The
smallest possible surface area is a sphere. When water is
filled with air, it's elasticity forces it into a sphere
shape. That's why bubbles have the shape they do. Now, if
you add salt to the water, you prevent the tiny water
magnets from linking up. The water loses it's polarity and
thus it's elasticity. No bubbles can form, and thus your
salt water makes no bubbles."
I
did try all
of these recipes, and many more. I experimented with
different detergents. I tried adding in lube and got better
results. As it was mid-winter I didn't try bubbling
outdoors (though I will this year!) but I bubbled with
various recipes at many of the different venues where I do
shows, mainly schools.
I tried out tricks and bubbles of different sizes in the
auditorium/cafetorium/gym where I would be presenting one
show or another. I tested the recipes before the kids got
there so I wouldn't have to worry about "entertaining them"
as I practiced. This I did, and continue to do often. These
days, I'm less concerned that the kids will see my
attempts. They understand the need for trial, error and
practice.
Armed with a hygrometer,
(a cheap but consistent one) I soon learned that schools,
and most places in New England in mid winter, are very,
very dry. We're talking humidity levels regularly below
35%. Sometimes much lower. Like in the teens.
It was in these months of late 2004 into early 2005 that I
developed a real appreciation for what Casey Carle and the
other professional bubblers did. I mean, they were booked
to do a bubble show so they had to do a bubble show even in
schools where humidity was killing my bubbles as fast as I
could make them.
After all was
said and done, I boiled down all my
research, testing etc. into a base solution into which I
would add more or less glycerine depending on the humidity.
Here's what I came up with... and it's based on Sterling
Johnson's insightful recipe and his suggestion of using
Dawn Complete. I still love that Dawn Complete. I can
bubble all day and still my hands will not crack and bleed
from being so dried out as other detergents would make
them. Anyway, here's the recipe I ended up with...
5 Cups distilled water.
4 Cups Mr. Bubbles solution
3/4 cup Dawn Complete
10 ounces. Vegetable Glycerine.
I also carted around containers of the same recipe above
with lesser amounts of Glycerine for more humid
environments. One batch each with 8 ounces, 6 ounces and 4
ounces glycerine. It got so I could look at the hygrometer
and know which brew I would need for the day.
I was practicing indoor sculpture work, chains, clusters,
cubes, etc. If I used a version of the recipe that had too
much glycerine, it would be gloppy and heavy and the chains
would pull apart. Too little glycerine and the bubbles
would die an early death. With four separate mixes of
varying amounts of glycerine I could match the mix for the
day. Or even the hour. I found by keeping a close eye on
the hygrometer that environments change fast. With my
different mixes, I could keep up with them.
Notice that I'd given up temporarily on the lubes. That
would change with the panic that swept through the bubbling
world in late 2004. The company that produced and marketed
Mr. Bubbles was going out of business.
You read that right. The one producer of the "secret
ingredient" used by most every professional bubble worker
in America was going bankrupt! Panic! Chaos!
Bubblers started converting their basements in Mr. Bubbles
storehouses. Great drama!
More on that when the story continues..
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