Silk Balance Alternatives

[Vista_Life]

I know this stuff has mixed receptions around here. I like how it makes my water feel. It also does something to keep it clearer than without.

Without knowing what is actually in it, I can't mix my own concoction. They won't give me the details of the ingredients. Hmmmm... Seems strange.

So, I can either dish out another $169 for 4 more months or find an alternative. I can't believe how expensive the stuff is.

Any suggestions? I've heard Sea Salts used before to help the water feel softer.

BTW -- I use Nature2 with Ozone and MPS and once a week dichlor shock as treatment.

[Dr. Spa]

How strange in deed... same with coca cola. How DARE they not reveal their recipes!

[Vista_Life]

On the side of a any cola can, I can see a list of ingredients. Why can't I on Silk Balance. I don't need to know their exact recipe. It would be nice, however, if consumers knew what they were putting in their tubs. Why the sarcastic response? It's a fair question. What's in the bottle? What are the alternatives?

[chem geek]

You aren't ingesting it and there are no disinfectants in it nor hazardous chemicals so there is no government requirement to list such ingredients, not even in an MSDS. Companies aren't going to list ingredients so that you can try and make something yourself. They won't get your business that way.

This page and this page say the following about SilkBalance:

SilkBalance is laboratory-formulated blend of buffering and sequestering agents to balance water hot tub and spa water. This eliminates the need to test and adjust individual chemicals in the hot tub which many people have difficulty with. In addition, SilkBalance has several other additives, which act to preserve water in a fresh state and protect spa and hot tub components like heaters and pumps.

#2 How does SilkBalance work??

SilkBalance works by removing the food sources from the water that bacteria feed on in order to live and multiply. It also reduces the surface tension of the water making it very difficult for bacteria to form the protective slime around themselves called Biofilm. (Biofilm protects a bacterial colony so it can grow). The result when you use SilkBalance in your spa or hot tub? Little or no bacterial content is found in the water.

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By removing excess calcium from the water, hot tub equipment life is prolonged up to three times longer than without SilkBalance.

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SilkBalance has salts in its formula which make your skin soft & smooth after soaking.

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There are 30 ingredients in the proprietary formula many of them are formulated to preserve water freshness.

So the fact that it removes calcium and buffers the pH sounds like a phosphate buffer to me. Sequestering agents may be for metals and might be HEDP. However, removing food sources for bacteria would normally be a phosphate remover and that would be inconsistent with use of a phosphate buffer. Reducing surface tension sounds like surfactants. The softer feel on the skin could be the surfactants or there might be moisturizers of some sort (something that would tend to adhere to the skin).

You might try using 50 ppm Borates (from boric acid) in your spa to see if it gives you some of the same feel, though obviously a single chemical won't replicate everything in SilkBalance.