Sciencemadness Discussion Board

Scientific supply for australians

Luke - 25-9-2014 at 22:07

Hi everyone,

I`m not sure if its ok to post this but i saw a similar post recently so I assume it is.

I have just started a scientific supply business that provides reagents and glassware to individuals who wish to cool experiments in their own homes. The address is www.inspiresciencesupply.com

I can do shipping throughout Australia (including hazardous goods) or items can be picked up in Brisbane. There is a list of things to buy on the website but I can supply so much more, just contact me through the contact form.

A little about me. My name is Luke. I`ve been interested in chemistry from a very young age and I am currently studying chemistry at UQ in Brisbane.

I really hope that my business is of service to the australians on these forums, I know how hard it is to be a chemist here.

cheers

Luke

Loptr - 26-9-2014 at 05:01

I must say, those are some pretty steep prices!

Mailinmypocket - 26-9-2014 at 08:29

Ouch! 115$ for 500g of charcoal!

Pyro - 26-9-2014 at 09:48

remember, those are most likely AU$, not US$

Loptr - 26-9-2014 at 10:02

Quote: Originally posted by Mailinmypocket  
Ouch! 115$ for 500g of charcoal!


Quote: Originally posted by Pyro  
remember, those are most likely AU$, not US$


That's still $100.73 as of today. :o

[Edited on 26-9-2014 by Loptr]

Mesa - 27-9-2014 at 10:21

At least this spells the end of threads asking for H2SO4 in aus:).

The prices for the mineral acids(HNO3, H2SO4) is pretty much on par with other aus suppliers, as well as some of the solvents/GAA. Given you are willing/able to ship and I live in the sticks, I'm pretty happy about this.

The metal salts etc. however are far outside most home chemists price range.

Texium - 27-9-2014 at 10:28

Quote: Originally posted by Mesa  
The metal salts etc. however are far outside most home chemists price range.
It looks like most of them are supposed to be very high purity. Really a bit overkill for most home chemistry purposes, especially the AR ones.

[Edited on 9-27-2014 by zts16]

Luke - 27-9-2014 at 16:35

All of the products listed on the website are from reputable chemical suppliers like Ajax and Scharlau and thus very pure. If you require cheaper prices contact me through the contact form and I can import these chemicals from overseas.

I cant guarrantee that they will be the same quality but they will definitely be much much cheaper and entirely suitable for home chemistry.




HeYBrO - 27-9-2014 at 17:18

Quote: Originally posted by Luke  
All of the products listed on the website are from reputable chemical suppliers like Ajax and Scharlau and thus very pure. If you require cheaper prices contact me through the contact form and I can import these chemicals from overseas.

I cant guarrantee that they will be the same quality but they will definitely be much much cheaper and entirely suitable for home chemistry.






Cheaper chemicals would defiantly be a must, most notably due to the difficulty and expense of having this hobby in Australia.(sorry to sound entitled like that but it is a bleak reality ) However, it is very awesome to see someone trying to help out the "little guy"! Perhaps you could list the equivalent prices for the cheaper chemicals on your website? But i would imagine you need to get a feel for the market. (still it is really great you are helping with home chemistry)

To be honest, I'm only interested in small quantities of chemicals (100-250g) as it is requires less space and disposal for small amounts of waste is much easier than large.

i thought it might be useful if we tell you what we're after and you can possibly investigate? Tom Holm offers repackaging smaller amounts of chemicals to reduce costs, so perhaps that is some thing you could look into?
Also it seems like a major pain in butt in australia (maybe its just me?) to find cheap basic chemicals like
-KCl
-KOH
-KBr
-NaBr
-sodium thiosulphate
-Na2SO4 - anhydrous
-K2CO3
-ethyl acetate
-Dichlormethane
For some reason, most suppliers offer lots of less practical salts instead of just having the essentials first for people starting up and even advanced home chemists.

Cheers!

Luke - 28-9-2014 at 16:45

A list of chemicals that people are interested in would be most helpful. Ill get onto your list asap HeyBro

NeonPulse - 29-9-2014 at 20:45

So do we need to be a registered business, school, hospital ect? I did try to get an account through labtek, talk about a hoop jump! I'm interested and will veiw your items and if the price is right you will have a customer in me. That's if you can sell to individuals without needing to be affiliated with a lab or other company. I'm not in Brisbane but if the prices are reasonable ill make the trip.......

Mesa - 29-9-2014 at 23:13

Quote: Originally posted by Luke  


I have just started a scientific supply business that provides reagents and glassware to individuals who wish to cool experiments in their own homes. The address is www.inspiresciencesupply.com

HeYBrO - 30-9-2014 at 00:09

Here's a list of what i am currently interested in:
-Phenol (100-250 grams)
-Tert-butanol (100 ml)
-tetralin (250 ml)
-potassium hydroxide (250 grams)
-magnesium powder or turnings
-Zinc chloride anhydrous (50 grams)
-the stuff i mentioned in the previous post.


Cheers.

Luke - 30-9-2014 at 03:04

Neonpulse, Im happy to sell to individuals.

HeyBro, i have really taken your thoughts on board and I will be doing a massive pricing restructure in the coming weeks.

If anyone else would like to list what they are interested in either here or through the contact form on my website it would really help me.

Amos - 30-9-2014 at 17:50

I'll happily buy out the calcium nitrate ($0.00 for 500g!!!)

Mesa - 30-9-2014 at 21:27

Any chance you can get sodium metal?

Tdep - 1-10-2014 at 02:00

Alkali metals at a reasonable price would be great. Especially if you could do an EUD, seeing as you're selling to individuals in Australia.

HeYBrO - 2-10-2014 at 01:10

Quote: Originally posted by Tdep  
Alkali metals at a reasonable price would be great. Especially if you could do an EUD, seeing as you're selling to individuals in Australia.


can't tell if trolling or serious...


Who actually wants to have to go through the rigamarole of an EUD????

[Edited on 2-10-2014 by HeYBrO]

Tdep - 2-10-2014 at 01:33

Ok it's stupid, but if he makes it easy to complete one, it's a good legal defense yes?

Sure, it's an awful process if it's some random Chinese internet company but if he's some relatable guy who can sell you something, there's nothing wrong with him filling in a form too?

It's a pretty shitty law, but as far as i'm aware, it is still the law to have an EUD for list I and list II chemicals, of which sodium/potassium fall into. (Would be nice if you could prove me wrong though. I'm pretty confused about the laws, and can't seem to find conclusive answers anywhere.)

HeYBrO - 2-10-2014 at 02:42

Good legal defence for who? Police run background checks after they receive the EUD, so they might misconstrued your intentions etc. Further, the laws regarding glassware and chemicals are different for every state. According to this document list II only require an EUD when sold to non-account customers, which both sodium and potassium fall under. So, it would seem list II chemicals can be purchased without and EUD if Luke sets up a account system on his website.

Tdep - 2-10-2014 at 02:49

So you're suggesting it's better to have sodium metal without an EUD, rather than make yourself known to the authorities that you're buying it for non-drug purposes?
I'm not saying you're wrong, i'm just trying to get your viewpoint.

Oh man. I always derail threads. And there I was wondering why no-one likes me haha.

But ok. So if Luke can set up a system where he can sell sodium that is a reasonable price AND take into account the legalities of selling sodium in Australia so I'm not affected by it, that would be good.

Mesa - 2-10-2014 at 02:55

I get what HeYBro is saying, and he's absolutely right(reminiscient of the lawyer on youtube explaining why you never want to talk to cops in any situation)but on the other hand, if it's EUD or no sale I'm quite happy to fill one out, and have done so beforehand

HeYBrO - 2-10-2014 at 13:29

Quote: Originally posted by Tdep  
So you're suggesting it's better to have sodium metal without an EUD, rather than make yourself known to the authorities that you're buying it for non-drug purposes?
I'm not saying you're wrong, i'm just trying to get your viewpoint.

Oh man. I always derail threads. And there I was wondering why no-one likes me haha.

But ok. So if Luke can set up a system where he can sell sodium that is a reasonable price AND take into account the legalities of selling sodium in Australia so I'm not affected by it, that would be good.


No, I'm saying if i don't have to go through the processes of an EUD where police could misinterpret my intentions i won't. Its a good system but also has some limitations, its just they're kind of impersonal and you just have to trust police won't think you're doing something bad.

But, if you are doing nothing wrong, you have nothing to fear.
I just think its easier if i didn't have to get one, but if it came to it i would sign it.

ps. people like you haha.

[Edited on 2-10-2014 by HeYBrO]


[Edited on 2-10-2014 by HeYBrO]

halogen - 2-10-2014 at 16:41

And don't forget the environmental aspects. At least in America the EPA is entitled to get up your ass. A bureaucracy is set up to assure the public nothing bad will happen, not to make fair judgements on an individual basis.* Instead of taking the complexity of an amateur scientist's unique situation into account (whom there are too few of for the public to care about), they should be expected to simply follow guidelines, which were mostly designed for industrial scenarios, and err as far as possible on the side of "caution". They exist to serve the public. You are not the public, you are an unknown entity, potentially not a human. The public is afraid. Crushing you, from that perspective, is not even unfortunate, it produces the pleasure of a job well done. Yet, ironically in America. I don't need to finish that sentence. Allegedly, lax regulation led to that fertilizer explosion in Texas - deregulation being a business incentive. Of course, in industrial situations, bribes and connections constitute that incentive. And where the same people who insist on the liberal dispersal of powerful munitions, as a safeguard of personal freedom, also insist that drugs themselves should be combated with the fullest force, and propose that those who do take drugs be forced out of their jobs merely on the basis of blood levels, while the most logical purpose of prohibition is to maintain the productivity of workers (whose work suffers, theoretically, when drugged. Or when drunk.) And I really don't see how anybody is more afraid of terrorists than gangs, getting gypped by corporate monopolies, falling pianos, and other ordinary stuff. Granted, the very idea of islam is scary to the American, pray five times a day, alcohol is forbidden, who is immersed in advertizing demanding that one "indulge", and reassured by economists and demagogues (what else can you possibly call them? The magnitude of money spent on every presidential election is no secret, yet after a certain point, everybody knows the names of the only two candidates who have any chance at winning, and past that point, they keep spending. So? Their messages aren't changing. They're not spending those funds on any research that would change the policies they intend to follow. On what? Image. Quod erat demonstratum.) that "enlightened self interest" is the pillar of our economy, and the economy is everything good about the country. Islam, the name itself means "submission to god" that's frightening. Yet what kind of God could you possibly believe in who shouldn't be followed precisely?

But, I don't know how it is down under. Never been there. You got islamofascists too?

[Edited on 3-10-2014 by halogen]

[Edited on 3-10-2014 by halogen]

zenosx - 2-10-2014 at 18:09

I just have to say Damn. I really fell sorry for your Aussie's.. I have a friend in Sydney and such, and no he isn't a chemist, but having to tell your police that you want to "condense" anything is rough. I suppose the government is terrified that someone will make drugs.. who knows.. but I wanted to give a high five to those in Aussie area's that you keep doing what you love!

Luke - 7-10-2014 at 15:38

Sorrry I havent been very active, I reset my password but couldnt get it sent to me.

EUD's arent that big of a deal to do. HOwever in QLD I am required to send all EUD's to the QLD police asap.

Sodium is only required to have an eud collected from nonaccount holders. So if you started an account with me then I cant see any reason why I would need to collect an eud.

Tdep - 7-10-2014 at 15:45

I regret bringing EUD up haha. I'm very excited for your website, an online chemistry store aimed at Australian individuals is just great. Will be happy to set up an account with you, if that follows all the laws and/or let's me stay out of trouble.

Didn't mean any negativity, just talking about ideas that's I'm not sure of so people can make me right :)

Luke - 7-10-2014 at 16:41

The other problem with my pricing structure is that the prices can change all the time from my supplier, so i have to put a buffer to account for the highest price i've ever been charged.

If you email me through the contact form i'm just going to forward that straight to the supplier without checking whether its listed on the website or not, this will undoubtably get you a cheaper price. Originally I wasnt going to put products that you can buy directly from the website but i thought it showed that this is a company that sells directly to the public.

Additionally, I have access to much cheaper chems from overseas. Email me and mention that you want cheap chemicals and I will get back to you with a quote.