Section: Colloid Master Pre Purchase FAQ
Also see: Colloid Master Current Owners Self-Help FAQ
Can I return my product?
We always aim to make sure our customers love our products, and that’s why the Colloid Master comes with a 30-day satisfaction guarantee. We find most issues people have can be remedied, we’re happy to help, just call (423) 617-0440 or email us directly via our contact link above and we’ll talk you through issues or arrange for a repair/return/refund.
Colloidal Silver, ionic silver, what is the difference?
Technically speaking, colloidal silver is defined as particles and clusters of silver one nanometer to one micron in size. A particle is considered at least two atoms of silver, each atom has at least 47 orbital electrons. Colloidal silver is particles-clusters that are approximately 1 nanometer to 1 micron in size, that are dispersed into a liquid.
Does the Colloid Master process shut off at a PPM That I choose?
The Colloid Master shuts off automatically at the parts per million it was set for at the beginning of the process by sensing through the electrodes variables that correlate to previously known conditions that indicate the correct PPM has been reached, it then shuts off. It does not use a timer because changing variables that effect the process would not yield accurate PPM results if we used such a simple method. The Colloid Master automatic shut of feature has been a standard feature since 1997, it uses a dial to select the PPM range that the dial setting indicates. That setting produces at a MINIMUM that PPM, and a higher PPM is also achievable for that setting with tweaks such as using reagent grade distilled water, maintained heated water, some pre-made colloidal silver as starter, for example.
How many parts per million does the Colloid Master make?
The dial of the Colloid Master goes from 1 to 10, this does not represent 1-10 parts per million, the PPM is double the number on the dial, which is the MINIMUM that setting produces. The dial of the Colloid Master goes from 1 to approximately 20 PPM. We suggest a setting of 5 to 12 PPM, the most common setting is 10 PPM.This is a simple device, it’s not a One Hundred Thousand dollar complicated device, yet it is reliable.One thing to keep in mind, is that actual colloidal particles are electrically NEUTRAL, thus a TDS meter will NOT see/measure them. A simple TDS-PPM meter is best used for testing water quality before making colloidal silver, not for measuring the actual batch. The best way to determine the actual amount present is to use a lab if you are not a lab with equipment actually up to the task.You can get a higher PPM the the dial setting if for instance you use a few ounces of previously made colloidal silver as starter, (1-12 oz) is an example and it then also depends on what size batch you are making, what size electrodes, proximity to fields like 5G 220-480 Volt power line fields and moving magnetic fields such as a washer/dryer to even a magnetic lab stirrer.This is a simple device but there is an intense amount of technical nuances with regard to this science, which to me is more aptly described as an art.
Regarding the use of the EZ TDS – PPM Meter:
The best use of the PPM (EZ TDS Meter) is to test the water BEFORE you make the colloidal silver with to validate that the water “conductivity” meets the requirement for the colloidal silver maker process in terms of revealing the level of “measurable” particulates.
In short, this meter works well to make sure no charged particles are present that could interfere with the colloidal silver maker’s auto shut-off feature before you start the process.
However; in our opinion these types of simple meters are not capable of determining water ‘purity’ actually, because they do not “see” anything that is not a charged and measurable particulate/substance. Do an internet search regarding VOCs (volatile organic compounds) for more information and a better understanding of this issue.
Regarding measuring colloidal silver with a handheld meter:
There are ionic and Colloidal particles when the solution and the Colloid Master is designed to shut off when the desired ppm is achieved. Depending on the TDS meter, sometimes called a ppm meter, at the time the batch finishes the ionic ratio is measurable to that type of meter and depending on the meter and other conditions the ppm is consistent with the ppm setting of the Colloid Master WHEN the batch initially finishes! When the batch is finished then it goes through another process called dispersion; this is when the particles that entered into solution form nanoclusters, which are neutrally charged, (therefore not measurable by a hand-held TDS meter).
So, the ppm tester can accurately sense the ionic particle stage (when the batch first finishes), but after the particles form into neutrally charged nanoclusters it appears as if the ppm is going down, (at least as concerns a simple TDS meter). There is no device available except to laboratories that will be able to measure the neutrally-charged colloid particles and ions, unless you send the sample into a laboratory or spent over $100,000 on an instrument such as a Malvern Zeta sizer.
TDS meters are in truth, conductivity meters. They work by applying a voltage between two or more electrodes. Positively charged ions gravitate towards the negatively charged electrode. The negatively charged ions gravitate towards the positively charged electrode. The water, in this case as pertains to colloidal silver, produces streams of moving ions, the streams of ions act as a conduit for electrical current, the more concentrated the ions are, the stronger the current.
The TDS meter then interpolates that conductivity of how much current passes from each electrode and the circuit and algorithm of the device gauges and digitally displays the number, usually in PPM, based on how many ions the device senses are in the solution.
We have made the colloid master auto shut-off feature with the final results of total actual ppm in mind. What you see regarding ppm at the end of a batch is a dynamic of the TDS measuring device, which can only see ionic (charged particles + or – ). We tried several hand-held meters, and we chose one that works well with our equipment (displays a relatively accurate reading when the batch first finishes).
What happens after a batch of colloidal silver sits for a day, or several days (dispersion phase), is that, some of the particles become invisible to the ppm tester. You will notice that the greater the drop in measurable ppm with a hand-held meter the greater the color change (colloidal particles have a yellow to gold color) (ionic silver particles are clear).
So, as long as you store the batch out of direct sunlight after it is made it will be okay, and although the ppm may over time may show a ppm measurement (with a handheld TDS meter), below the ppm that it had measured when the batch shut off, for reasons just described. You do not lose any of the total ppm; you just can’t measure it anymore with a cheap hand-held meter.
I bet you did not expect to determine the ppm could be this complicated, and believe me, the answer was kept as simple as I could put it, though actually, this is a much more complex issue.
How long does it take to produce a batch with the Colloid Master?
We have stored the silver dispersion made with the Colloid Master in clear glass as well as clear PETE plastic bottles in a dark storage area at our facilities for 10 plus years, with little or no change from the PPM that it was when originally stored. How the dispersion was created, the water quality ionic content of the water, the container used and where it is stored effect the self-life, in general all these issues matter in ways in which each changes the overall equation in unexpected and sometimes variable ways. We have noted that very strong electromagnetic fields from things like moving magnetic motors are in close proximity can have a detrimental effect on the stability of colloids.
Also see the section regarding the best containers to use for storage.
Why did the PPM of my batch seem to go down after several days ?
There are ionic and Colloidal particles when the solution and the Colloid Master is designed to shut off when the desired ppm is achieved. Depending on the TDS meter, sometimes called a ppm meter, at the time the batch finishes the ionic ratio is measurable to that type of meter and depending on the meter and other conditions the ppm is consistent with the ppm setting of the Colloid Master WHEN the batch initially finishes! When the batch is finished then it goes through another process called dispersion; this is when the particles that entered into solution form nanoclusters, which are neutrally charged, (therefore not measurable by a hand-held TDS meter).
What size batches can the Colloid Master make?
The Colloid Master will work with as little as about 12 ounces of water but the average batch size users most commonly make is a 32 ounce batch. The Colloid Master will work when making batches up to One gallon (128 ounces).
The Colloid Master will work with 1/4″ inch 1/2″ sized electrodes as well as odd sized electrodes. The Colloid Master will also work with custom electrode lengths and electrode spacing, if you are a experimental customizing to your needs sort of person, then you will find that the Colloid Master is flexible in how it can be used while still providing consistent repeatable results.
What is the best way to store this type of colloidal silver?
When the Colloid Master processing light shuts off the batch is done. At that point, the electrodes can be removed. The water (dispersion medium) combined with the silver particles will go through a dispersion-phase during the first 36-72 hours. During this time, the particles create stable associations forming nanoclusters. After the first 36-72 hours the particles are in a stable phase or state, relatively speaking. It is of particular importance to keep the colloid out of direct sunlight during the first 36-72 hours.
For storage of the finished product is best to use a brown glass container if the material will be exposed to light, or a clear glass container if stored in a dark location. Alternately amber glass or a glazed ceramic container that does not allow any light through will also work well. We have also used PETE Plastic with good results. Blue glass does not work as well as brown/amber glass. We usually filter the colloid after 72 hours then store it.
PETE type plastic stands for Polyethylene terephthalate. If you decide to use plastic containers, we can suggest that you look for a triangle type shape on the bottom of the container with the numbers 1, 2 or 4. These designations help establish types of PETE plastics that are likely to perform well for this particular use, also these designations help to avoid using plastics that pose toxicity and colloid degradation issues.
What is the self-life of the colloidal silver?
We have stored the silver dispersions made with the Colloid Master in clear glass as well as clear PETE plastic bottles in a dark storage area at our facilities for 10 plus years, with little or no change from the PPM that it was when originally stored.
How the dispersion was created, the water quality ionic content of the water, the container used and where it is stored will effect the self-life and the state of the dispersion in general. We have noted that very strong electromagnetic fields from things like moving magnetic motors are in close proximity can have a detrimental effect on the stability of colloids.
See the section directly above regarding the best containers to use for storage.
Is it true Solar coronal ejections effect making colloids here on Earth?
The short answer is yes!
In terms of the Colloid Master stability, it functions the same way every time it is used, however; there are other factors to consider. Changes in environmental conditions effect the process within the dispersion medium (the water). Phenomena such as forms of cosmic energy directed at Earth from space, solar events, in particular, coronal mass ejections have fundamental energetic effects that have a very direct with regard to the colloidal production process itself.
This is one of the main reasons that we do not use a timer for the Colloid Master-automatic shut off feature. We have found that, the are variable in the environment that change from batch to batch, so, in order to maintain small particles, a precise adaptive process is required, which lead to the creation of Colloid Master auto-shut off configuration.
During the process there is water and silver interacting with electrical current, silver atoms and ions are dispersed into the water, some silver combines directly with oxygen (silver oxide) on the electrodes. The silver oxide that is produced during the process will not become suspended into the liquid because the material doesn’t have the correct properties to become truly colloidal. The silver oxide that accumulates on the electrodes aggregates into a much larger particle size, larger than one micron and precipitates and falls out of suspension to the bottom of the container.
At times, when intense solar events occur, such as Earth-directed coronal mass ejections, at such times the silver oxide particles increase and is easily visibly confirmed. During such events, which last usually about 3 days, silver oxide (tarnish) accumulates on the electrodes much more so than usual and falls off of the electrodes to become easily visible on the bottom of the production container. At these times, there will also be a noticeable accumulation on the electrodes identified by the dark gray tarnished appearance. These events do not necessarily destroy the batch, in fact, we have some of our most interesting anomalous batches during these times.
The finished colloid should be filtered simply to remove the silver oxide material that falls to the bottom and is stirred up when pouring the liquid from the container it was made in, into another storage container. The colloid can be filtered and used or stored immediately after the process completes. Although you can use the finished batch immediately, it is usually best to wait for 36 to 72 hours as mentioned above, when the particles have finished dispersion and reached the stable phase.
Solar events have a strong influence in terms of slowing the process of making a colloid, primarily because it causes increased oxidation, which occurs especially when the sun is sending lots of high energy phenomena our way.
You can monitor solar events yourself at the link below, which provides tools for monitoring solar events and the geomagnetic field.
Can I use salt (sodium chloride) or NaHCO3 (bicarbonate of soda)?
The short answer is no, the Colloid Master will not work if any additives or contaminants are present in the distilled water.
We do not use salt or bicarbonate of soda as a part of the colloidal silver production process. There are or have been proponents of the use of those materials, which is used to increase conductivity in the water, to compensate for the inadequacies of the overall control of the process and speed its completion. Taking the approach of adding salt or other materials can result in making a silver compound rather than a pure silver colloid, and can cause variations in the process that in our opinion are undesirable, such as producing too large of particle clusters, which makes the finished product unstable and undesirable.
If you want to speed the process using the Colloid Master the suggested method that will work is the addition of 1 to 3 ounces of previously made colloid to the fresh distilled water before starting a new batch (after the water quality is confirmed to be good). This will decrease the time needed to complete the process. Using previously made colloid as a starter is the optimal method. The use of previously made colloid as a starter may take less time for the process to be complete but does not generally increase PPM or otherwise measurably alter the end result.
Do I need to heat the water with this process?
Heating the water is not required with the Colloid Master, it is designed to work at room temperature. The normal temperature range for operating Colloid Master is 60 to 105 F (15.5 – 40.5 Celsius).
An additional note: it can be stated that this is not quite as easy as one would suspect, for instance using a heating plate will induce a magnetic field that favors the production of a more to mostly ionic dispersion.
Not all heating plates produce equal results either, another complicated issue that does not operate in a vacuum as if all by itself as concerns overall factors involved. We have found that heating water and an insulating jacket can give good results if a more full-spectrum type colloid is what you are after (which is our preferred type).
Does the Colloid Master only work with distilled water?
The Colloid Master was designed with the idea that it should be automated and shut itself off when the correct ppm is reached.
The Colloid Master was designed to reliably make a consistent ppm each time. But that is not the only reason we designed the automatic shut off feature, we wanted to make sure that the process would not work if contaminants were present in the water. The most widely available water to use that meets the proper operating criteria is only distilled water.
Since the Colloid Master was designed in essence to monitor PPM, it can also be used to test water quality. It is important to note that: the Colloid Master is only designed to work with pure distilled water, not tap or spring water.
The Colloid Master incorporates a built-in water quality test function. Since the Colloid Master was designed in essence to monitor PPM, it can be used test water quality.
The testing procedure is covered in more detail at the: Colloid Master Owners Self-Help FAQ section.
Will the Colloid Master make colloidal gold too?
The short answer is no, the energy required to break the bonds of gold molecules within water and move the particles into a stable colloidal/ionic relationship with the the water is much higher than this low voltage process will accommodate.
Some users do experiment with other metals with the Colloid Master and report satisfactory results, such as copper and zinc. However, using copper and zinc then becomes essentially a manual process, because the automatic shut off feature is geared toward silver specifically. As a note we do not provide support for experimentation, such as using metals other than silver.
What is the best PPM (Parts per Million) to use?
This is really a matter of the intended end use, however, we do not provide advice or consulting with regard to individual applications or use of a silver dispersion. That said, based on our research, it has been our long-standing opinion that the optimal range for making a stable silver dispersion with water as the dispersion medium is 10 to 17 PPM.,in particular when using an inexpensive meter to monitor (which quiet honestly as concerns colloidal silver is almost useless). The handheld meters work fine for pre-production water quality testing.
There are many factors that we took into consideration when making this decision, including the particle size as well as the overall colloidal integrity and stability. From our research, the silver dispersion is saturated with sub-micron silver particles in balance with the ionic content at approximately 13.5 PPM and that the best range is 10 PPM to 13 PPM in terms of monitoring with a simple handheld tds meter, which can in truth be more than hundred PPM as confirmed by proper laboratory equipment. If anyone is trying to tell you this is an easy to answer issue/question, then you are either being informed by the ill-informed, or the intentionally deceptive.
Can I test PPM myself?
If you are interested in monitoring the PPM of the colloid, that you produce with the Colloid Master the most precise way is with proper lab equipment such as a Malvern Zetasizer or similar devices. The handheld meters can reflect the minimum PPM expected per dial setting, but only when tested shortly after the process shuts off because the handheld meters monitor conductivity/resistance and since actual colloid as it stabilizes it becomes electrically neutral, so then it will otherwise seem like the PPM is going down. Moral of the story; don’t relay on a handheld meter for the job.
Does the Colloid Master use a stirrer or pump to keep the silver dispersed?
The Colloid Master does not use or need a mechanical stirring mechanism. The Colloid Master employs a bi-directional current pattern to the electrodes which electronically changes the positive and negative positions periodically. The pulse induced by the polarity change, in effect, causes the silver particles to be electro-kinetically stirred. The Colloid Master was the first device of this type to employ these features, which have been a standard feature since 1997. By design, we effectively addressed this issue long before others even thought to consider it. The Colloid Master is an advanced design with a proven history, yet affordable!
What is the correct color of colloidal silver?
To make sense of the colloidal silver color issue I will quote from a paper by “Paul Mulvaney – Berich Strahlenchemie, Hahn-Meiter institut, D – 1000, berlin, 39, Germany” Titled ” Colloidal Silver: Charge-Transfer Process and Photochemistry”
“In this report we present some recent results on charge-transfer and chemisorption process on colloidal silver. It has been found that the surface plasmon absorption band of colloidal silver, which is responsible for the yellow color of silver sols, is very sensitive to changes in the state of the colloid surface.”
“The positively charged sols have a yellow-brown color, while negatively charged sol particles are a pale yellow.)”
” The absorption band maxima is shifted to shorter wavelengths when the particle becomes negatively polarized. Thus, the optical spectrum can, in principle, be used to determine whether a silver sol is negatively or positively polarized.” “One difficulty is to determine the wavelength of the absorption maximum when silver is uncharged (i.e., at the so-called plasma null point or PNP.)” [End quote]
Colloidal silver can appear to be light yellow to yellow-brown like tea, not because of excessive oxidation as is sometimes reported, the main consideration is the surface plasmon absorption band polarization. The color is due to the light refraction of the yellow to yellow-red/brown part of the light spectrum.
It is possible for contaminants or oxidation to be a factor regarding the color of colloidal material, generally speaking, but the Colloid Master will not function if contaminants are present. The colors described above are a result of polarized charge contained in the surface plasmon absorption band, not contaminants or oxides.
The reason is somewhat like explaining why the sky is blue. In this case, the colloidal liquid is light yellow to a deep golden color because silver particles absorb the blue part of the light spectrum while the yellow to red part of light spectrum is emitted and appears as the yellow, golden to tea-like color.
What is the difference between Colloid Master AC and the Colloid Master Universal?
The differences are many, however the main difference is also the reason for the name given to each model:
The name Colloid Master AC signifies that it can only be powered via 110 Volts AC.Colloid Master Universal signifies that it can be powered by multiple power source types, such as 110 Volts AC, also 220-240 Volts AC, or with the optional regulated DC adapter (Item #13) it can be run via 12-volt cigarette lighter receptacles or RV outlets. It can also be powered via the terminals of any 12-volt battery or via the load connectors on a 12 Volt Solar system.
Although the enclosures of both models of the Colloid Master look similar, the circuitry inside is completely different for each model of the Colloid Master.
The Colloid Master Universal is a more rugged industrial design in terms of the circuit board and overall construction. It is made tougher and is more durable in order to withstand off-grid, remote-location, in-field use, as well as being better able to tolerate the rigors and abuses of being shipped long distances.
Either Colloid Master is a good choice, each comes with a 30-day money back satisfaction guarantee and a 1-yr warranty.
The important thing to know is that a silver dispersion created with either unit is very similar.