well i finally attempted my first extraction using watchas tek i think it went rather well (1st time doing anything is very very experimental) i read alot but the most difficult thing was gathering the naptha with a turkey baster lol it got easier the more i did it. still wish there were a better way tho, any tips? i only did 3pulls as to it getting late and my friend had to go to work in the morning (i did the extraction at his place) the naptha is sitting in the freezer right now i will check it out in a day or so im pretty excited!!! =)

Separatory Funnel will be best for separating your solvent from base soup, but they are usually used in A/B extractions due to the large amount of liquid in STB's, which won't fit in most sep funnels. They are also quite pricey. I use jars or bottles with thin necks so the solvent is concentrated at the top. It makes it so much easier to pull with a baster.

A cheaper option to a true sep funnel is one of these (note the twist top):


Cut the bottom off, and voila, a cheap sep funnel. I first read about it in the Whatchamacallit tek, and used it in my STB. One nice aspect of it is that gunk from the extraction tends to stick to the sides of the Gatorade funnel.

Personally I wouldn't use a gatorade bottle. You are more than likely to leech plastics from it into your extraction. No Bueno.

At a minimum, use HDPE. Preferably, use glass (eg mason jar).

I appreciate the information from folks here-- the info made me do some looking. This sort of bottle (PET Plastic) is considered a good barrier for solvents, and that is principally what would pass through it.

It is considered to have low resistance to strong bases, however. So will think twice before using again to sep out the sludge-- even though hardly any of the base ends up in it.

As for the turkey baster, I only use that to pull the naphtha out of the can it came in. to do pulls from the mason jar or something with a bottel neck I use one of those things that come with childrens cough medicine. Its like a plastic syringe but meant to give children a dose of medicine. check the childrens cough syrup section in publix, open the box and just take the mini puller or you could buy it but your only needing the micro baster,lol good luck and get back down south so we can get that break through your seeking