This is my lightest colored clay. After processing and sieving, it can stay in suspension for months. I generally add something to help it settle (because waiting months to work a clay just sucks). I had been using Epsom salts.
However, a while back, someone mentioned that they use Calcium Chloride. I happened to have some calcium chloride (aka pickle crisp) so I thought I’d give it a try. It works really really well. Much better than Epsom salts, at least for this particular clay. It settles faster with only a tiny addition.
I used 1 tps dissolved in water for several large tubs. This 5 gal buck took about 1/4 tsp. The clay settled out in only a couple of hours. I didn’t even need to wait over night.




This worked brilliantly for me. I simply added some of the “waste” water from one of those dehydration/dehumidifier contraptions for your wardrobe. They use calcium chloride to “soak up” water from the air – so I didn’t even need to mix mine!
That’s great to hear. Thanks for the tip about the dehydrator. I don’t have one, but you never know who might read this.