# Questions about dying Roving



## Pearl B (Sep 27, 2008)

Ive got a couple of dyes. Jacquard, which is a non procion-I think.
Tulip which is a procion-I think.

Anyways, Ive been watching youtube vids & they all have a various method of cooking, be it microwave, dye pot, crockpot.

Is it absolutely necessary to cook it? Or is that just to speed up the dying process?
I dont really have anything to use for cooking it. Can I just dye it & leave it set up overnight?

Tia!


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## Falls-Acre (May 13, 2009)

Heat sets the dye. Without it, the dye will eventually wash out. You don't have a stove with a pot or access to a microwave? I would think even an electric tea kettle would work. You just need some heat with an acid (vinegar) and acid dyes (your Jacquard).


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## Pearl B (Sep 27, 2008)

Thanks Falls-Acre!

I can dig up a pan. I just hate that you cant ever use the pan for anything else again. Im wondering if I use the microwave for a procion dye-the tulip, can it never be used for food again?


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## Pearl B (Sep 27, 2008)

Thanks Wihh!

I would hate to take the chance too. I got rid of all my junk pots & pans.
The 2nd hand stores here are just useless gre:

I might be in luck, I might have a 2nd microwave in the shed.
I want to do stripes/color repeats.


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## Pearl B (Sep 27, 2008)

Thank you Wihh!

Thats the vid Ive been watching! Its got me inspired. I went through my rovings & ive got 41.5 oz's. Im going to go check the shed & see if that spare microwave is out there!


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## Pearl B (Sep 27, 2008)

I got lucky! I found it plugged it in & it lit up. So it should work after some cleaning out :dance:


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## Maura (Jun 6, 2004)

After you dye the way Wind - Hair suggested, you put the roving into a zip lock bag and into the microwave. However, you can also put the zip lock into a pot of simmering water. You won't ruin your pot this way.


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## Marchwind (May 10, 2002)

I have stainless steel pots that I have used for dying and I still use them for cooking in. I clean them very well when I'm finished. Or you can use enameled pots they sell them fairly cheaply at most stores. Just make sure your pots don't have any chips, and I dont think you want to use aluminum.

I want to try the crockpot idea. I think you can dye in the oven too.


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## Pearl B (Sep 27, 2008)

> However, you can also put the zip lock into a pot of simmering water.


Thank you Maura!! Thats a good idea.

Marchwind, I was wondering that about stainless too.
Still I think I will get a cheap set of pans & a crockpot at a 2nd store if I come across one. I was going to use a stoneware one I hacve. I dont like it its hard to clean. Then I thought if its hard to clean, dye will probably stick to it too. :hair


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## Pearl B (Sep 27, 2008)

Got it all cleaned up & tested. Looks like a got a 1000watt microwave. It boiled water as fast as my newer one! :hrm:
Just a last few questions,

Do stores carry citric acid crystals like she talks about in the vid.
And in the vid she braids the roving, what is the point of that? to save space?

This one is kinda unrelated. If I put the rags from finishing stain outside, will the heat/temp's we commonly have, 105% +, be a danger to them igniting?

Tia!


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## frazzlehead (Aug 23, 2005)

YES YOUR RAGS MAY IGNITE! It is mostly a problem if they are crumpled up though. 

(I use oil stains all the time, so the whole "ingition of rags" thing always catches my attention.)

Just lay them out flat, on a surface where if they DO go poof they won't burn anything else - flat on the middle of a paving stone or on the driveway is really good, or hanging over the edge of a metal fence with no grass below. 

Lemon juice or vinegar can be used instead of citric acid. 

ETA I have a crock pot I got at the thrift store that I use for dyeing. It's awesome. Probably my favourite method. You can also use the sun you know ... if you are worried about your rags igniting, clearly you have enough heat goin' on outside! Just put the dyed rovings in a big ziplock, or wrapped in plastic wrap or whatever, lay them out in the sunshine and let Mother Nature heat 'em up for you! All afternoon in the sun oughta be sufficient.


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## Pearl B (Sep 27, 2008)

Thank you Frazzle!!

I wondered if I could use the sun as a heat source for the rovings, its hot enough. :hysterical:
Ive been keeping an eye out in the 2nd hand stores for a crockpot, our 2nd hand stores are just really lame.

I will see if I can find a paving stone for the rags!


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## Marchwind (May 10, 2002)

I was able to find citric acid at the grocery store in the canning isle.


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## weever (Oct 1, 2006)

And remember, you don't need a whole set of pans--just one nice big one. We use an old canning pot (enameled). And yeah, we don't use the dyeing pots/microwave for any food production. We also use a huge old coffee pot (100 cup plug in type) for dyeing. But I would not use this for roving, as it pulls up water from the bottom and spouts it out of the top. Too much water movement = felt.


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## 7thswan (Nov 18, 2008)

Garage sales , you can find all the pots, enamled canning pots,...you need.


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## frazzlehead (Aug 23, 2005)

PearlB, have you got a barbecue outside? Like the black gas grill sort, or whatever?

If you put your rovings in there, wrapped up in their plastic, the extra heat of the sun on the black metal (don't turn the thing on! just let it get hot in the sunshine) will make essentially a solar oven, and you will most certainly get heat set for your dyes. 

You can also set them wrapped in their plastic baggies on a metal cookie sheet, to increase the heat in that spot. Solar dyeing is really neat!


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## IowaLez (Mar 6, 2006)

The dye will not penetrate stainless steel; it cannot "get into the pores" of it, there are none, and the absorption of chemicals into metal doesn't happen from contact. It is a popular and mistaken myth that you can't still use the pot to cook with. Using it to cook will NOT affect you or your family in any way.

I have no fear of using a stainless steel dye pot to cook, you wash it and the dye material is gone. I trust Stan's knowledge. Stan's family owns the largest industrial metal distribution company west of the Mississippi, and Stan grew up in the biz, was the General Manager for years. He can answer any questions you have, authoritatively. People online say a lot of bogus stuff about different alloys.


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## weever (Oct 1, 2006)

You mention stainless steel, but what about aluminum? enamel coated steel? etc?

Thanks for your input.


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## Marchwind (May 10, 2002)

Aluminum will react to the dye material or mordant and cause funny stuff to happen. At least that is my understanding :hrm: The enamel pots work well but I wouldn't reuse those since the enamel can adsorb stuff. Just make sure it isn't chipped where the dye material will go. I think under the enamel is aluminum.


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## weever (Oct 1, 2006)

Huh. I'm pretty sure that my coffee pot is aluminum, and we've had good luck with dyeing in it. And my canning pot is chipped.  But I don't use either of these for anything but dyeing.

Just curious.


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## IowaLez (Mar 6, 2006)

Aluminum reacts with the vinegar, just like with tomatoes will do. I would stick to stainless. I wouldn't cook with an enamel pot after dyeing with it, I wouldn't trust it. Enamel/ceramic material doesn't have the same properties as stainless.


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