The (titration) end… Second thoughts and…

The (titration) end …of the story

Back in the day when warewashing detergents were pretty customarily run at .3% (and frequently above), missing the exact point a smidge where that last drop of reagent altered the color of the solution, wasn’t really a serious issue. Today when those rarified and almost atmospherically high detergent concentrations are a pipe dream, it’s altogether a different story.

With our more potent products and cost pressures, we’re often running at or below .15%. To make it even more challenging the total drop count to measure that concentration is such that one drop more or less is huge. So, knowing exactly where the end point of our titration is critical.

The question is, where is that point? Is it when the solution color begins to change, or is it after we add that extra drop and it’s positively there? Per the chemists, it’s when any color change occurs. But then we occasionally see a solution begin to turn and then bounce back. Hmmm.

Maybe the better idea is to double the solution sample and then each drop is half as important. If a 10 ml sample takes five drops to change at .15% then each drop equals .003%. Double that sample to 20 ml and each drop now equals .0015% and .15% takes ten drops. With that finer measurement we can home in a lot more accurately on that .125% we’re chasing.

Next up: Some titration techniques as tips.

 

Second thoughts and…Second efforts

After you’d left a sale attempt ever had that feeling success was in your grasp, but it had somehow eluded you? And to make it worse, sitting in your car you now suddenly have an aha moment and realize exactly what would have sealed the deal.

So the question is, what to do? Get out of the car, walk back in and confess your oversight and try to close the sale then and there? Or is the better idea to save that insight, polish it and return another day and effectively start the call from scratch – but with that approach your overlooked?

In all probability it’s a crap shoot to pick one and probably depends on the tenor of that call. If it was warm and fuzzy, then that first approach is almost certainly the way to go. If it was a stiff or difficult interview, it’s pretty certain that waiting to fight another day is probably advised.

The point is, as Yogi Berra uttered so wisely, “it ain’t over till it’s over”. The only question is when to make that second effort.