Does adding water make ink dry faster?

[lysyi1976]

Hi all,

 

I've heard in several places that adding a bit of water to your ink of choice will make it dry faster. If so, can anyone suggest how much water should be added? The ink I have in mind is Noodlers Blue-Black. Although I like the ink's color, it literally takes minutes for the ink to dry.

 

[PAKMAN]

As strange as it sounds, I hear this works. I hope others will weigh in on how much!

[jbb]

It seems to work for me. It's hard to say how much water to add. You want to add a little bit at a time until the ink dries more quickly but doesn't become a dilute looking color. Some colors are so dense that I've added back approximately a 1/4 of their volume in water and didn't even notice a difference in color only drying time. It also improves shading to add water. Edited December 22, 2008 by jbb

[tknechtel]

Improving the shading by adding water definitely sounds interesting!

[WillSW]

Adding water makes ink dry faster, improves shading, and reduces lubrication. I've watered down some inks, but by the time they had an acceptable drying time they were unpleasant to write with.

[nkk]

It also increases feathering, at least with Noodler's Black. I do not know if that is a random case, or a more universal consequence, but Noodler's BB is similar enough that you could experience it, too.

 

-Nkk

[lysyi1976]

Thank you all guys for sharing your experience. I had a sampler of Noodlers BB and now, hearing that the trick indeed works, I'll get a bottle of it.

[jmw19]

I diluted my Noodler's Blue-Black 50:50, and got some nice shading and faster drying. The ink might be a little lighter, but it certainly doesn't look washed out or watery.

 

You might want to start small, maybe making a 1part water:4 parts ink dilution, and continue on until you find a good combination of drying time, shading, and feathering or scratchy writing (diluting inks also dilutes the additives and surfactants, so they can feel different at the nib). I'd say 10 or 15 drops of fluid total is plenty to dip a few pens and make a swab swatch.

 

Once you find your preferred dilution, I'd make a small batch (an ounce or less) and watch it for any changes. Sometime the biocide becomes less effective when diluted, so your risk of SITB goes up a little. It's just something to watch for, not a certainty, and if you're using the ink often, probably less of a worry. You can also buy additives to restore the biocide; Tryphon's Inksafe and Sterilink are the two I know. Also, if your preferred mix feels scratchy, a tiny amount of detergent should help. Tiny as in dipping the tip of a toothpick in detergent, then dipping the toothpick in your ink.

 

Feel free to experiment; the dilution trick works with a lot of saturated inks. One of my favorite browns of the moment is P.R. Chocolat in a 50:50 dilution; it dries quickly and doesn't smear, but still looks like milk chocolate on the page.

 

[bone215]

Does anyone know the differences between detergent and glycerin for lubing the ink?

 

 

[bone215]

please excuse empty quote

I musta fat fingered somethin

[amberleadavis]

If you search for Sandy1s posts, she has some advice about diluting.

[Arkanabar]

I got smudging in Noodler's Red-Black. I added perhaps 10-15% of its volume in well water (a little acidic, not very hard, a little bit of sediment) and that fixed the issue. Later I added perhaps 10% more. It got to be a very dark burgundy, but I still use it all the time. The black component is bulletproof, and it was free, and it behaves really well.

Edited January 20, 2016 by Arkanabar

[Mathematics Teacher]

I would also add the recommendation to add distilled water, rather than tap water, as it is less likely to be reactive with the ink.

[Arkanabar]

Using distilled water is certainly more prudent.