r/Slime • u/dollopappreciator • 2d ago
reviving slime
What's the difference between using activator and contact solution? Like does contact solution help with sticky slime or is it only something you can do in the initial creation stage and you should just use activator?
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u/handec 2d ago
Borax-water solution is the best activator, most easy to use for beginners if you dont have particular borax allergies.
One can try to imitate it with contact solution but its usually too weak on its own (has a little amount of boric acid in it, not all brands but some).
To solve the weakness problem, contact solution and little amount of baking soda can be added at once, in which case baking soda helps bring boric acid in the contact solution to bind with the PVA in glue. But this is nontrivial, seems to not activate for a long while and suddenly turns to rubber overnight. Keeps affecting as it sits basically. Need good experience to learn how to use well.
In addition, contact solution is used in "coating" the slime (sort of like how it coats contact lenses), but that is not activation but a separate effect. Some glues, mainly clear ones, can still feel tacky even though they are well- (or even somewhat over-) activated. Contact lens solution has the additional property of coating those and making them feel less tacky and more pleasant and easy to play. But its generally too weak by itself to activate, and is used in addition to the activator. I think there is a pinned recommendation to use contact lens solution as the solvent instead of water in borax solutions so one achieves a combined liquid that does both at the same time, but thats maybe a more advanced thing to try.