lots of tweaker or amateur future bees are out there are ready to take the step up from push/pull or shake n bake reactions
or maybe you actually are just an amateur chemist doing this as a hobby
which ever you are, you need to realize some things
You're going to need some coin to spend, glassware, hot plates, apparatus stands, fans, a lab table, these are just a few things you'll have in your lab, and they cost money. Expect 600 dollars as a good start to stock your lab if you're starting from nothing.
The actual lab part is mostly what this thread is about though
1. Have a big, uncluttered working area, keep things tidy. It is considerably harder to work in a small space with things out of their places and trash everywhere.
2. Don't be clumsy, don't be in a rush, you're going to be pissed after you knock down a distillation apparatus that costed you 300 bucks and you watch it crash to the floor and break into a million pieces. Glassware is very fragile, handle with care.
3. Buy actual glassware and lab equipment, this is all light years ahead of tweaky crackhead labs, it almost makes chemistry easy.
4. Save all your shipping & handling packing peanuts, foam, bubble wrap, and air pouches, these are all very useful in handling your very fragile glassware. Break some condensers and some flasks and you'll regret not having packing foam around.
5. Running water, can be done with out, but is much easier when you have it.
6. Have good ventilation, you will probably be dealing with hazardous fumes that will be harmful to you and others.
7. Practice procedures with cheap chems and solvents before moving up to expensive or dangerous chemicals
ie say you want to do a nicotine extraction, nicotine can very well kill you, it does not take much. A newb can easily get him/herself into a bad situation if they do not have proper equipment or is unexperienced. So instead, you should try a caffeine from coffee extraction and purification, this is cheap and easy to do, and will get you down with the lab basics
8. Properly Label your chemicals, solvents, and glassware
9. Keeping a lab journal, having everything written down helps a lot, more than you would think.
as always, there is more to come, and this is only the beginning
