I have a friend who wants to buy some lye, he understand that it is best to buy at local stores, however he cannot find lye at any local stores. So he will be ordering lye online, when lye is shipped is it shipped in a hazmat box, or are there other indicators of what is inside, I know this will vary by vender, but share experiences you have heard about if you wouldnt mind

I would recommend to ask the seller what kind of packaging does he use or just ask for a discrete packaging.

Mine (lye) came from a soap-making supply company in 1 qt HDPE2 Bottles with "child-proof" caps. The outer carton was not marked with "hazardous material" or any other such messages - that I can remember.

I'm in the US.

Naptha - I buy at the hardware store

where is your "friend" located, I find it hard to believe its tough to believe he cannot find lye, look for drain clog cleaner, just make sure its 100 percent sodium hydroxide

I got a bottle of red devil lye online, It came in a plastic container with the lid taped shut, inside a cardboard box, there weren't any markings on the box that would indicate anything other than the suppliers name and address on the shipping label.

there are other bases and solvents...

just sayin..