Is lye worth the trouble?

Hello, fellow bagel nerds!

I’ve been using lye in my poaching liquid for several years, following Dan Graf’s ratio of a 0.15% solution (for my home setup, this amounts to 6g of lye in 4 liters of water).

On a recent batch, I substituted my 1tsp/6g lye for 1.5tbsp of baking soda and was surprised by how much easier the boil/bake process was: I didn’t have to worry about ventilation, PPE, the lye solution coming into contact with aluminum, etc.

Some find that using baking soda in the boil lends a yellowish color and bitter aftertaste to the bagels, but I’ve never noticed this (perhaps I would in a side-by-side comparison).

For those of you who’ve made bagels with lye, do you think it’s worth it? If so, why exactly do you find it worthwhile, and do you take any steps to make it less of a hassle?

I’m wondering if a separate lye bath in between boil and bake (rather than boiling in lye solution) might produce good results with less fuss. Or perhaps boiling in a lye solution followed by an ice-water bath might make the process less hectic, more controlled.

If you’ve used lye, please share wisdom, tips, opinions, etc!