To minimize degradation by solvents, reactions involving tert-butyllithium are often conducted at very low temperatures in special solvents, such as the Trapp solvent mixture.
More so than other alkyllithium compounds, tert-butyllithium reacts with ethers. In diethyl ether, the half-life of tert-butyllithium is about 60 minutes at 0 °C. It is even more reactive toward tetrahydrofuran (THF); the half-life in THF solutions is about 40 minutes at −20 °C. In dimethoxyethane, the half-life is about 11 minutes at −70 °C
In this example, the reaction of tert-butyllithium with (THF) is shown: