Hydrophobic silica aerogels were synthesized by an ambient pressure drying method from silicic acid with a different pH value, which was prepared from sodium silicate solution (water glass). In this study we chose various hydrocarbon class solvents such as pentane, hexane, heptane, and toluene, and performed surface modification in TMCS (trimethylchlorosilane)/solvent solutions in order to improve reproducibility in aerogel production. Densities of the aerogels were about 0.1 similar to 0.3 g/cm(3), and apparent porosities were 88 similar to 96 %, depending on the processing conditions. Specific surface area was approximately 730 similar to 950 m(2)/g, and average pore size around 10 nm.