How to get rid of some poppers?
September 14, 2007 9:05 PM Subscribe
How to dispose of unwanted poppers (amyl nitrite)?
So we have a couple of small bottles of uh, video head cleaner (in the freezer right now), and we're moving a long way away. We don't want to bring this stuff in the car, and we don't want to ship it with the rest of our stuff (much more for safety than legal reasons). We're sure as hell not going to pour it into the water system, and it seems a bad idea to put it in the trash.
It isn't going to used up by the time we go, so what can we do with it? This is in the US by the way.
So we have a couple of small bottles of uh, video head cleaner (in the freezer right now), and we're moving a long way away. We don't want to bring this stuff in the car, and we don't want to ship it with the rest of our stuff (much more for safety than legal reasons). We're sure as hell not going to pour it into the water system, and it seems a bad idea to put it in the trash.
It isn't going to used up by the time we go, so what can we do with it? This is in the US by the way.
(give them to me?)
posted by serazin at 9:27 PM on September 14, 2007 [2 favorites]
posted by serazin at 9:27 PM on September 14, 2007 [2 favorites]
Why wouldn't you just pour it down the drain?
I'm looking at the msds for it and I can't figure out why you wouldn't pour it down the drain.
posted by 517 at 10:01 PM on September 14, 2007
I'm looking at the msds for it and I can't figure out why you wouldn't pour it down the drain.
posted by 517 at 10:01 PM on September 14, 2007
The best way to get rid of this kind of shit is actually very simple.
Open a carton of milk. Leave it out for a day or two. Put the unwanted inside of it. Close it. Put it in the trash.
No one will try to eat it, and no one will try to recover it. It will end up in a landfill which is sealed against leaking into the groundwater.
posted by fake at 10:06 PM on September 14, 2007
Open a carton of milk. Leave it out for a day or two. Put the unwanted inside of it. Close it. Put it in the trash.
No one will try to eat it, and no one will try to recover it. It will end up in a landfill which is sealed against leaking into the groundwater.
posted by fake at 10:06 PM on September 14, 2007
I'd vote for burning it. The MSDS on waste disposal is unhelpfully blank.
posted by BrotherCaine at 2:27 AM on September 15, 2007
posted by BrotherCaine at 2:27 AM on September 15, 2007
I can't find any information on any special way for disposing of amyl nitrite. This may be due to it not needing special disposal techniques.
Are you or a trusted friend enrolled in a chemistry class, preferably organic chemistry or higher? Dump it in the nonhalogenated waste container during lab, when no-one's looking.
posted by Xere at 3:24 AM on September 15, 2007
Are you or a trusted friend enrolled in a chemistry class, preferably organic chemistry or higher? Dump it in the nonhalogenated waste container during lab, when no-one's looking.
posted by Xere at 3:24 AM on September 15, 2007
You don't pour it down the drain because it's a flammable liquid or heavier-than-air gas with a very low flashpoint, low solubility in water and forms explosive mixtures with oxygen and other gases. You don't want that concentrating in your drains and sewers (I read two MSDSs so far that specifically mention not pouring it down a drain). In addition, it's absorbed through the skin as well as by inhalation so be careful about not getting it on you if you don't intend to be dosed with it.
Annoyingly all the MSDSs I've found also don't say much about disposal, just absorb with something inert like sand and remove to a safe place. There isn't much mentioned about environmental risks or toxicity to wildlife and fish, this should be included if it was an issue so I'm guessing it's not. I'm sure I can find something better at work though, our MSDSs are more comprehensive than the ones google threw up, and I'll have a look on Monday if this still isn't resolved.
If you do decide to just let it evaporate make sure it's somewhere very well ventilated (outside would be best) and well away from any heat source (even just a mildly warm source) and from other chemicals it could react with (it's pretty reactive apparently). For the small amounts I'm guessing you have this would likely be fine.
Dump it in the nonhalogenated waste container during lab, when no-one's looking.
Don't dump it in the waste container, that's not the place for flammables. Open it in an appropriate fume cupboard and leave to evaporate.
posted by shelleycat at 4:46 AM on September 15, 2007
Annoyingly all the MSDSs I've found also don't say much about disposal, just absorb with something inert like sand and remove to a safe place. There isn't much mentioned about environmental risks or toxicity to wildlife and fish, this should be included if it was an issue so I'm guessing it's not. I'm sure I can find something better at work though, our MSDSs are more comprehensive than the ones google threw up, and I'll have a look on Monday if this still isn't resolved.
If you do decide to just let it evaporate make sure it's somewhere very well ventilated (outside would be best) and well away from any heat source (even just a mildly warm source) and from other chemicals it could react with (it's pretty reactive apparently). For the small amounts I'm guessing you have this would likely be fine.
Dump it in the nonhalogenated waste container during lab, when no-one's looking.
Don't dump it in the waste container, that's not the place for flammables. Open it in an appropriate fume cupboard and leave to evaporate.
posted by shelleycat at 4:46 AM on September 15, 2007
If you are located in the US, what you have is probably butyl nitrite or isobutyl nitrite. Genuine amyl is not widely available here anymore (it's basically a prescription medication, in those little things you snap open).
Perhaps the best thing you can dispose of it is to buy some vermiculite and pour the bottles into it, then take it to your local hazardous waste disposal place along with your old paint, household cleaning products, etc, etc.
If you really want a definitive answer, the best authority would be PWD Brands, manufacturers of the most popular ones. There's a contact form on their web site.
posted by Robert Angelo at 6:32 AM on September 15, 2007
Perhaps the best thing you can dispose of it is to buy some vermiculite and pour the bottles into it, then take it to your local hazardous waste disposal place along with your old paint, household cleaning products, etc, etc.
If you really want a definitive answer, the best authority would be PWD Brands, manufacturers of the most popular ones. There's a contact form on their web site.
posted by Robert Angelo at 6:32 AM on September 15, 2007
although personally, I'd just throw a party and use them before my trip...
posted by Robert Angelo at 6:42 AM on September 15, 2007
posted by Robert Angelo at 6:42 AM on September 15, 2007
Robert Angelo writes "Perhaps the best thing you can dispose of it is to buy some vermiculite and pour the bottles into it, then take it to your local hazardous waste disposal place along with your old paint, household cleaning products, etc, etc."
Check you local regulations on this one. Here they won't take anything not in it's original container.
posted by Mitheral at 9:35 AM on September 15, 2007
Check you local regulations on this one. Here they won't take anything not in it's original container.
posted by Mitheral at 9:35 AM on September 15, 2007
Is this the same thing as Rush or Locker Room?
If memory served, they were labeled as "room freshener" or suchlike. Why not just leave the bottle open and let it evaporate?
Also, if it is the same stuff, a Q-tip dipped in it is the kindest way to quickly dispatch a live mouse who's stuck to a glue trap. FYI.
posted by bink at 10:08 AM on September 15, 2007
If memory served, they were labeled as "room freshener" or suchlike. Why not just leave the bottle open and let it evaporate?
Also, if it is the same stuff, a Q-tip dipped in it is the kindest way to quickly dispatch a live mouse who's stuck to a glue trap. FYI.
posted by bink at 10:08 AM on September 15, 2007
Reconsidering, I think Mitheral is correct. If you want to dispose of the bottles correctly, take them as-is to the waste disposal place. Other methods are probably o.k., in a sense, but if you're already worried about pouring them down the sink -- will it give a buzz to the alligators in the sewer? -- then you probably would want to "do the right thing".
In case you're wondering, the products are not illegal in most places in the US. You can buy them in certain stores here in Houston, same as in other cities. If the hazardous waste people look at you funny, just give them a smile and a wink and off you go...
The reason why I mentioned the vermiculite is that it is extremely absorbent and is used in shipping hazardous liquids.
posted by Robert Angelo at 10:19 AM on September 15, 2007
In case you're wondering, the products are not illegal in most places in the US. You can buy them in certain stores here in Houston, same as in other cities. If the hazardous waste people look at you funny, just give them a smile and a wink and off you go...
The reason why I mentioned the vermiculite is that it is extremely absorbent and is used in shipping hazardous liquids.
posted by Robert Angelo at 10:19 AM on September 15, 2007
Poppers come in bottles that at the most contain 4 oz of liquid. anonymous is not going to blow up the pipeworks or sewers or get everyone in town high if two bottles are poured down the drain.
Of course not, but instead he could end up with a nice little pocket of flammable gas sitting in the U-bend just under his sink waiting for some hot water or bleach residue to set it off. This stuff has low solubility in water plus forms a heavier than air gas, pockets accumulating in the U-bend are likely. Flash point is something like twenty degrees (this seemed to vary by MSDS) and hot water is generally forty to forty-five, so ignition is possible. Leaving it to evaporate by an open window makes a lot more sense and is likely faster/easier too.
This isn't terrible stuff. It's not going to kill you. But why lose the hairs on your hand in a little flash fire when you don't have to?
As an aside, I routinely work with a very similar solvent so have experience both in how to handle flammable liquids and how to read/understand the safety material associated with solvents in general. Assuming no other environmental issues it's really a no brainer: keep it away from heat or other chemicals, don't put it somewhere it can be contained (i.e. a drain), let it evaporate somewhere well ventilated.
posted by shelleycat at 3:38 PM on September 15, 2007
Of course not, but instead he could end up with a nice little pocket of flammable gas sitting in the U-bend just under his sink waiting for some hot water or bleach residue to set it off. This stuff has low solubility in water plus forms a heavier than air gas, pockets accumulating in the U-bend are likely. Flash point is something like twenty degrees (this seemed to vary by MSDS) and hot water is generally forty to forty-five, so ignition is possible. Leaving it to evaporate by an open window makes a lot more sense and is likely faster/easier too.
This isn't terrible stuff. It's not going to kill you. But why lose the hairs on your hand in a little flash fire when you don't have to?
As an aside, I routinely work with a very similar solvent so have experience both in how to handle flammable liquids and how to read/understand the safety material associated with solvents in general. Assuming no other environmental issues it's really a no brainer: keep it away from heat or other chemicals, don't put it somewhere it can be contained (i.e. a drain), let it evaporate somewhere well ventilated.
posted by shelleycat at 3:38 PM on September 15, 2007
I'll dispose of them. Send 'em here. (email's in profile)
posted by klangklangston at 11:13 AM on September 17, 2007
posted by klangklangston at 11:13 AM on September 17, 2007
This thread is closed to new comments.
If you really don't want to do that, in a pure form (according to Wikipedia), the stuff has a flashpoint of only 21C. I'd just pour it into a tunafish can and burn it. Assuming you live somewhere with a yard where you can discretely do that sort of thing and not have anyone notice/mind.
posted by Kadin2048 at 9:18 PM on September 14, 2007