Coytee Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 Called UT (University of Tennessee) chemistry department.... the gal answering went to her boss to see who to transfer me to....boss lady said "tell him to call 911" Nice. Called Vanderbilt chemistry department while I was at Vanderbilt today.... no answer all day....just machine. Scenario: Had a one gallon jug of Muriatic acid. (20% strength if I recall) Came from my father in laws garage we cleaned things out from his passing. Long story short, it was near full, developed a pinhole leak at the bottom. About 80% of it dripped out (very slowly) I have some wooden shelves in garage and this of course, was on top shelf.... Now, for the stroke of luck... Wife had some form of "cookie tin" that had to be near 18" in diameter. MOST of the dripping, went into here (more on this shortly) So the Muriatic acid has soaked into three boards as it dripped and worked its way across. At least one of those boards, if not all three are near black from where it soaked in. (darkest board being the top board and as you go down, they're not as bad) Of course, I have a stainless steel refrigerator in the garage....that now looks like it's got a dull something on it....hate to call it rust as it's not yet that bad. Ok, so... a week ago, wife went into garage to get something, came out screaming that she can't breath and her hands are burning....run to bathroom & rinse eyes/face/hands. I go to garage and find a (highly rusted) can of battery acid CLEANER that I deduced must have rusted through and vented out... picked it up and a couple other (very rusted) cans next to it. Thought I got everything cleaned up when I then heard (in the silence of the room) what I'd describe as an Alka Selzer fizzing away in a glass of water. Knowing there was nothing like that around, I realized something was eating something.... kept looking and this is when a cloud of gas passed me by and grabbed at my breath too. Seems this 18" cookie can had collected almost all of the fluid. There was maybe 2" of acid in it. Of course, everything we had in there (hinges, screws, odds/ends) were literally soaked... Carried the near empty bottle of acid outside, carried cookie tin outside. Sunday, bought a very large box (several) of baking soda. Created a water solution and poured the acid in there & kept adding until the frothing went away. Poured fluid from cookie tin into there and repeated. Created some new solution & dumped into cookie tin to neutralize as much of that as i could. That's the back story. What I'm trying to find out is: 1. Will the fluid that was on the boards "dry up" and become a non-factor or should I get rid of them? 2. Can I BURN those boards or will that cause a nice caustic cloud of something nasty that will make my feet dissolve? (I have a very large pending burn pile) 3. I wiped the refrigerator down... (soda/water) is that "enough"? Will it keep reacting? 4. What about other things in the garage? Will the vapers blow away (doors are open) or will I need to empty garage out and do a much larger job of baking soda/water soaking? I noticed a couple weeks ago, my cordless Milwaukee drill had totally rusted the chuck. I was intriged on how that happened but, the battery died so it's not been used in 3-4 years...I presumed it was that. Now, I suspect it was the vapor cloud. (it was sitting on shelf under drips) After typing all that, I hope we have someone with a chemical background!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 This might give you a start... http://sciencing.com/neutralize-muriatic-acid-5832680.html He lists other things to neutralize thd acid. I would be inclined to replace the soaked wood. Bruce 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DizRotus Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 I believe @mustang guy is in the chemical business. My high school chemistry from 1966 is of no use today. But, I agree with Bruce, get rid of the boards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
babadono Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 From Wiki tiki tavi: Safety Concentration by weight Classification[35] R-Phrases 10–25% Irritant (Xi) R36/37/38 > 25% Corrosive (C) R34 R37 Concentrated hydrochloric acid (fuming hydrochloric acid) forms acidic mists. Both the mist and the solution have a corrosive effect on human tissue, with the potential to damage respiratory organs, eyes, skin, and intestines irreversibly. Upon mixing hydrochloric acid with common oxidizing chemicals, such as sodium hypochlorite (bleach, NaClO) or potassium permanganate (KMnO4), the toxic gas chlorine is produced. Personal protective equipment such as latex gloves, protective eye goggles, and chemical-resistant clothing and shoes will minimize risks when handling hydrochloric acid. The United States Environmental Protection Agency rates and regulates hydrochloric acid as a toxic substance.[36] The UN number or DOT number is 1789. This number will be displayed on a placard on the container. Be freaking careful with that sheet is my advice, but i ain't no chemist. Air out your garage well i.e. with a box fan or air circulator. Dispose of the boards. Any chlorine gas has probably already been released hence your wife and your throat and nasal membrane irritation. I would think burning them would be ok but don't stand downwind OK? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
babadono Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 Wiki also said it is used to deoxidize steel, so what is going on with your stainless? I have no clue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thebes Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 I use this stuff occasionally in house painting to etch concrete floors before painting. It's a very weak solution of hydrocloric acid. Get rid of the boards, because why would you even think of keeping something like that. Don't burn them. Put them in thick plastic contractors bags and drop them at the dump. Put a fan in the garage venting outwards. Flush any leftover stuff on the floor with a hose. Wear thick rubber gloves when handling any of this stuff. Oh, and why would you pick this stuff up without wearing a $20 respirator from the local paint store? Put the leftover liquid in either a glass or metal container. ie canning jar, or get a empty quart or gallon paint can from said paint store. Go with glass but wrap it in duck tape so it won't break. Don't use a plastic container cause some kind swill be melted by the chemical. Common sense first, panic later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coytee Posted March 24, 2017 Author Share Posted March 24, 2017 Panic is over. I've fed all available liquid (remainder of original container and all fluids in the cookie tin) into a batch of baking soda / water mix and watched it froth away. Added more baking soda until there was no more frothing. Sprayed same type solution all over boards and watched them bubble up a bit. I'm planning on digging deeper into it tomorrow but feel I'm probably at 80/90 percent of getting it up. All the loose liquid is gone... boards are really the only thing left and they've (hopefully) been neutralized. Tomorrow, I plan to disassemble most things along that wall to be sure. Didn't get a respirator or anything because to be honest, I had no idea we even had this. I don't think we've ever used it and think we only obtained it when her father passed. I tangled with this stuff once when I was a teenager and the guy I worked for cleaned some concrete. The instant I got a wiff of this, I I knew what it was. You don't forget that very easily! (and once that happened, got the gloves & goggles out...didn't have a respirator though I guess I could have stuffed some tissues into one of my wifes bra's and strapped it around my face?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seadog Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 Toss the boards on the burn pile and watch for pretty flame colors. Or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coytee Posted March 25, 2017 Author Share Posted March 25, 2017 We've been talking about toasting some hotdogs & marshmellow's on the fire. Some of the "pieces" on my burn pile are part of a (approximate) 30" diameter oak that fell....cut into roughly 10' sections. I currently have three of these logs on the pile with about three more to go (and the huge root ball which uprooted) before that tree is gone. (this is a large burn pile) Going to take a bit to light those off so I've also cut some slits into the length of them, about every two feet to allow some flames inside them. If these boards go on the fire, I guess that will kill the weenie roast. Not sure how appetizing a hot dog or marshmellow, smoked in acid would taste! I suppose I could cut them up and toss in the land fill... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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