A scary warning... brake cleaner and welding don't mix.

[TC]

Re: A scary warning... brake cleaner and welding don't mix.

Tell ya what. TC and you guys that think this story is BS . . .

I'll send TC (or whoever) a can of old-school brake clean and you can spray it on a piece of rusty/porous metal. Then strike an arc with the old MIG welder with the Argon cranked up high and breath real deep a few times.

Are you suggesting that the sceptics "huff" phosgene? Harsh, brother, harsh. BTW, where does it say that Argon has anything to do with this reaction? Argon is an inert gas. Chemistry whiz kids, let's hear it.
-dulcich

Quote from the article.

The active chemical in brake cleaner is tetrachloroethylene. When this chemical is exposed to excessive heat and the gas argon, which is used in MIG and TIG welding, it produces Phosgene.

[BOWTIE6872]

Re: A scary warning... brake cleaner and welding don't mix.

Tell ya what. TC and you guys that think this story is BS . . .

I'll send TC (or whoever) a can of old-school brake clean and you can spray it on a piece of rusty/porous metal. Then strike an arc with the old MIG welder with the Argon cranked up high and breath real deep a few times.

tc doesn't work that quick, as it be all but gone, in under 20 sec. and dry as a baby's @$$

[Eric68]

Re: A scary warning... brake cleaner and welding don't mix.

From Wikopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phosgene

Adventitious occurrence

Upon ultraviolet radiation in the presence of oxygen, chloroform slowly converts into phosgene via a radical reaction. To suppress this photodegradation, chloroform is often stored in brown-tinted glass containers. Chlorinated compounds used to remove oils from metals may also react under the UV created during arc welding to produce phosgene.

According to Wikopedia it isn't the Argon during welding that creates the Phosgene, it is the Ultraviolet light from the arc. Argon is in fact inert which is why we use it to weld with. Maybe the Argon acts as a shield preventing the Phosgene from decomposing into carbon monoxide?

I can also tell you that during my stint in the Navy on submarines there were certain compounds used in weapons fuel that produce Phosgene when burned. Nasty stuff, especially if you are in a closed environment. We drilled routinely on how to handle an accident if one occurred. There were other things to worry about too in the event of a weapons fire -- like hydrogen cyanide . . . well, and of course the potential very big "boom" that would occur if one of our little bombs went off :o

TC, I just like to give you crap, because after some of the stuff you've posted here you deserve it ;) :-*

[Brad54]

Re: A scary warning... brake cleaner and welding don't mix.

I had a little talk with Boy Wonder about this...
I pointed out that, at 14 years old, some of his friends may get the bright idea to grab a spray can of something and a Bic lighter and make themselves a little blow torch (not that I ever did anything like that : )

I gave him the highlights (leaving out the Argon ingredient to create phosgene) and let him draw his own conclusions on whether or not spray cans and a lighter will ever be a good idea.

-Brad

[TC]

Re: A scary warning... brake cleaner and welding don't mix.

I had a little talk with Boy Wonder about this...
I pointed out that, at 14 years old, some of his friends may get the bright idea to grab a spray can of something and a Bic lighter and make themselves a little blow torch (not that I ever did anything like that : )

I gave him the highlights (leaving out the Argon ingredient to create phosgene) and let him draw his own conclusions on whether or not spray cans and a lighter will ever be a good idea.

-Brad

It's only a good idea when killing Spiders. ;)

We used to use this one stuff can't remember if it was carb or brake cleaner, but that stuff would catch on fire and stick to the walls, burn for a few seconds and then go out. It was awesome for killing those pesky critters.