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How do you dispose of acetone?

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  • cladkingcladking Posts: 28,702 ✭✭✭✭✭


    << <i>

    << <i>The stuff may be much more toxic than I'd been led to believe if
    the MSDS is correct. >>

    I'm guessing that may depend on how much acetone you're talking about. Acetone has been an ingredient in nail polish remover for... what? like forever? And as far as I remember, there have never been much in the way of news reports telling of women mysteriously dying after doing their nails. >>



    Of course. They do their toe nails too.

    Though they do get some neurological disorders in
    a three to one ratio to men. I think this even includes
    some blood/ brain disorders like MS. I doubt it's ace-
    tone though or someone would have discovered the
    connection.

    I can't find much of anything on pipes except that
    chlorine is a major erosive agent for the PVC pipes.
    Interestingly acetone is one of the ingredients of
    the cement which is used to join them. Caution
    with the pipes may well be advised though.
    Tempus fugit.
  • MaineJimMaineJim Posts: 752 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Some great comments and suggestions! Yes we call it a "Town Dump" but that is just the name used by old timers around here. We moved past land fills about forty years back.... as far as third world country that is a funny one, Maine has the highest per capita ratio of millionaires in the country. In my town there are people that will take a $400 bicycle to the "Town Dump" and leave it in the recycle building for anyone to take when it has a flat tire. I looked in there recently and found an Indian Cent collection in a box of old books. It was in one of those old boards from the 1930s. I guess they were either too rich, lazy, stupid or perhaps heartbroken to deal with the coins in any other manner. At least they didn't toss them in the hopper to be burned at the local power plant. I gladly "recycled" them. A number of them appear to be varnished for preservation. That is why I inquired about the acetone. It didn't really taste that good and I do have a bit of a stomach ache....

    Maine_Jim
  • mrpotatoheaddmrpotatoheadd Posts: 7,576 ✭✭✭


    << <i>Though they do get some neurological disorders in
    a three to one ratio to men. >>

    You say "neurological disorders", I say "out of the box features"... image
  • BAJJERFANBAJJERFAN Posts: 31,191 ✭✭✭✭✭


    << <i>The stuff may be much more toxic than I'd been led to believe if
    the MSDS is correct. (it isn't always). It does suggest that small
    spills should be mopped up.

    pdf file >>



    In reality, it's not THAT bad. I have used thousands of gallons of the stuff over the years with no ill effects. As long as you don't ingest it you should be ok. For the conscience minded, taking it to a disposal facility is your best bet. I assume it is dumped into special bulk containers. Pouring it out onto your driveway is likely your best bet for home disposal. Unless spent acetone is destroyed in a special incinerator where it is completely converted to CO2, it still causes air pollution.

    theknowitalltroll;
  • TomBTomB Posts: 21,899 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Acetone is infinitely miscible with water; that is, it mixes in any ratio at all with water to form a single solution. I have worked in chemical and biological labs for decades and have used acetone during all of that time and we routinely have allowed acetone down the sink with water when it is used for cleaning purposes.
    Thomas Bush Numismatics & Numismatic Photography

    In honor of the memory of Cpl. Michael E. Thompson

    image
  • cladkingcladking Posts: 28,702 ✭✭✭✭✭


    << <i>

    In reality, it's not THAT bad. I have used thousands of gallons of the stuff over the years with no ill effects. As long as you don't ingest it you should be ok. For the conscience minded, taking it to a disposal facility is your best bet. I assume it is dumped into special bulk containers. Pouring it out onto your driveway is likely your best bet for home disposal. Unless spent acetone is destroyed in a special incinerator where it is completely converted to CO2, it still causes air pollution. >>



    Improper combustion can result in significant production of CO which is deadly.
    Tempus fugit.
  • BAJJERFANBAJJERFAN Posts: 31,191 ✭✭✭✭✭


    << <i>

    << <i>

    In reality, it's not THAT bad. I have used thousands of gallons of the stuff over the years with no ill effects. As long as you don't ingest it you should be ok. For the conscience minded, taking it to a disposal facility is your best bet. I assume it is dumped into special bulk containers. Pouring it out onto your driveway is likely your best bet for home disposal. Unless spent acetone is destroyed in a special incinerator where it is completely converted to CO2, it still causes air pollution. >>



    Improper combustion can result in significant production of CO which is deadly. >>



    My point was that unless it's combusted properly and cleanly like maybe using an afterburner, there is no real difference between letting it evaporate and spewing out the combustion products and byproducts.
    theknowitalltroll;


  • << <i>Correct me if I'm wrong, but it can't be a good thing to release acetone into the atmosphere. Would it be better for the environment to set the acetone on fire? With all due precautions, of course. >>



    I guess if you believe all the "global warming" crap the media feeds you, then you might not want to buy
    it in the first place..

    I am pretty sure the methane gas I just released while reading your post was more damaging to the environment
    than a 1/2 a cup of acetone poured down my driveway... image
  • Linguistics: Flammable vs. inflammable
    The word "inflammable" came from Latin inflammâre = "to set fire to", where the prefix in- means "in" as in "inside" (compare English "in flames"). But there have been instances of people thinking that this "in-" prefix means "not" as in "invisible" and "incombustible" etc, and thus wrongly thinking that "inflammable" means "cannot burn". To avoid this safety hazard, the shortened word "flammable" has come into use in recent years.

    Still clear as mud now?
  • cladkingcladking Posts: 28,702 ✭✭✭✭✭


    << <i>

    << <i>Correct me if I'm wrong, but it can't be a good thing to release acetone into the atmosphere. Would it be better for the environment to set the acetone on fire? With all due precautions, of course. >>



    I guess if you believe all the "global warming" crap the media feeds you, then you might not want to buy
    it in the first place..

    I am pretty sure the methane gas I just released while reading your post was more damaging to the environment
    than a 1/2 a cup of acetone poured down my driveway... image >>




    Like the acetone by the time you're ready to "get rid" of the methane
    it might too late to worry about how you get rid of it.

    If they were really worried about global warming then they'd get rid
    of all the waste in industry and everywhere. Instead we tax income
    and give industry sweetheart deals that have residential customers
    paying for industrial waste of fuel. We reward consumption and min-
    imize the savings from efficiency. We even allow manufacturers to
    sell products that are so shoddy they almost go straight from the shelf
    to the landfill.

    If they really cared about global warming the leaders of the movement
    might try setting an example instead of seeing how much resources
    they can waste at their personal and taxpayer expense.
    Tempus fugit.
  • MaineJimMaineJim Posts: 752 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Looks like I'm just gonna toss the used acetone out on the road by my house. As for the varnish - it is gone from the coins and they have a bit more detail. Worked well on old copper coins. I don't usually like to clean my coins but this stuff just had to come off.

    Maine_Jim
  • notwilightnotwilight Posts: 12,864 ✭✭✭


    << <i>The stuff may be much more toxic than I'd been led to believe if
    the MSDS is correct. (it isn't always). It does suggest that small
    spills should be mopped up.

    pdf file >>



    Acetone is still sold as nail polish remover. This just goes to show you how conservative the MSDS is. I believe they are authored more by lawyers than scientists. --Jerry
  • jmj3esqjmj3esq Posts: 5,421
    Did anyone know that acetone will boil in a vaccum? Pretty neat.
  • BAJJERFANBAJJERFAN Posts: 31,191 ✭✭✭✭✭


    << <i>Did anyone know that acetone will boil in a vaccum? Pretty neat. >>



    So will all other liquids and even many solids.
    theknowitalltroll;
  • element159element159 Posts: 532 ✭✭✭


    << <i>This just goes to show you how conservative the MSDS is. I believe they are authored more by lawyers than scientists. --Jerry >>


    MSDS are written by lawyers, for lawyers. Very often, the MSDS sounds much more alarmist than is appropriate, especially for small amounts of stuff. (I.e. << industrial scale.)

    As posted above, acetone is miscible with water, so flushing small amounts of it down the drain with lots of water, is ok.
  • Just mix with concrete for posts or slabs
    succesful deals :richtree, Bosox1976, Bkritz, mknez, SOM, cardcounter2, ddfamf, cougar701, mrG, Griffins : thanks All

    Go Phillies


  • << <i>I need to take some varnish off a couple of old indian heads I found at my town dump........MaineJim

    It must be cool to live in a third world State.
    They've called dumps "landfills" for a quarter century here in Michigan, and they don't let folks root around in them anymore.

    Ray >>




    Do you know where the Lone Ranger took his used acetone? "To da dump to da dump, to da dump dump dump!" C'mon, you know the tune, sing it!

    I don't use acetone often, but when I do I just sit it on the table on the deck awhile and it evaporates fast.
    Have bought and sold on BST, many references available when asked.
  • The main thing is that whatever you do, you don't want to breathe acetone vapors (or any solvent vapors, like Blue Ribbon, ether, etc.). Its easy-solubility in water means that it dissolves easily in your blood. You've seen what it does to grease / plastics. It does a similar thing to the fatty sheaths around all your nerves, and all the other parts of your body that have soluable components like your liver and kidneys. It won't happen right away, but why take the risk of unnecessary exposure? Over the course of your lifetime, it's so much better to treat acetone like it's really dangerous like the MSDS says, and only use it in well-ventilated spaces. If you don't have access to a fume hood, use acetone outside.
  • LakesammmanLakesammman Posts: 17,439 ✭✭✭✭✭
    We recently moved my in-laws. My father-in-law was a chemist and had alot of toxic stuff in his shop. The hazerdous waste folks were very helpful and took a big headache off our hands - best suggestion so far. image
    "My friends who see my collection sometimes ask what something costs. I tell them and they are in awe at my stupidity." (Baccaruda, 12/03).I find it hard to believe that he (Trump) rushed to some hotel to meet girls of loose morals, although ours are undoubtedly the best in the world. (Putin 1/17) Gone but not forgotten. IGWT, Speedy, Bear, BigE, HokieFore, John Burns, Russ, TahoeDale, Dahlonega, Astrorat, Stewart Blay, Oldhoopster, Broadstruck, Ricko, Big Moose, Cardinal.
  • BarryBarry Posts: 10,100 ✭✭✭
    Ask a simple question, get almost 100 answers. Amazing...
  • cladkingcladking Posts: 28,702 ✭✭✭✭✭


    << <i>Ask a simple question, get almost 100 answers. Amazing... >>




    Wanna know how to change a lightbulb? Or mebbe that should be light bulb? Nevermind. image
    Tempus fugit.
  • I have poured it on a paved driveway and it evaporates in a few minutes. I would not put it down the sink. I used it to remove paint from a hard plastic doorbell cover, and when I started to scrub the paint, the plastic started to melt.
  • Mission16Mission16 Posts: 1,413 ✭✭✭
    Right way would be to take it to your local HazMat program.

    next choice- leave the top off -OUTSIDE, FAR AWAY FROM ANY FLAMMABLE MATERIAL!


    Please, don't pour it out or down the drain or burn it.
  • notwilightnotwilight Posts: 12,864 ✭✭✭
    The best answer is don't dispose of it. Put it on a shelf in the garage because you'll need it again next year. --Jerry
  • adamlaneusadamlaneus Posts: 6,969 ✭✭✭


    << <i>Ask a simple question, get almost 100 answers. Amazing... >>



    I think all of these coin folks are closet wannabe chemists.
  • dogwooddogwood Posts: 1,935 ✭✭✭✭
    Google has placed ads on this thread for Haz Mat remediation.
    They're good!


    Anybody want to discuss strippers?



    Paint and varnish strippers, I mean.
    We're all born MS70. I'm about a Fine 15 right now.
  • telephoto1telephoto1 Posts: 4,945 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Simple answer...pour it on the weeds in your driveway/sidewalk. Kills the weeds, then it evaporates...it's a win-win. Try it. And no, tree huggers... it's not going to make a hole in the ozone layer.image

    RIP Mom- 1932-2012
  • some sherwin williams stores or other paint stores will take it off your hands. do not dump anywhere in ground/pipes.... you'll be fined if caught.
  • well I have not seen this suggestion so here goes:
    Just add to to your wife's beer or wine and make sure the insurance policy is up to date, + a little antifreeze to add flavor! image
    or offer your nosy neighbor a glass or two.
    image
  • Drink it, or use for frying up fish and chips.
  • FrankcoinsFrankcoins Posts: 4,571 ✭✭✭
    Small amounts can be flushed down the drain with plenty of water.

    Link
    Frank Provasek - PCGS Authorized Dealer, Life Member ANA, Member TNA. www.frankcoins.com

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