I shouldn't be allowed to handle a kitchen knife, let alone pool chemicals.
MA Burns....
And Chlorine will ruin your cloths....
MA Burns....
And Chlorine will ruin your cloths....
PSA: Be careful handling chemicals
- Thread starter pinguy
- Start date
- Jul 3, 2013
- 9,028
- Pool Size
- 15000
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool SJ-40
Always be careful when adding chem's please.. and I have a couple pair of clothes like that 
One of my favorite t-shirts from circa mid 1990s got it today because I absent-mindedly rubbed the lid seal of a bleach bottle against it today...
Careful with that MA!
Careful with that MA!
- Jan 4, 2016
- 5,288
- Pool Size
- 44000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
Glad you showed that to help others, pinguy.
I've done the same on my legs and learned to watch for those tiny splashes and rinse it off. I think if it got past my glasses and into my eyes, I'd dive in the pool!
I've done the same on my legs and learned to watch for those tiny splashes and rinse it off. I think if it got past my glasses and into my eyes, I'd dive in the pool!
Surprised with the Muriatic Acid burns. I asked my PB about this and he poured some from the bottle into his palm/ fingers and said that it does not have much strength.
But he warned me about Cyanuric Acid...that will apparently burn and is much much more dangerous.
But he warned me about Cyanuric Acid...that will apparently burn and is much much more dangerous.
I can only go by what I see in person. While pouring Muriatic Acid as part of start up, he poured it on his hand to demonstrate.
It won't burn if you wash it off right away, I just didn't get it off fast enough. It went from a slight tingle to a "OUCH" after about a minute.
- May 23, 2015
- 24,400
- Pool Size
- 16000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
Muriatic acid can burn your skin....it just takes A LOT longer to do so than other acids. The reason why is that your skin is oily and has a relative thick lipid layer near the surface. Both of these are fairly resistant to the "acidity" of HCl (organic compounds getting protonated). Other acids, like sulfuric acid (H2SO4), are very powerful desiccants (absorbs water) and the bisulfite anion (HSO4-) is very good at breaking up organic bonds. Also, the heat of hydration for sulfuric acid is incredibly high while for HCl it is not. So, when you get sulfuric acid on your skin it is literally stripping the water out of the skin cells, as that reaction is occurring the near surface temperature of the solution is rising above the boiling point of water and the bisulfate anion is destroying organic compounds very rapidly. HCl is very much slower at this. Other acids have different properties that make them dangerous - nitric acid is a powerful oxidizer, hydrofluoric acid will strip calcium from your bloodstream and bones and kill you, etc, etc.
So the net take away is that you can actually get quite a large amount of HCl on your skin and, if you wash it off in a reasonable time frame, nothing will happen to you. The tell tale sign of a small droplet of HCl on the skin is that you will feel like something is pinching you, like a pin prick. So if you're working with acid and you feel like something is pinching your skin, it's not a mosquito; you likely got a little splash of MA on you. Easiest thing to do to fix it - dive in the pool!!
As for bleach....well, I did not respond to this right away because I don't want to sound snarky BUT......how the heck did you spill that much bleach on yourself??? Seriously, I've poured lots of bleach in my pool over the years and I have never ruined one single piece of clothing do it....I just don't get it....
So the net take away is that you can actually get quite a large amount of HCl on your skin and, if you wash it off in a reasonable time frame, nothing will happen to you. The tell tale sign of a small droplet of HCl on the skin is that you will feel like something is pinching you, like a pin prick. So if you're working with acid and you feel like something is pinching your skin, it's not a mosquito; you likely got a little splash of MA on you. Easiest thing to do to fix it - dive in the pool!!
As for bleach....well, I did not respond to this right away because I don't want to sound snarky BUT......how the heck did you spill that much bleach on yourself??? Seriously, I've poured lots of bleach in my pool over the years and I have never ruined one single piece of clothing do it....I just don't get it....
It was a 5 gallon carboy, which is much harder to handle than 1 gallon jug. They are filled to the brim too. I was filling a 150 gallon tank and had to lift it up to shoulder level or so, I fumbled and got it all over the front of myself.
It won't happen again, lesson learned the hard way. Actually I'm lucky I didn't get any in my eyes, THAT would have been learning the hard way.
- May 23, 2015
- 24,400
- Pool Size
- 16000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
Dude....you are sooooo lucky!! Bleach in the eyes would be BAD!! Please, for your own safety, get a transfer pump and a good pair of safety goggles! I know a t-pump will set you back a few dollars but it is well worth it if you have to deal with that much liquid transfer. Your eyesight is way more important than any stupid pool....
I agree completely, it was a very stupid mistake. It's usually delivered and pumped by a truck. Like I said, it's NOT happening again.
The cuts / welts on your hand...were they caused by the acid or just scars from where PB sucked out all the blood..lol
- Jan 4, 2016
- 5,288
- Pool Size
- 44000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
I was hoping JoyfulNoise would jump in on that one
Weaker muriatic such as 20% and below is also a significant difference from 31%. Rinsing within a few minutes is all I've ever needed. The heads-up on a pinch feeling is helpful, thanks. Bleach on clothes?... I'm way more careful since the dirty looks from my better half who gave me the shorts for Christmas!
Weaker muriatic such as 20% and below is also a significant difference from 31%. Rinsing within a few minutes is all I've ever needed. The heads-up on a pinch feeling is helpful, thanks. Bleach on clothes?... I'm way more careful since the dirty looks from my better half who gave me the shorts for Christmas!
Thimble
0
I measure and pour MA in the garage on my bench. I keep a large plastic pitcher there about 3/4 full of water with a cup of baking soda added to it. Any time i get a little splash on my hand or arm I stick my hand in the pitcher or splash a little on my arm to neutralize things. I also throw the funnel in there after use.
As far as bleach....i got some t shirts and shorts like yours. Maybe we will start a new fashion trend...along with safety glasses.
As far as bleach....i got some t shirts and shorts like yours. Maybe we will start a new fashion trend...along with safety glasses.
