# Acetone, bleach, lamp oil. Where/how to stow?



## Mary51 (May 1, 2006)

Do you carry them, and if so in what containers and how stowed? My methods are pretty makeshift at this point, and I'd like have them secured better.

Thanks.

mary


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## TSOJOURNER (Dec 16, 1999)

i carry mine in their original containers secured under the galley cabinet in a plastic handle tote secured with bungee cords (not the one pictured but similar), maybe not the best way but has worked for me three years so far.


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## CalebD (Jan 11, 2008)

*You may have left out a few other hazardous chemicals cruisers may carry*

Like denatured alcohol, ether or WD 40, kerosene, vinegar, fuel and holding tank treatments to mention a few, but you make a good point, if a bit subtle. 
I have not been keeping bleach on my boat but there is always the distinct possibility of some synergy of fluids, thinners, acids, oils and detergents that would result in a bad situation. 
Normally the acetone, epoxy and varnish kits would be off my boat but it difficult for me to leave the entire kit while out on the water in case of emergencies. Basically, some items should reside at the dockside and some come with you if they can be stowed properly.
I am not an expert or a long term cruiser so I do not know what they recommend in terms of stowing potentially hazardous chemicals so I await the ensuing flood of knowledge that this thread is wanting of.


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## Valiente (Jun 16, 2006)

I would consider a deck box for some things, like gas for the outboard, and it's possible you want to get the chemicals that could either eat through your hull or combine to create noxious fumes separated or outside. Alternatively, you could, with some effort, glass in or otherwise make a box of a cockpit locker that doesn't communicate with the rest of the boat.

I have to have a lot of fairly toxic paints, primers and coatings aboard, and I am still working this out. The ideal is to have some sort of container that could be sealed well enough that if the contents were inverted and/or violently flung about, any spillage would be securely confined without actually eating through the container itself. This rules out in some cases Rubbermaid, doesn't it? <G>.

I know that some people have built fibreglass battery boxes painted in that tar-like driveway sealant (which is also used, I believe, as a truck bed liner). This may be one approach, in that you could fully utilize parts of the hull that normally wouldn't take a loose box.


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## PBzeer (Nov 11, 2002)

I use a battery box for solvents, etc., a wastebasket for bleach and laundry soap.


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## Freesail99 (Feb 13, 2006)

Military ammo boxes come to mind as a good place to store many things in. The boxes has a gasket and seal very well. They also can be had in different sizes.


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## billyruffn (Sep 21, 2004)

Things that come in plastic containers are probably safely stored in their origingal container with the additional precautions mentioned in several of the posts above. I've had a problem with metal containers (acetone usually comes in a metal can) leaking when the cans rust. Usually, the rust starts on the bottom of the can and eventually very fine pin holes develop. Not enough of the solvent leaks out to see (in liquid form) but you'll eventually begin to smell it. I've tried taping the bottom of new cans to try to keep the salt air off them. It seems to help, but doesn't completely solve the problem. Next year I'm going to try using some epoxy paint on the cans. I once tried transferring some paint solvents/thinners to plastic containers, but the solvent melted the plastic. I deduced from this that if it comes in a metal can, it should probably stay in a metal can. 

I'd be interested in knowing how others have stopped the metal cans from rusting.


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## Valiente (Jun 16, 2006)

I don't know how much acetone you go through, but mine comes in plastic from the fibreglass "craft shop". Some of the guys in there stand too close to the barrel, I tell you.


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## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

One thing I'd mention is that you might want to transfer some of the solvents into heavy glass or plastic containers, since the metal ones they come in invariably will rust through in a marine environment.


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## ehmanta (Sep 12, 2006)

The metal cans are rusting from the inside out due to water condensation much like what we experience in our fuel tanks; therefore, painting or taping the outside, won't solve much. You must be careful not to store bleach too close to ammonia, the fumes don't behave well together.


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## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

Bleach and ammonia combined can be lethal...since mixing the two generates phosgene gas, which is odorless and highly poisonous. However, bleach and ammonia generally come in fairly heavy plastic bottles that aren't going to rust out anytime soon...so the bottles are relatively safe to store next to each other, as long as they remain intact and tightly sealed.

BTW, Phosgene gas was used as part of trench warfare in WWI. Nasty stuff..



ehmanta said:


> The metal cans are rusting from the inside out due to water condensation much like what we experience in our fuel tanks; therefore, painting or taping the outside, won't solve much. You must be careful not to store bleach too close to ammonia, the fumes don't behave well together.


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## Mary51 (May 1, 2006)

*It's the warnings on the acetone that got to me!*

Thanks for the info and several good ideas. I've a small quanitify of acetone in a glass bottle in a plastic bubble mailer envelope, but if it breaks - doesn't bear thinking about. So I'll probably bring the larger metal container onboard eventually.

Of course I know about bleach and ammonia. I'm a girl for heaven's sake. Taught that as soon as I started doing chores. (That was early, as I am one of seven.)

I'll probably go with a battery box or something similar but larger, and check the acetone container regularly for rust.

Mary


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## Valiente (Jun 16, 2006)

Take your acetone plastic bottle wrapped in bubble wrap outdoor and throw it as hard as you can against a brick wall. If it doesn't leak...you aren't going to have an issue.

I am totally in the belt and suspender camp (just read my posts on the ridiculous amount of redudancy I incorporate in my boat systems), but it is very easy to both overthink and to get too paranoid about these things, like putting seatbelts on your eggs or something.


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## artbyjody (Jan 4, 2008)

Valiente said:


> Take your acetone plastic bottle wrapped in bubble wrap outdoor and throw it as hard as you can against a brick wall. If it doesn't leak...you aren't going to have an issue.
> 
> I am totally in the belt and suspender camp (just read my posts on the ridiculous amount of redudancy I incorporate in my boat systems), but it is very easy to both overthink and to get too paranoid about these things, like putting seatbelts on your eggs or something.


Seatbelts on eggs - will that get you into the carpool lane? Legally..

AFOC comment only


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## TSOJOURNER (Dec 16, 1999)

artbyjody said:


> Seatbelts on eggs - will that get you into the carpool lane? Legally..
> 
> AFOC comment only


but if you have a dozen eggs, you might get eleven seatbelt citations for the others.


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## Yofy (Aug 15, 2007)

Mary we are liveaboard crusiers and we carry some of those listed items on board. Although Manny does fiberglass work on other people's boats he tries not to store much acetone on board. We do carry bleach because we are cruising in third world countries and may have to purify water and wash vegetables and fruit in a bleach solution. (Otherwise I'd leave my bleach at home and use another more enviormentally friendly cleaning product  .)

We store these things in different areas of the boat. The bleach goes alongside washing soap and is stored in the corner of our wet locker. 

If we were to carry acetone, it would get stored in our aft cabin/ garage where Manny has taken hold of the port side berth for parts and tool storage. He would store it in a plastic container which he would put in a pastic box with a tight fitting lid. Then he's wedge it in a locker where even when we pound into heavy seas it won't tip over. Mostly he prefers to leave the acetone on land. 

Lamp oil, cetol, varnish, thinner, etc. are stored in a little locker space with a door that we invented behind the head. There is just enough room for a shelf to hold such stuff. The shelf is just below the head seacock.

On our last boat which was only 27 feet, I stored the bleach on top of the holding tank. There was just enough space in a corner where I could wedge it in. I figured that if it leaked it would only help out  but it never did...

I agree with artbyjody that it's good to be careful, but to try not to get paranoid. We do avoid storing things in glass containers.

Robyn


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## Triquetra (Jul 8, 2005)

sailingdog said:


> Bleach and ammonia combined can be lethal...since mixing the two generates phosgene gas, which is odorless and highly poisonous. However, bleach and ammonia generally come in fairly heavy plastic bottles that aren't going to rust out anytime soon...so the bottles are relatively safe to store next to each other, as long as they remain intact and tightly sealed.
> 
> BTW, Phosgene gas was used as part of trench warfare in WWI. Nasty stuff..


Actually, the bleach and ammonia release chlorine gas which is also toxic, though not as bad as phosgene. If you should ever have the misfortune to have a waste tank spillage incident , there is a lot of ammonia present, which when cleaned up, and usually sanitized with bleach, can evolve a noxious cloud of chlorine, which can be dangerous in cramped spaces, so a fan and good ventilation are required. Having someone outside of the boat to monitor your safety would be a good idea too. (It was a really awful job on multiple levels. )


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## xort (Aug 4, 2006)

Hey scooter...you fishing for spam? Using your e-mail address as a name will most likely get you nabbed by spam searchers


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## MoonSailer (Jun 1, 2007)

acetone pariticularly dangerous!!!! Treat it like gasoline. Actually it is more volatile than gasoline. Read that boat boom!!!!!! I would not keep acetone where the fumes can get down below. BOOM,,,big BOOM


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## Mary51 (May 1, 2006)

*Not a very big boom . . .*

The acetone I have on board is in a single miniature whiskey bottle - the kind you buy on airplanes. It's just so I can do a little recaulking of the teak deck while hanging out on the hook sometime.

Ok. So I've never really seemed to have THAT much time. But it could happen.

Mary


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## Boasun (Feb 10, 2007)

Any product like acetone, thinner, bleach, etc., should be kept in their own separate locker for safety. Also know your household chemistry of what can and can not be mixed together. Don't want any poisonous gases formed by the mixing of two or more chemicals.
This locker should be outside of the hull where there is safety in distance from the living quarters. Also you may want a fire extinguisher mounted close by for the obvious.
If you are just doing bay or coastal sailing you may want a dock locker to stow all of those chemicals in, instead of on the boat. But for those who are going across the big ponds you want a storage locker that is secured on deck away from the living quarters of the boat.
So have fun.


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