Florida Man Killed In Lacquer Explosion

[Tim Solley]

A man was killed while remodeling a bathroom yesterday. Apparently he was spraying lacquer and then used an electric buffer on the floor without adequate ventilation, causing an explosion. Another man survived by jumping out a bedroom window, but was severely burned.

Here's the article:

http://www.local6.com/firstnews/9196012/detail.html

Just something to think about when you're finishing. Safety first.

Tim

[Alden Miller]

When I was in college I was on the fire department. I went to a fire where the house was totally destroyed.

The homeowner had just polyurethaned a room in a new addition. Being winter in Vermont it was cold and the poly wasn't drying. He decided to speed the drying process by heating the room up. He put a kerosene jet heater in the room. Turned it on and BOOM.

His wife went to call the fire department and he told her not to. He was going to put it out with the garden hose. Did I mention that it was winter in Vermont?

By the time we got the call and arrived on the scene the house was already 75% destroyed. We put it out but there wasn't anything left to save.

-Alden

[Dennis Peacock]

That boy must have had a LOT of "fog" in that bathroom to cause the explosion. I spray lacquer in my shop during the winter. No outside ventilation and it's not so foggy that I can't see the fire burning in my nautral gas heater at the end of my shop. To have an explosion, you need enough concentration of the combustible material to allow it to happen. A simple vent from the outside with a small fan can and does work wonders on reducing the chances of explosion in a close shop.

Warning: Don't do as I do....as I can't be responsible for YOUR accidents but only my own. :rolleyes: ;)

[Charlie Knauer]

When I was a youngster I worked in a Lumber and hardware store. A man from the neighborhood came in and bought some Formica and contact cement. We did not see him for several months and one day I stopped his daughter at the bus stop. She said her dad was severly injured when the water heater came while he was gluing the countertop. This man lived but had burns and had to walk with canes.
Charlie

[Jim Becker]

Oy, veh!!
---------

And Dennis...you're scarin' me. Time to call Target Coatings and go water borne... ;)

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Fumes from a lot of solvents used in adhesives, finishes etc. can be extremely exposive. The warning labels on the cans aren't just there to reduce the liabilty of the companies that produce the products!

[Ray Bersch]

Just this week I read the obit of an 80 year old in this neck of the woods that died in a fire caused by a wood burning stove in his workshop - seems he was a personable fella who loved woodworking but was also a bit independent - so he tried to put the fire out by himself and succeeded only in putting out his own candle - so I guess no matter where we are, bad habits will get us in the long run - and if they don't something else will!!

Ray

[Frank Chaffee]

Sure glad that I kept my ignited Camel straight several feet away while using lacquer thinner!

Frank

[Jack Wood]

Sad but true that a lot of people just don't read the directions or ignore common sense rules. A few years back a friends brother was burned to death when he and another fellow were cleaning grease off a garage floor with GASOLINE:eek: when the GAS FIRED :eek: water heater kicked on. It blew the house up and killed them both. With some Tide, hot water and elbow grease and these two could be playing with their grand kids now. We all need to THINK before we leap! Be safe out there!

[Dennis Peacock]

Oy, veh!!
---------

And Dennis...you're scarin' me. Time to call Target Coatings and go water borne... ;)

Not to worry Jim. I'm going to try some WB Lacquer. If it works well, then I'm switching. ;)

[Tom Hintz]

In my earlier "car" days a guy we knew was painting cars in his garage. He had just finished sparying lacquer on a nice Henry J (if you don't know, you're too young) and had opened the door and windows for a while to ventilate the joint. then he closed it up again to relax while it dried before buffing. He (tried to) lit a cigarette and tragically discovered he had reduced the lacquer to air ratio to the perfect level for a massive explosion that leveled the garage totally, killed him and threw the Henry J into the yard next door.
Since then, I NEVER take any kind of fumes-related chances.

[Mark Pruitt]

To have an explosion, you need enough concentration of the combustible material to allow it to happen. A simple vent from the outside with a small fan can and does work wonders on reducing the chances of explosion in a close shop.

Warning: Don't do as I do....as I can't be responsible for YOUR accidents but only my own. :rolleyes: ;)

Dennis,

The fumes alone can and do cause fires. Such was the case with a fire that almost took my life when I was a kid. Gasoline fumes plus open flame. I'm lucky to be alive. I would encourage you not to mess with lacquer or any other combustibles w/o following adequate safety precautions. Even using a fan for exhaust is dangerous, unless it's one of the fans designed explicitly for the purpose of moving air laden with overspray from flammables.

Mark

[Mark Pruitt]

BTW, a second thought on this..... These kinds of "Darwin-esque" acts only serve the agendas of those who wish to make things like nitrocellulose lacquer unavailable to the public. In addition to killing himself, the guy in the story did all of us a disservice--minimal, compared to the grief of his family to be sure, but a disservice nonetheless by "proving" that lacquer is "dangerous." Lacquer is not dangerous; failing to follow safety protocol is dangerous.

OK, I'll shut up and get off my soap box.....:rolleyes:

[tod evans]

another guilty lacquer sprayer here! been spraying without a booth for close to 30yrs. .02 tod

[Chip Olson]

They're finally building a new house on the lot in my neighborhood where the previous house blew up last year. Seems they were having the hardwood floors refinished in the 3rd-floor unit (of this 3-family house), and the finishers not only didn't turn off the power and gas and open all the windows like the instructions on the finish said to, but they <i>closed</i> all the windows to keep dust off the finish. Fumes built up in a stairwell and, well, boom. I think 2 of the finishers were killed instantly and the third died the next day with 3rd-degree burns over basically 100% of his body.

Then there's the house under construction behind ours, where the previous house burned down in the massive cold snap a couple years ago after some brilliant fellow tried to thaw out the frozen pipes with a blowtorch.

[Lou Morrissette]

I was living in a basement apartment a few years ago living next door to a guy who decided to turn on a gas stove to make tea while he was installing a formica top on his kitchen counter. He survived, but it sure took a long time for his hair to grow back.:rolleyes:

Lou

[Mike Ruane]

In my earlier "car" days a guy we knew was painting cars in his garage. He had just finished sparying lacquer on a nice Henry J (if you don't know, you're too young) and had opened the door and windows for a while to ventilate the joint. then he closed it up again to relax while it dried before buffing. He (tried to) lit a cigarette and tragically discovered he had reduced the lacquer to air ratio to the perfect level for a massive explosion that leveled the garage totally, killed him and threw the Henry J into the yard next door.
Since then, I NEVER take any kind of fumes-related chances.

Hearing stories like that make me thrilled to see products like this:

http://www.autoaircolors.com/

Water based, < 0.1% VOC non-toxic, and non-flammable from what I understand. No doubt something I will be playing with the next time I try a DIY paint job!

[Clarence Miller]

I have made the switch to Target Coatings EM6000 but still use a solvent based brush/wiping stain. Is a regular 20" box fan with a filter a safe ventilation alternative and will that create enough CFM to clear a 10 x 12 finish room?