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ISO Drum Exploded!! Post New Topic | Post Reply
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Paul Covert
Posted: Mar 17, 2012 02:57 AM
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ISO Drum Exploded!!
I put two drums of ISO into a house today. They have been at my shop for about a week, along with 4 others that came at the same time. Sometime after I left, one of the drums EXPLODED. When I went to evaluate the situation, the other drum was going to explode at any moment. These drums were hauled, stored and handled like every other drum I have ever had. Has anyone ever had anything like this happen before???
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Paul Covert
Posted: Mar 17, 2012 03:16 AM
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P.S. - I just got home at 2AM from cleaning up the horrid mess. I hate the spray foam business, and I wish my parents never met each other. |
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SprayFoamSupply.com
Posted: Mar 17, 2012 06:32 AM
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Were these new, unopened drums of ISO? Were they at all swollen when you brought them into the house? If there was some moisture in the drum at the time it was filled, that could cause it to explode, but if that were the case, it would have been swollen when you got it. Were they cold when you brought them into the house and sat on a radiant floor that was running too high? How long have you had them? We have handled thousands of drums and never had that happen. George |
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Caleb DeFord
Posted: Mar 20, 2012 12:05 PM
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Yo, Rowdy! What's the deal bro? Answer some questions and let us know what happened. btw, how much "explosion" are we talking about? Fireball? Mushroom cloud? Shards of metal flying through the air followed by toxic isocyanate gas? Seriously, whudup? -Foamilyman |
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Paul Covert
Posted: Mar 20, 2012 08:50 PM
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The drums were new, the seals were not disturbed. The drums were not exposed to any temp extremes, hot or cold. They had been at my shop for a week. When I put them in the house, one of them was slightly swelled, but not so much that it alarmed me. The other one was totally normal, and it really bothers me that it was going to blow if I hadn't got there when I did. Somehow, the material started generating heat. My theory is that there was moisture in them, and the process of loading them into the house mixed it in enough to cause the mess. |
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steven argus
Posted: Mar 21, 2012 12:10 AM
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"I hate the spray foam business, and I wish my parents never met each other." LMFAO!! Havn't had that one happen to me... yet. Sorry to hear of your troubles. Just wunderin... how come the barrels were loaded into the job site and not left in your rig? |
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mark moyer
Posted: Mar 21, 2012 01:45 AM
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prolly moisture,, sounds like spiked with water to get that kind of reaction,,iso reacts nicely with water,, unscruplous vendors have been known to cut iso with water i am told,, the spray foam industry is full of sckully wags with wingtips tappin and pocketbooks fillin... re sealed drums: you can buy those "caps/seals" anywhere drum supplies are sold,,,wanna few?? top up a drum...new seal,,,walla,,,wingtips... i would take a sample of the iso..hire a lab to do chemical analasys of the product... i would compare this data to the manu's data.. if not the same i would sue the pants off my supplier,,, time for some accountablity so you hate sprayfoam too???? |
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mark moyer
Posted: Mar 21, 2012 09:48 AM
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..wait a second,, who put the h20 in the drum,,,??? global humidification..yeah thats the ticket.. |
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Paul Covert
Posted: Mar 21, 2012 01:41 PM
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Guinness - on this job I am using my "spider", which is an e-20 in a tool box that can be rolled around inside a house or bldg. It is a handy set-up. |
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Caleb DeFord
Posted: Mar 21, 2012 05:04 PM
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Careful foamdue! Don't give the feds any ideas. "Global humidification" may be the excuse they use for regulating the socks off us wealthy small business owners. Like Reagan said about the liberal's government policy: "If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. If it stops moving, subsidize it." "Spider" huh? Sounds pretty nifty. So you load the drums into the tool box with the E-20 and run air lines and power cord to it from the rig? btw, who supplied your foam? What did they say about the explosion? -Foamilyman |
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Paul Covert
Posted: Mar 21, 2012 06:23 PM
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The spider is an e-20 inside a "jobbox" toolbox, along with 2 Dewalt compressors. It has 150 feet of power cord that I wire into any available panel. The unit is self-contained and has 100 feet of spray hose. It fits through a standard width door. You can see them on Central Spray Systems' website. I use Gaco foam, and they are going to replace the iso for me. Other suppliers that I used in the past never made mistakes, and if there was a problem, it was always MY FAULT... |
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mark moyer
Posted: Mar 21, 2012 11:22 PM
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..but who spiked the drums,,, you or your supplier...??? ISO does not "explode" by itself...it needs a catalyst... you can heat it in the drum closed,,shake it,,roll it,,bounce it up and down the road,,and it dont explode,,,unless you introduce a reactive catalyst...uh water will do... folks this is a real issue rowdy brings up here.. and when the foam fails in the wall system it will be "your fault"..always is,,,not the systems,,, who cut the iso??? peter??? |
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Paul Covert
Posted: Mar 22, 2012 12:57 AM
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The factory seals on the drums had not been disturbed in any way. I have no idea how moisture could get in, or why the problem didn't show itself until the drums were put into the house. |
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mark moyer
Posted: Mar 24, 2012 07:21 AM
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rowdster,,you can buy seals and tool to reseal at any drum supplier... i am not implying you spiked the drums.... screw this here we go.. get a chemical sample now get a video of you taking sample from drums(we have technology for documentation use it) lable sample on jars hire lab to do analysis of iso,,tell them you are looking specifically for water content.. (hell let the sample sit in the glass jar and it may settle out and tell you over time) once analysis is back call gaco... ask to compare data,,,they will,,,they are fine peeps...no i dont spray their stuff right now if water is apparent and you didnt spike the drum the chain of handleing should be apparrent,.,and i am confident the unscrupulous carnivor will be removed from the food chain,,, since someone in a post said you can spike iso and make more money and the lawncare guys started salivating not caring about the quality of the foam or their personal integrity: if you spike your iso with water do not close the drums,,duh iso reacts with water and it will build up preassure and explode if you close the drum... to bad these drums didnt blow in back of the semi and dribble all over the interstate on the way to rowdys house,,, would have made good press for the spf industry ,,,much like shrinking aminoplast injection foam |
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Gerry Wagoner
Posted: Apr 18, 2012 02:12 PM
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It was caused by water in the drums. Seen it happen before. |
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mason
Posted: Apr 18, 2012 03:41 PM
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Sometimes the seals and caps on the drums are not air tight and moisture can get into the drum from the outside. One way to check is to look at the underside of the cap that screws into the drum. If moisture got into the drum with the seal on, there should be some A set up in little droplets sticking to the underside of that cap. Yes, A side drums can explode, I had 2 blow up on me 30 years ago in San Antonio, It had been raining for about a month and the drums were empties that a helper sealed up with some water in it. The carbon dioxide created when the A side mixed with the water created enough pressure for the drums to explode. I always check the first drum of A for evidence of moisture, but have never seen a new drum explode, usually it just results in the A side getting crystals in it. Bad luck. |
