transfer pump for 1 gallon jug is safest?

[924T]

Greetings, all!

As it gets slowly closer to springtime, when I'll finally be able to do some recovery and refining, I've been
poring over safety considerations.

It dawned on me last night that I really don't want to be pouring HCl, H2SO4 or Nitric from a gallon jug
into smaller containers through a funnel, because I don't have a very steady hand.

So, does anybody know if there's a transfer pump sized to fit 1 gallon jugs/bottles?

I did search the forum: safe way to pour from 1 gallon jug, safe pour HCl, etc., and didn't spot anything.

I suppose that if there's not a transfer pump that small, then I could use a Turkey baster to extract maybe
1/3 of the acid, and would then be able to pour the rest out without it 'chugging'.

I'm definitely open to hearing about a good, safe way to perform acid transfer to smaller containers.

Cheers,

Mike

 

[jonn]

Those would be called " Peristaltic" , they come in many sizes. The smallest and most accurate would be called "Dosing".

 

[rickbb]

You could also use the vacuum pump method, the solution never goes through the pump.

 

[Smack]

I use a plastic hand transfer pump. Tractor supply will have them by the kerosene heaters.

 

[goldsilverpro]

Greetings, all!

As it gets slowly closer to springtime, when I'll finally be able to do some recovery and refining, I've been
poring over safety considerations.

It dawned on me last night that I really don't want to be pouring HCl, H2SO4 or Nitric from a gallon jug
into smaller containers through a funnel, because I don't have a very steady hand.

So, does anybody know if there's a transfer pump sized to fit 1 gallon jugs/bottles?

I did search the forum: safe way to pour from 1 gallon jug, safe pour HCl, etc., and didn't spot anything.

I suppose that if there's not a transfer pump that small, then I could use a Turkey baster to extract maybe
1/3 of the acid, and would then be able to pour the rest out without it 'chugging'.

I'm definitely open to hearing about a good, safe way to perform acid transfer to smaller containers.

Cheers,

Mike

Are these jugs glass or plastic? Glass jugs with those little finger holes are hard to handle for anyone. With a plastic chemical jug that has a handle that you can put your whole hand into, the only transferring I might do is to pour half into a second Jug. That way, the jugs are lighter and much easier to handle. Use a big (say, 6") plastic funnel. You can stack some bricks around the jug you're pouring into to keep it stable. When using the acid, pour some out of the jug into a fair sized beaker (say, 600ml) and then use that to make additions to whatever you're working on. Any unused acid can then be poured back into the jug with a funnel. Large funnels and beakers are big targets and they make for safer pouring. Much safer than trying to transfer the acid to small bottles, no matter what technique you use. Store the jugs in lidded buckets or in large lidded rectangular plastic containers, like those sold inexpensively at Walmart.

 

[924T]

smack,

I haven't owned a kerosene heater in over 20 years, so I'd forgotten all about those hand pumps-----
thanks for the tip!

Plus, they're cheap (er, affordable), and I know Farm and Fleet has them.

Cheers,

Mike

 

[924T]

GSP,

Your idea of stacking bricks around the receiving container is something that I wouldn't have thought of.

The combination of bricks and a large funnel looks to be the solution I was hoping for, from the point of
view that a funnel is easier to clean out than a pump would be.

My main concern is having a controlled pour, which I can't do with just one hand on a full source jug,
and I certainly don't want to be sloshing concentrated acid all over the place (or on myself).

The HCl I have is in a plastic jug; the Nitric I'm looking at ordering in from ebay is in plastic jugs,
or from the Dudadiesel company, who ships their Nitric in glass bottles, and their shipping costs appear to be
more reasonable than from ebay.

Many thanks,

Cheers,

Mike

 

[goldsilverpro]

Mike,

Pouring one handed from a full gallon jug is difficult for me also, especially with sulfuric, which is about twice as heavy as water. Instead, I most always do it two-handed and put the palm of my other hand on the bottom of the jug with my fingers curled up around the back edge of the jug. I'm right handed. When using only one hand (only on a partially full jug), I grip the handle (which is facing me) with my right hand and pour away from me. When using 2 hands (much safer), I grip the handle (which is turned to the left) with my left hand and use my right hand on the bottom. Thus, the right hand on the bottom provides most of the lifting and the left hand on the handle provides the guidance. I do it the same way with glass jugs (always) except I put my left index finger through the hole. Wear gloves and a face mask, of course. The jugs and your gloves must be dry or they can slip - sulfuric is especially slippery. Always pour away from you. Usually, those funnels tend to flop around a bit when sitting level in a jug. Before pouring, lean the funnel in the jug towards you as far as it will go. It will be sitting at an angle but it will be much more stable than when the funnel is level and flopping around when you pour into it. Put the receiving jug in a big shallow plastic tray in case of spills. Practice with water until you have a technique that is perfectly stable.

To get better support for the funnel, you could get an inexpensive ring stand and a 4" ring support that will stabilize a 6" funnel. You can get smaller or larger rings for smaller or larger funnels. Adjust the ring so the funnel tip is all the way into the jug and you shouldn't need bricks. Just make sure the base of the stand is large enough to hold the jug. The one in the link (5" x 8") should be OK. For larger containers, like a bucket, you can turn the ring 180 degrees, so it's facing the back, and put something quite heavy on the stand base to keep it from tilting. I sometimes used a sandbag for this.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/5-X-8-CAST-IRON-Laboratory-Stand-4-Support-Ring-Sturdy-Lab-Ring-Stand-/171009805925

 

[924T]

GSP,

I've got bad wrists from way too much computer work over a long period of time, so I literally couldn't
pour acid from 1 gallon jugs single handed, if I wanted to.

So, I vastly appreciate your time and trouble spent to go into detail about how to perform such a
seemingly simple, yet potentially dangerous acid transfer, safely.

Bricks I've got, but I'm going to need a ring stand sooner rather than later, so I think I'm going to
go ahead and buy one from the link you posted and give that approach a try.

I do like the idea of practicing with water-----yet another thing I wouldn't have thought of.

I've got a 1 gallon jug of HCl that I bought about 2 years ago that has been sitting in my garage,
summer and winter. I noticed a few days ago that the white plastic jug isn't white anymore, kind
of a very light beige, so I suspect the HCl is beginning to degrade the polymers, which is what
propelled me to begin to think it through (and ask for advice on the forum) about transferring the acid.

Now that I'm tuned to that wavelength, I've identified some other jugs (H2SO4, etc.) that I really
need to isolate and store in fail-safe plastic tubs or buckets. My objective is to get that accomplished
by this weekend, and achieve some peace of mind by knowing that I'm doing the right thing, the right way.

Thanks for sharing your expertise,

Cheers,

Mike

 

[Digitaria]

Maybe these type of cannisters with a tap would be useful?
Also - I saw a pic online, somewhere but can't remember where? Basically a guy was pouring acid through a neat device. He cut a hole in a table top, and put in his funnel and below the funnel was collecting vessel, which could be lowered or raised, as required. I thought it looked a lot safer, than the funnel holder as pictured further up, in this thread.

 

[nickvc]

It all depends on the plastics used, you can normally buy acid in 5 litre containers which I then, using good gloves, pour into plastic beakers with spouts ready for pouring into whatever processs I'm using.
If you use concentrated sulphuric be very careful, next to HF I consider it the most dangerous we normally encounter or discuss, it's extremely water hungry and as we are over 90% water the damage is nasty and quick.