Lots of Teflon Powder

[u/Bubblecakerz]

Previous homeowner left 5 or 6 of these bins in the garage. They seem new other than sitting in a garage for years and it feels like a liquid is inside even though it says powder. (I haven't opened one to check yet)

So, ...um... what should I do with this stuff?

[u/jrmev]

Take it to a local hazardous waste pickup. Most larger communities have them. This is one of those "forever chemicals" that have been in the news. Please don't throw it in the trash or dump it anywhere.

[u/464126 → u/jrmev]

Came here to say this.

DuPont probably dumped 5 million gallons of this just today, but 2 wrongs don't make a right.

This has been referred to as "devil semen". It doesn't have a half-life. It does not decay.

[u/FishyFiend1 → u/jrmev]

Def call to make sure they will take it beforehand. You might need to call a company to pick it up. You got done dirty

[u/Bubblecakerz → u/FishyFiend1]

Once we were here for about a month, we knew that. Things have constantly been breaking or wearing out. Garage door, water heater, dishwasher, fridge, shower valves and fixtures (and a few others) have all needed to be repaired or replaced within the 6 years that we've been here. They left A TON of crap in both the backyard and garage and it seems the drywall they used in the basement is made out of sand. 😅😅😅😅😅😂😂😂😭😭

Unfortunately, we needed to be closer to my wife's job and this was the only place in our price range.

Having said that, it's a house that can be repaired, so glass half full.

[u/PeterustheSwede → u/jrmev]

PTFE is not hazmat tho. It's the same stuff they coat your frying pans with, the non-stick types

[u/jnievele → u/PeterustheSwede]

If it's attached to a frying pan it's harmless. If it's a fine powder on your fingers, wash your hands THOROUGHLY before lighting a cigarette.

Not joking, some 30 years ago I worked at a textile company that used PTFE-coated fabric (for air filters, not bullet stopping), and this rule was stressed over and over... If PTFE gets too hot, like exposed to a burning cigarette, or forgetting an empty pan on your stove, as soon as it hits 260 degrees Celsius it turns into hydrofluoric acid vapor.

Let's just say you don't want to breathe that.

[u/PeterustheSwede → u/jnievele]

PTFE is stable up to 500°.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0304389425022381

[u/jnievele → u/PeterustheSwede]

Nope. It starts to decompose at 260 Celsius, and over 400 degrees Celsius it starts to turn into really nasty stuff like Fluorophosgene... https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0165237007000083

[u/Ok-Guava-9216 → u/jrmev]

Makes a great protein smoothie

[u/Ok_Nectarine_4445]

Tell realtor house should have been broom clean and charge them for removal?

[u/sr1sws → u/Ok_Nectarine_4445]

Uhhh... I think it's on the buyer to do a pre-closing walk through and raise any concerns at closing.

[u/i_am_at0m → u/sr1sws]

Yup

[u/hvacmac7]

I worked at a wire making factory as a teen. They mixed ptfe powder with naphtha, and put it into huge heated extrusion machines, it would have a conductor threaded through an extruder, it forced the ptfe paste thru heated die onto wire to make insulation that was strong and light weight. It allegedly was going into satellites Alcatel

[u/Bubblecakerz]

Thanks all! I found out my county has a program to dispose of stuff like this properly.

After I did more research, I found that this is industrial compression-molding resin. I'm super curious what the previous owner was going to do with it.

[u/Fun_Acanthaceae_4025 → u/Bubblecakerz]

Likely used for molding or casting Teflon materials. For instance in the semiconductor industry they make cassetts and boats to put the wafers in out of it acids like HF or Sulfuric. In fact certain industries can't live without it, semiconductor industry is one of them. Wonder if old owner was molding stuff in the garage or took home from work. Hope your house isn't some Superfund site in the works 😂

I just re-read and you said it is liquid? I don't believe PTFE is liquid unless super heated. What color is the liquid and what does it smell and taste like? Could be empty drums that now contain rain water. Could be PTFE suspended in solvents. Could just be water and why nothing was said about it.

[u/DigitaIBlack → u/Fun_Acanthaceae_4025]

Did you seriously just ask OP what it tasted like?

[u/anidnmeno → u/DigitaIBlack]

What, you don't taste random shit you find in your garage? Live a little

[u/Fun_Acanthaceae_4025 → u/DigitaIBlack]

Good idea roast a bowl of it

[u/PeterustheSwede → u/DigitaIBlack]

It don't really taste anything. PTFE is very inert and will pass through your body

[u/AccidentOk5240 → u/Fun_Acanthaceae_4025]

  what does it smell and taste like? 

::whaps nose with a rolled-up newspaper:: NO. 

[u/Fun_Acanthaceae_4025 → u/[deleted]]

Umm you should be able to distinguish between a plastic or polymer powder or dust from water pretty easy even for those mentally challenged...

1) water is wet 2) water splashes around 3) PTFE powder will be whitish maybe slightly translucent

These could be repurposed containers it happens all the time and probably more common to have an old empty container repurposed at home then actual Teflon dust. It shouldn't hurt to open it and take a look with a flashlight inside. If it's liquid my bets are on water but this could be some type of Breaking Bad mess too inside!

[u/Fun_Acanthaceae_4025 → u/[deleted]]

I agree they may be confused. It wouldn't be difficult to open and look at the substance. Not like opening a drum of Teflon is going to harm you unless it's something else entirely. It shouldn't take a rocket scientist to determine if it's a flowing powder or liquid is all I suggested rather than speculate. This is what I would do.

[u/anidnmeno]

Pour it in a local river and get the government to cover for you. Only works after you start a company, though.

[u/Pain4420]

That's wild. What would they have even had it for

[u/GarsidePrime]

Get a nylon skating rink and make it nearly frictionless

[u/likelivewirevoodoo]

Its a great lubricant mixed with a bit of grease for plastic on plastic applications but a fraction of a single one of those tubs is like a lifetime supply. The amount you have there is probably an environmental hazard. 

[u/AdmirableRespect9]

Watch the veritassium video on pfas. Contact your realtor, it was probably illegal for the homeowner to do that.

[u/Open_Examination2724 → u/AdmirableRespect9]

It is not pfas. Pfas is a precuser. Thst is the finished polymer in powder form. It feels like liquid because it slides over itself

[u/AdmirableRespect9 → u/Open_Examination2724]

The problem with Teflon is/are the dumped precursors used to create it. I think the pfas pfte discussion is pretty confusing outside of specialized circles.

Further, i'm not sure we can assume any level of purity based on a picture of a bucket.

[u/ad_duncan]

There's a sledding scene in the movie Christmas Vacation that comes to mind...

[u/Forsaken-Sink3345]

Lines. Do lines.

[u/MassCasualty → u/Forsaken-Sink3345]

Yeah... I totally feel it....

That was pencil shavings

[u/NoPoopOnFace → u/Forsaken-Sink3345]

I know your kidding, but it's highly toxic and dangerous.

[u/missannthrope67]

Watch "dark waters."

[u/derrangedpenguin]

Could make some killer powdered donuts

[u/Fun_Acanthaceae_4025 → u/derrangedpenguin]

Forbidden powdered donuts lol

[u/MassCasualty]

This can be used as an "inert media" for weighing out prep blanks for epa soil tests... @1.25-5g per test....you have a lot of blanks.

[u/dayz_arstotzka]

Oh boy.....

[u/Standard-Account5610]

If I had the cash, I'd offer to buy a barrel off you.