Lidstrom:Health & Safety:Bunsen Burner
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Basics
- Know where the closest fire extinguisher and shower is.
- Keep flammable materials more than 1 foot away.
- Before using flame, consider where fire will spread if it catches.
- flaming ethanol dripping off the counter onto your lap or your trash?
- up papers taped above your bench?
- Wear a lab coat.
- Though it will catch on fire as easily as most clothing, you will be able to rip it off more easily.
- Tie hair back if longer than shoulder length.
- Do not leave flame on unattended.
- If you turn off your flame briefly, then turn the gas back on the flame will reignite.
- Don't have turn gas back on with your body, clothes, or flammable materials nearby.
Most Common Ways to Ignite a Fire
- When sterilizing objects with ethanol + flame
- If you have a cap for your ethanol container, you can cap it to suffocate the fire.
- Take time to be careful about suffocating it: you don't want to knock it over.
- An ice bucket may melt if used to suffocate the fire.
Additional Info
- The Lidstrom lab doesn't have smoke detectors, we have sprinklers that are activated by heat
- If turned on, they will spray the whole room (not just your bench)
- The fire extinguishers release a yellow powder that is essentially ground up rock
- It is a real pain to clean up. If you have time to move nearby electronics like laptops, you can minimize damage.