i hope i am posting this in the right place. i have read that boiling rocks collected from the outdoors is a good way to sterilize them... the problem is, the rocks that i am looking to collect are far to large for me to put into any contraption i have to boil them...what i am wondering is whether or not taking a blow torch to said rocks would work as far as sterilization. i would think that the heat generated would be sufficient to kill anything harmful, and through my place of employment i have easy access to a blow torch. will this work?
rock sterilization...blow torch?
- Thread starter JeffLeMay
- Start date
Just pour boiling water over them. A blow torch can leave carbon tracking on them. In the worse case it can cause shelling if there is enough moisture in the rocks.
Yeah the torch is a bad idea shelling means the rock explodes throwing little sharp hot peices into your skin it sucks i used to be a burner in the shipyard cutting steel on the ground well on top of a concrete slab and i have been shelled alot it's not fun just scrub the rock with boiling water and a toilet brush.lol
Get a trashcan and fill it up with water and a gallon of bleach. It will take care of you problems. Rinse it and then let it dry then put it in the tank on some eggcrate.
RadleyMiller;624405; said:
Too much bleach!
Two (2) cups bleach in a 50g can is plenty.
Rinse the rock several times by soaking in can.
Last rinse check chlorine level of water, should not be any higher than tap water.
Bud8Fan;624470; said:
On a VERY low temp setting.
Can we say BOOM.
If the rock has a high moisture content, steam can be created inside the rock, At the least it could crack the rock, at the other end of the scale it dented & chipped the enamel inside the oven and cracked the front glass (yes it was double layer) (I was in a hurry, what came I say).
Dr Joe
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Just scrub with hot water and let them dry in the sun.
I used to boil bleach and brine,just alot of work for nothing Imo
I used to boil bleach and brine,just alot of work for nothing Imo
Bud8Fan;624470; said:
That can have catastrophic effects. If there is any moisture within the crystallization lattices in the rock's makeup, a 600F heating could cause a sudden boil-off of the liquid. The boil-off results in a rapid expansion of the liquid that may cause the rock to explode.
Ovens and/or kilns are only safe with porous materials since any trapped moisture would have avenues of escape.