The CPSC is recalling the book Candle and Soap Making For Dummies.
The reason is that "[t]he instructions in the book for making lye combine sodium hydroxide and water in an incorrect order. This could cause the mixture to bubble over, posing a burn hazard to consumers."
Uh, yeah.
Or it might, oh, say, errupt in your face and eat out your eyes!
(Don't believe me? See some gross pictures of chemical burns.)
At first I was chuckling about the fact that a "For Dummies" book would be recalled...it just seemed a bit, I dunno, ironic...but then I was thinking that a lot of people probably don't even remember the high school chemisty lesson about not adding water to acids, much less realize that the same holds for a strong base.
Once I get to thinking about it, my safety gene kicks in and I just think about some poor slob getting hurt. The "For Dummies" books I have all seem pretty good, so I imagine that they recommend wearing goggles and taking other appropriate cautions while working with the NaOH...unless the same fact-checker or editor or sloppy writer who messed up the sodium hydroxide into the water thing messed that up too.
This is why none of my hobbies involve chemicals*. Hell, I don't even like cleaning the tub.
*EDIT: I dashed this off quickly. I mean, of course, that none of my hobbies involve exposing myself to highly hazardous chemicals...
Posted by Nic at October 23, 2003 12:10 PM | TrackBack