# CD-R smell? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 7, 2004, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cd-r-smell/278491 "2004-12-07T04:04:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Crandolph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7cd45c/32.png) [@Crandolph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crandolph)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cd-r-smell/278491/1 "2004-12-07T04:04:44Z")
I recently purchased a stack of 50 CD-Rs made by a major manufacturer. They have quite a strong chemical smell, much stronger than I usually associate with products of this sort; it’s something like New Car Smell gone rotten. The disks themselves work fine. It’s not bad enough to toss them, but when I open the case it’s certainly noticable. What chemical(s) cause(s) that smell, and why might this stack be especially pungent? Is it particularly dangerous to inhale? ---
**Author:** ![Chairman\_Pow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/838e76/32.png) [@Chairman\_Pow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chairman_Pow)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cd-r-smell/278491/2 "2004-12-07T04:17:38Z")
I’d like to add another question to the OP’s: someone told me that cyanide (or something that breaks down into cyanide) was used in manufacturing these and if left in a hot car/next to a radiator, they would start to melt and release their poisonous gas. Of course, if one were trying to committ suicide by CDR they’d have to have thousands of these things in a very small space, but all the same… Re: OP: plastic stuff offgasses. It’s perfectly normal and while you don’t want to work in a factory breathing this stuff, I think you’ll be fine, especially if you leave the things by a slightly opened window overnight (so long as the weather won’t warp or otherwise affect the discs). ---
**Author:** ![Fritz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c57346/32.png) [@Fritz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fritz)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cd-r-smell/278491/3 "2004-12-07T05:00:15Z")
I believe it’s the protective lacquer used - not the dye itself. Some UV-curable lacquers (used to manufacture all CDs, CD-Rs and DVDs) smell pretty nasty. The odor is very evident when the discs are freshly manufactured and immediately packaged in shrink-wrap, beehive cases, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Fritz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c57346/32.png) [@Fritz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fritz)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cd-r-smell/278491/4 "2004-12-07T05:35:30Z")
BTW, CD lacquer is not too bad if you mix with ice and orange juice… ---
**Author:** ![CynicalGabe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@CynicalGabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CynicalGabe)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 7:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cd-r-smell/278491/5 "2004-12-07T07:34:55Z")
Were they by chance Khypermedia CDRs? I have noticed that those smell particularly foul. ---
**Author:** ![daffyduck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ec9cab/32.png) [@daffyduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/daffyduck)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cd-r-smell/278491/6 "2004-12-07T16:50:04Z")
> [@Chairman Pow](#): > > I’d like to add another question to the OP’s: someone told me that cyanide (or something that breaks down into cyanide) was used in manufacturing these and if left in a hot car/next to a radiator, they would start to melt and release their poisonous gas. Of course, if one were trying to committ suicide by CDR they’d have to have thousands of these things in a very small space, but all the same… Some CD-R are made with cyanine dye or phthalocyanine dye, but the “cyan” part of the words comes from the color cyan, not from cyanide. I suspect this “someone” saw the word cyanine and made a conclusion jump to cyanide. ---
**Author:** ![Crandolph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7cd45c/32.png) [@Crandolph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crandolph)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cd-r-smell/278491/7 "2004-12-07T18:27:58Z")
> [@CynicalGabe](#): > > Were they by chance Khypermedia CDRs? I have noticed that those smell particularly foul. No… didn’t want to cast aspersions on the company, but they’re Maxell. ---
**Author:** ![Chairman\_Pow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/838e76/32.png) [@Chairman\_Pow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chairman_Pow)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cd-r-smell/278491/8 "2004-12-07T21:31:19Z")
> [@daffyduck](#): > > Some CD-R are made with cyanine dye or phthalocyanine dye, but the “cyan” part of the words comes from the color cyan, not from cyanide. I suspect this “someone” saw the word cyanine and made a conclusion jump to cyanide. Considering the source, I figured they were full of it, but I just wanted to check. Thanks.