Is there a good way to wash off the contents of a ruptured AAA battery that got over clothing and shoes? I’m guessing there’s heavy-metal stuff that doesn’t quite wash off with water or detergent?
(This is kind of a need-answer-fast situation. Long story short: A car ran over a battery in a parking lot. It ruptured when it got flattened.)
I’d use Vinegar, since the contents are alkaline.
yeah some vinegar will work. you can hear it fizz as it reacts with the battery guts.
the battery guts is corrosive some, so wash it off skin.
after done fizzing a regular clothes wash should do it.
the electrolyte of run-of-the-mill alkaline batteries is potassium hydroxide (caustic potash,) so, yeah, what they said ^
Laundry detergent is alkaline, too, right, so it’s no use against an alkaline like battery contents?
And isn’t there nickel, lithium, mercury or cadmium in most batteries?
nickel isn’t hazardous, lithium is only generally in cells which state such, mercury has been out of dry cell and alkaline batteries for a long time, and cadmium has only been in nickel-cadmium rechargeable cells.
Right, but those don’t wash out in water.
An alkaline battery will have a zinc anode, manganese dioxide cathode, and use potassium hydroxide as the electrolyte. Nothing in them is terribly toxic (don’t recommend eating them though). The hydroxide is corrosive, but a little vinegar will deal with that just fine.
if you put the clothing in a washing machine tub volume of water the corrosive effect of the alkaline battery contents will be lessened by dilution. with a mildly alkaline detergent the effects will still be lessened by dilution and the fact the detergent is more acidic than the alkaline battery contents.
by spot neutralizing the alkaline battery guts with vinegar before washing you are maximizing getting rid of the corrosive effect of the alkaline battery contents.
If the battery is one the cheap “heavy-duty” non-alkaline ones, use baking soda and water instead of vinegar. BTW, the vinegar or baking soda (paste made with water) trick works great for cleaning out devices in which batteries have leaked.
A lot of what washing does is simply physically flush the stuff away. Dirt & rock isn’t soluble in water but the Mississippi sure carries away a lot of the Appalachians every year.
By and large, metals haven’t combined chemically with your clothing fibers. They’re just micro hunks sitting there caught physically in the nooks and crannies of the cloth. Plain water and agitation work fine for removing that.
Are car batteries chemically similar? I recently handled a couple car batteries which didn’t appear to be leaking or anything, but after I washed my clothes that night, my pants and shirt were both full of small holes.
Car batteries are usually lead-acid. They can leak dilute sulfuric acid, which might have been responsible for the holes in your clothing.
that battery contains a strong acid. it can leave residue on the outside of the battery which can get rubbed off on your clothes and become acidic again with moisture as you noticed.
it is best to handle that battery in a way to not contact your clothes. if it does contact your clothes then get the clothes into a large volume of water right away if not wash them.
wiping the outside of the battery with a small amount of baking soda solution can help. you don’t want to get any in the battery or to get that over other auto parts.
wearing work clothes can also help.
Wow, and still none of it got on your skin, causing skin burns? :eek:
I have gotten similar results from carrying car batteries; clothes full of holes. I don’t remember it affecting my skin, maybe some whiteish areas but no real damage. Guess battery acid really eats through cotton though.
the acid from the auto battery tends not to be very corrosive to healthy skin. you should wash it off soon but it won’t likely cause damage more than a mild first degree burn. you absolutely don’t want to get any directly or as residue in your eyes where the damage will be severe.
It was the lower part of my shirt and around the pocket area of my pants that became holy but I didn’t notice any on my skin. And thanks goodness. Given the general area, it could have harmed something important. Like the money in my pocket!