Bho Disasters (PLEASE READ!)

[jump /injack]

http://helenair.com/news/local/bill...cle_ba56f785-79d8-5a15-9ef3-4c0d2d88f043.html

Billings house explosion blamed on hash oil manufacturing


The production of hash oil has been determined to be the cause of an explosion that severely wounded three men in a South Side apartment on Wednesday, according to a Billings Police Department news release.

BPD in partnership with the Billings Fire Department and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms determined it was a fuel-air explosion.

The investigation is continuing.

The explosion, in the 100 block of South 29th Street, was reported at 8:30 a.m. Three men were taken to Billings hospitals, then transferred to burn centers in Denver and Salt Lake City. They are all in critical condition.

According to the Associated Press, methods abound for making hash oil, but one common practice is to force a solvent such as butane or propane gas or liquid through leafy cannabis, a process that separates its psychoactive material from buds, leaves and stems.

After the extraction, the hash-maker then releases the gas or boils off the liquid, leaving behind marijuana's psychoactive material in a concentrated form.

Without proper ventilation, though, the gases can pool in a room, where a spark from an appliance can trigger a severe explosion, knocking buildings off their foundation in some cases.

Colorado's Legislature is considering a law to make it a felony for amateurs to make hash oil, in response to explosions and injuries resulting from amateur hash oil production. At least 30 people were injured last year in 32 butane explosions involving hash oil, according to the Rocky Mountain High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area, a state-federal enforcement program.

Two explosions last year, in Hamilton and at the University of Montana, were blamed on hash oil manufacturing.

 

[Lefthand]

Colorado already passed the law. It was signed by the governor earlier this month. It goes in effect on july 1st. It only took 45 days from introduction into the house to Bill being signed into law because of emergency safety status.

Same punishment for open blasting and closed loop extraction in a proper set up area..

 

[Lefthand]

......

 

[jump /injack]

http://www.aspentimes.com/news/16121402-113/vail-valley-man-injured-in-hash-oil-explosion

An Eagle-Vail man said a malfunctioning valve in his legal hash-oil cooking system caused an explosion Wednesday afternoon.

After two years there has been a fire and explosion with a closed loop type extraction device. You can see the device laying on the deck of his place. Broke the #1 rule of extracting in his own home. Looks like a closed loop to me, take a look at the equipment by going to URL above.

EAGLE-VAIL — Colorado’s marijuana industry has taken off with a bang — literally.

An Eagle-Vail man said a malfunctioning valve in his legal hash-oil cooking system caused an explosion Wednesday afternoon.

About two hours after the explosion, Ryan Wilhelm, 24, called the Vail Daily from the local hospital to tell his side of the story.

Wilhelm said he was outside on the back porch of his Eagle-Vail townhome when a valve failed on his closed-loop, hash-oil system. They’re designed to keep highly flammable butane gas from escaping.

“The valve popped, and I jumped back,” Wilhelm said. “When I did, the static electricity in my sweatshirt ignited it.”

Wilhelm said he was running a state-approved closed loop system, legal in Colorado.

“It’s legal as long as you’re running a closed-loop system,” Wilhelm said.

It’s not legal, Sheriff says

The closed-loop system is not legal, the Eagle County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.

“It does not matter how you’re doing it, it’s illegal,” said Jessie Mosher, public information officer with the Sheriff’s Office. “If you’re in a residential area, you’re endangering everyone around you and yourself.”

Wilhelm will be charged with reckless endangerment; criminal mischief, a Class 6 Felony; and first degree arson, a Class 3 felony.

“People don’t realize how dangerous this is, and it’s against the law. It’s a growing problem in Colorado,” Mosher said.

Burns on his exposed skin

Wilhelm was wearing shorts and a T-shirt when the explosion occurred. He said he has first degree burns on his arms and legs.

“This is a legitimate part failure,” he said. “I’m all about safety and keeping (stuff) safe when it does go wrong,” he said.

Wilhelm said he moved quickly to ensure his neighbors’ safety.

“When the flames went up, I made everything as safe as I could,” he said. “I just went into safety mode as quickly as I could.”

“It was a very minor catch, and I did everything I could to make it safe,” he said.

Big boom

The back of Dustin Tombari’s townhome backs up to a 30-foot-wide strip of land and trees between Wilhelm’s townhome complex and his.

Tombari said the explosion was so loud he thought it was in his own home.

Wilhelm dragged the burner across that open space and dropped it into green grass and mud, telling Tombari he was trying to make it “safer.”

“When he dropped it, he opened a valve and a bunch of white stuff came out,” Tombari said.

Alante Shelby, 24, moved to the area from Michigan three weeks ago, and lives in the townhome next to Wilhelm.

The cooker exploded at 12:37 p.m. Wednesday, Shelby said.

“I was downstairs sleeping when I heard a boom,” Shelby said. “It sounded like a sonic boom. I looked out and saw a bunch of smoke.”

He saw a red push broom was on fire just off the porch, right under a pine tree and in a pile of wet needles.

“It’s dangerous,” Shelby said. “He was badly burned.”

Not a makeshift cooker

Wilhelm pointed out that his was not one of the makeshift hash oil operations that cause so many explosions, such as the one last year in Avon’s Liftview Apartments that blew an 8-foot hole in the kitchen drywall.

“When they use butane, the gases gather and the danger of explosions is much higher,” Wilhelm said.

Even with a system like his, Wilhelm said it’s not accident proof

“Accidents happen, even with closed-loop systems that are well maintained,” he said.

Wilhelm had not been charged with anything by mid-afternoon Wednesday. The Eagle County Sheriff’s Office said Wednesday that Wilhelm will be charged with something, but they are still investigating the case and have not yet determined the charges.

He said while he was doing nothing illegal, and was “totally compliant” with the deputies and firefighters arrived.

“I’m sure they’re coming up with something,” he said.

As the scene was secured by Eagle County sheriff’s deputies and firefighters from the Eagle River Fire Protection District, an exhaust fan was blowing out from a bedroom with a Bob Marley flag hanging from the window. The smell of marijuana wafted out of the townhome from that bedroom door.

Second hash oil explosion in a year

Wednesday’s hash oil explosion in Eagle-Vail is the second in a year in Eagle County.

Joshua Rosenbaum, 22, was using one of those makeshift cookers when he blew an 8-foot hole in the kitchen drywall of his Liftview apartment in Avon. Rosenbaum was trying to produce hash oil, but instead produced an explosion when butane gas ignited.

Rosenbaum was home alone and no one was injured.

It’s a felony in Eagle County

Some prosecutors are charging hash cookers with felonies, while others say hash oil production is protected under a provision of the new legal pot law.

In Eagle County, District Attorney Bruce Brown said it’s a felony. He charged Rosenbaum with arson, a felony, to which Rosenbaum eventually pleaded guilty.

Rosenbaum got a deferred four-year prison sentence, which means that if he can stay out of trouble for four years, apologizes to everyone in the neighborhood, speaks to schools and youth organizations, does useful community service and keeps a full-time job, he won’t go to prison.

In addition to Wednesday’s Eagle-Vail explosion, similar explosions have hit Leadville, Frisco and Avon, said the District Attorney’s Office.

“As Coloradans, we should be setting an example for other states. Leave the hash oil distilling to the professionals,” District Attorney Bruce Brown said when Rosenbaum was arrested and charged.

Hash oil blows up

Hash oil is typically made by packing the castoff leaves and stems of pot plants into a pipe and pouring highly flammable butane through it, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration. The concoction is heated to make the potent oil, which is less expensive than buying it in stores.

The golden-colored mixture can be up to 80 percent THC, marijuana’s intoxicating chemical, and devotees say one or two drops can produce a more euphoric high than an entire joint, according to the DEA. It can also be infused into baked goods or vaporized.

 

[SkyHighLer]

Couple of points come to mind...

1) Even outside use fans! A stack of three $20 fans fans blowing directly on his outdoor setup most likely would have prevented the explosion or allowed him the time to with all diligence go into emergency control mode to handle the situation.

2) It was determined quite awhile back placing the sight glass between the extraction column and the lower valve was not safe, probably what blew, not the valve itself.

Staticide spray works! And choosing 100% cotton clothing in the first place is a no brainer.

http://www.amazon.com/ACL-Staticide-AntiStatic-Liquid-32/dp/B002WWNLVO

Guy has a good attitude in being straight up honest in his disclosure, I like that, but he obviously has multiple errors in his knowledge base.

 

[Lefthand]

Luckily for him accident happened in april and not after July 1st..

Hard to tell what malfunctioned but i seriously doubt that he pressure checked the unit with air compressor before running. I always used to check at 80psi and spray windex on each connection and valve seal before starting a new day..
Stay safe

 

[Lefthand]

Dont rely on unit holding vacuum as a way to tell it is air tight.
The vacuum might even make a temp seal that will leak once pressure hits it.

 

[jump /injack]

Dont rely on unit holding vacuum as a way to tell it is air tight.
The vacuum might even make a temp seal that will leak once pressure hits it.

Time to formulate a punch list for safety, if this was a seal failure maybe there is a time that Viton seals should be replaced after a certain time. "What can happen will happen" its one of the things counted in the laws of odds and probabilities, a change of seals and gaskets after a certain amount of usage seems appropriate considering the consequences of a butane blowout. Compared to the legal and medical costs a periodic change of seals is very cheap.
http://www.glaciertanks.com/cart.cgi?group=1049&child=3408
http://www.amazon.com/Wrangler-Riggs-Workwear-Resistant-Relaxed/dp/B006NULBIG Fire resistant clothing at Amazon.

 

[SkyHighLer]

Time to formulate a punch list for safety, if this was a seal failure maybe there is a certain time that Viton seals should be replaced after a certain time. "What can happen will happen" its one of the things counted in the laws of odds and probabilities, a change of seals and gaskets after a certain amount of usage seems appropriate considering the consequences of a butane blowout. Compared to the legal and medical costs a periodic change of seals is very cheap.
http://www.glaciertanks.com/cart.cgi?group=1049&child=3408

YOU MUST BE PREPARED FOR COMPLETE SYSTEM INTEGRITY FAILURE AT ANY TIME!!! Otherwise PLEASE don't extract with butane and propane!

"IS IT SAFE TO RUN MY BHOGART INDOORS?
The answer is the same for all closed loop extraction systems, not just the BHOgart. No, you cannot run your closed loop BHOgart indoors. The cheapest and safest environment is a well ventilated outdoor area. The only way to run a BHOgart or any other closed loop extractor safely indoors, is to run it in a lab certified for explosive gas. In addition all of our Extractors require Class 1 Division 2 room that follows all applicable local fire, building, pluming, and electrical codes."
https://bhogart.com/faqs/

This is for real gearheads only.

 

[SkyHighLer]

http://laist.com/2015/07/08/koreatown_drug_lab.php

"Koreatown Woken Up By Drug Lab Explosion
BY CARMAN TSE IN NEWS ON JUL 8, 2015 2:16 PM

Residents in Koreatown got a rude awakening this morning after a drug lab explosion rocked the packed neighborhood.
Shortly before 9 a.m., Wednesday morning, firefighters responded to explosion from an apartment on the 300 block of Ardmore Avenue that blew out windows in the unit. Nobody was injured, but authorities evacuated the surrounding buildings. One woman has been taken into custody, according to ABC 7, and the narcotics unit is on the scene now, investigating what police say was a "narcotics operation mishap." Residents have since been allowed back into their homes.
One neighbor said he wasn't surprised, telling NBC 4 that it always smelled like marijuana whenever he walked by.
In April, a fire broke out after a hash oil lab exploded in Los Feliz. The production of hash involves highly flammable solvents and can sometimes lead to such explosions."

 

[bigganjabud]

Thats it settled for me only got a few storys in

Hash will only be made from bags from now on

 

[Hashmasta-Kut]

heat press brah. totally safe, and hella potent.

 

[bigganjabud]

Yeah i hear that but my mrs wont let me near her hair straighteners anymore lol

 

[Gray Wolf]

http://www.aspentimes.com/news/16121402-113/vail-valley-man-injured-in-hash-oil-explosion

An Eagle-Vail man said a malfunctioning valve in his legal hash-oil cooking system caused an explosion Wednesday afternoon.

After two years there has been a fire and explosion with a closed loop type extraction device. You can see the device laying on the deck of his place. Broke the #1 rule of extracting in his own home. Looks like a closed loop to me, take a look at the equipment by going to URL above.

EAGLE-VAIL — Colorado’s marijuana industry has taken off with a bang — literally.

An Eagle-Vail man said a malfunctioning valve in his legal hash-oil cooking system caused an explosion Wednesday afternoon.

About two hours after the explosion, Ryan Wilhelm, 24, called the Vail Daily from the local hospital to tell his side of the story.

Wilhelm said he was outside on the back porch of his Eagle-Vail townhome when a valve failed on his closed-loop, hash-oil system. They’re designed to keep highly flammable butane gas from escaping.

“The valve popped, and I jumped back,” Wilhelm said. “When I did, the static electricity in my sweatshirt ignited it.”

Wilhelm said he was running a state-approved closed loop system, legal in Colorado.

“It’s legal as long as you’re running a closed-loop system,” Wilhelm said.

It’s not legal, Sheriff says

The closed-loop system is not legal, the Eagle County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.

“It does not matter how you’re doing it, it’s illegal,” said Jessie Mosher, public information officer with the Sheriff’s Office. “If you’re in a residential area, you’re endangering everyone around you and yourself.”

Wilhelm will be charged with reckless endangerment; criminal mischief, a Class 6 Felony; and first degree arson, a Class 3 felony.

“People don’t realize how dangerous this is, and it’s against the law. It’s a growing problem in Colorado,” Mosher said.

Burns on his exposed skin

Wilhelm was wearing shorts and a T-shirt when the explosion occurred. He said he has first degree burns on his arms and legs.

“This is a legitimate part failure,” he said. “I’m all about safety and keeping (stuff) safe when it does go wrong,” he said.

Wilhelm said he moved quickly to ensure his neighbors’ safety.

“When the flames went up, I made everything as safe as I could,” he said. “I just went into safety mode as quickly as I could.”

“It was a very minor catch, and I did everything I could to make it safe,” he said.

Big boom

The back of Dustin Tombari’s townhome backs up to a 30-foot-wide strip of land and trees between Wilhelm’s townhome complex and his.

Tombari said the explosion was so loud he thought it was in his own home.

Wilhelm dragged the burner across that open space and dropped it into green grass and mud, telling Tombari he was trying to make it “safer.”

“When he dropped it, he opened a valve and a bunch of white stuff came out,” Tombari said.

Alante Shelby, 24, moved to the area from Michigan three weeks ago, and lives in the townhome next to Wilhelm.

The cooker exploded at 12:37 p.m. Wednesday, Shelby said.

“I was downstairs sleeping when I heard a boom,” Shelby said. “It sounded like a sonic boom. I looked out and saw a bunch of smoke.”

He saw a red push broom was on fire just off the porch, right under a pine tree and in a pile of wet needles.

“It’s dangerous,” Shelby said. “He was badly burned.”

Not a makeshift cooker

Wilhelm pointed out that his was not one of the makeshift hash oil operations that cause so many explosions, such as the one last year in Avon’s Liftview Apartments that blew an 8-foot hole in the kitchen drywall.

“When they use butane, the gases gather and the danger of explosions is much higher,” Wilhelm said.

Even with a system like his, Wilhelm said it’s not accident proof

“Accidents happen, even with closed-loop systems that are well maintained,” he said.

Wilhelm had not been charged with anything by mid-afternoon Wednesday. The Eagle County Sheriff’s Office said Wednesday that Wilhelm will be charged with something, but they are still investigating the case and have not yet determined the charges.

He said while he was doing nothing illegal, and was “totally compliant” with the deputies and firefighters arrived.

“I’m sure they’re coming up with something,” he said.

As the scene was secured by Eagle County sheriff’s deputies and firefighters from the Eagle River Fire Protection District, an exhaust fan was blowing out from a bedroom with a Bob Marley flag hanging from the window. The smell of marijuana wafted out of the townhome from that bedroom door.

Second hash oil explosion in a year

Wednesday’s hash oil explosion in Eagle-Vail is the second in a year in Eagle County.

Joshua Rosenbaum, 22, was using one of those makeshift cookers when he blew an 8-foot hole in the kitchen drywall of his Liftview apartment in Avon. Rosenbaum was trying to produce hash oil, but instead produced an explosion when butane gas ignited.

Rosenbaum was home alone and no one was injured.

It’s a felony in Eagle County

Some prosecutors are charging hash cookers with felonies, while others say hash oil production is protected under a provision of the new legal pot law.

In Eagle County, District Attorney Bruce Brown said it’s a felony. He charged Rosenbaum with arson, a felony, to which Rosenbaum eventually pleaded guilty.

Rosenbaum got a deferred four-year prison sentence, which means that if he can stay out of trouble for four years, apologizes to everyone in the neighborhood, speaks to schools and youth organizations, does useful community service and keeps a full-time job, he won’t go to prison.

In addition to Wednesday’s Eagle-Vail explosion, similar explosions have hit Leadville, Frisco and Avon, said the District Attorney’s Office.

“As Coloradans, we should be setting an example for other states. Leave the hash oil distilling to the professionals,” District Attorney Bruce Brown said when Rosenbaum was arrested and charged.

Hash oil blows up

Hash oil is typically made by packing the castoff leaves and stems of pot plants into a pipe and pouring highly flammable butane through it, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration. The concoction is heated to make the potent oil, which is less expensive than buying it in stores.

The golden-colored mixture can be up to 80 percent THC, marijuana’s intoxicating chemical, and devotees say one or two drops can produce a more euphoric high than an entire joint, according to the DEA. It can also be infused into baked goods or vaporized.

As predicted, sooner or later someone was going to blow up a CLS, cause things go wrong, go wrong, go wrong........

Let's see what we can learn from his misfortune??

Starting with the basics, he was indoors.

He was in a residence. To his credit, no mention of other occupants was mentioned.

He was without adequate ventilation, where ever he was.

He wasn't wearing static free clothing.

Lastly, and a key point that I continue to harp on, look where his sight glass is!!!!!

It was locked between two valves in a fully flooded column, so the sight glass was subjected to hydraulic forces as the butane heated and expanded.

I've enlarged picture to the point of pixelation, and can't see the ruptured glass, but it breaks evenly and doesn't stand out.

What ever "popped", delivered a large volume of gas all at once, which is not how valves leak. They weep around seals.

The way tubular sight glasses leak, besides loose stay bolts, is that they rupture with a popping sound. I know of two locally that did so, and read of one on line that did, fortunately without explosions.

Glass is at its weakest in tension, which is the condition a tubular sight glass puts it in when under internal pressure.

Hydraulic pressures are not measured in psi, they are measured in ksi, making jokes of 100/150 psi sight glasses in hydraulic applications.

 

[GratefulOne]

Some please tell Mr Extractor. Sight glass ruptures and static seem to be things he does not believe happen.

 

[Lefthand]

I do not believe the sightglass was the issue, he was running room temp material and solvent.
I think he was leaking gas because he didnt pressure test unit. Pressure built, unit leaked, gas found ignition source.

 

[Gray Wolf]

I do not believe the sightglass was the issue, he was running room temp material and solvent.
I think he was leaking gas because he didnt pressure test unit. Pressure built, unit leaked, gas found ignition source.

You may or may not be right, I can't see well enough to tell for sure.

Running at room temperature is all it takes.

What was the pop? That was a lot of leaking gas.

Whether I'm wrong or not, the point stands. Installing that type sight glass at that location is asking for disaster.

 

[snake11]

Valves will go bad. Valves will leak. Lots of folks think that you buy a valve and they are good forever but this is not the case. Packing becomes loose with use and needs to be tightened. Eventually the packing will need to be replaced. I have seen new swagelok valves leak because the packing was not adjusted properly. Be careful, always look over your equipment before running and pay close attention during runs. An engineering professor that I was reading stated design everything for failure because if you run mechanical devices, mechanical failure is bound to happen. Look around your work zone and imagine the worst possible scenario and plan for that. Always wear static resistant threads too such as hemp and cotton.

 

[Gray Wolf]

Valves will go bad. Valves will leak. Lots of folks think that you buy a valve and they are good forever but this is not the case. Packing becomes loose with use and needs to be tightened. Eventually the packing will need to be replaced. I have seen new swagelok valves leak because the packing was not adjusted properly. Be careful, always look over your equipment before running and pay close attention during runs. An engineering professor that I was reading stated design everything for failure because if you run mechanical devices, mechanical failure is bound to happen. Look around your work zone and imagine the worst possible scenario and plan for that. Always wear static resistant threads too such as hemp and cotton.

Clearly the valve packing and seals are a wear item that requires regular inspection and maintenance, as do the sanitary seals, which become hard and deformed.

The other common source of leaks is the NPT threads from thermal cycling.

The other source of catastrophic failure, besides sight glasses, is clamps. Some folks have stripped the threads from the silicone bronze nuts or broken hinged clamps, from repeated over tightening.

Our failure analysis always includes not only what may/will fail, but what happens when it does and what action will be required to save the day.

"What is the worse thing that can happen? What are you going to do to prevent it from happening and what are you going to do when it does?"

Fortunately valve seals and packing are not typically a catastrophic failure, dumping huge quantities all at once.

 

[jump /injack]

"Our failure analysis always includes not only what may/will fail, but what happens when it does and what action will be required to save the day.

What is the worse thing that can happen? What are you going to do to prevent it from happening and what are you going to do when it does?"

One of the things you read about over and over is the terrible burns over the entire body sometimes, this is something that doesn't make sense. When dealing with something so explosive as butane it makes sense to dress appropriately but you still see burns on the feet [people wearing thongs], on the legs and and arms [people wearing shorts, bathing suits], there has been a lot of pictures of burns that represents something that could have been dialed down by using a modicum of intelligence, wear fire retardant clothing and shoes. Gray Wolf has developed with some help a very clever device for extraction and good safety tips, its sad that people are still winging it when the consequences are so painful and expensive. Being a contender for the #1 position in the Guinness Book isn't to smart. Dress for the explosion and a 3400 degree fireball and hope its never needed.

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]http://www.amazon.com/Wrangler-Riggs.../dp/B006NULBIG Fire resistant clothing at Amazon. [/FONT]