Sunday, June 22, 2008

Blow Off Testing a Smack's Booster Electrolyzer Container Lid

I wanted to check the safety of the Smack's Booster Electrolyzer Container when it is assembled with plumbers silicone grease as a gas seal inside the top of the container. I'm a bit worried that it may cause the top to seize instead of pop off.

So what I did was devise a test to inject compressed air into the container to see what it does.


Here are the test parts.

  • 4" PVC Cleanout Cap Square Head
  • Metal Tubeless Tire Valve



And here is the completed assembly. It also required a 7/16" drill bit in order to get the correct diameter hole for the valve.

After several tests with compressed air, I determined that it takes very little pressure for the top to pop loose, which relieved my concern that it may cause an explosion.



Of course I just had to record the event for posterity.

UPDATE: 30 July 2008

I had a person ask about this setup and it made me realize that the article could be taken out of context. The test was to determine if I could perform experiments using plumber's silicone grease to seal the top without leaking while allowing for a blow off should a backflash occur. The answer is; the plumber's silicone grease can provide a seal, but it seems to be very vulnerable to leakage which will affect productivity and test results. As for the possibility of a backflash, I've had that happen once already and it put a nice dent in the ceiling of my garage.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Have yiu tested this cocept under actual working conditions? If so was their any leakage of hydroxy gas.

Charlie Ehler said...

This setup is for experimentation purposes, and yes, leakage can be a problem.

I'm developing a more permanent solution that involves a pressure relief valve and hope to have it tested in the near future.

When that happens I'll update this article with a link to the "recommended" setup article.

Charlie