Watch Out! Exploding Bleach Recalled!
Here's a weird recall that you might care to know about: Fred Meyer and QFC supermarkets have recalled bottles of bleach that could potentially explode when opened, says the Seattle Times.
Everyday Living Bleach, sold exclusively by Fred Meyer and QFC, should not be returned to the store.
From Fred Meyer:
The Everyday Living Bleach involved in the recall was on the shelves beginning January 17. It includes 96 oz. bottles of the regular, citrus and mountain blend bleaches as well as 128 oz. bottles of the regular bleach.
If you purchased the product, you should put the bleach in a garbage bag, and place it in a second bag if the container looks bulged.Please don't attempt to take this item back to a store. Instead, move the item to an area where it won't cause damage and contact the manufacturer, KIK Customer Product, at 800-479-6603 ext. 656.
Please be ready to provide the UPC number, description, size and sell-by date on the bottle.
Arrangements will be made for the manufacturer to come and pick up the bagged bleach.
If the UPC number or the sell-by date cannot be viewed without touching the bottle, but was purchased after January 17, simply bag the product and call the manufacturer.
Yikes.
Fred Meyer, QFC recall bleach with potential to explode [Seattle Times]
PRODUCT RECALL: Everyday Living Bleach [Fred Meyer]
(Photo:Getty)
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Comments:
I remember when I was a cashier getting bloated bleach bottles and warning all the customers to open it away from their face. Damn saftey seals that keep pressure in.
How could they screw up something as simple as bottled bleach?
Nice. Too bad the receipt guy at Wal-Mart (re: earlier post) hadn't purchased this product instead of the shower rack...then it might have gotten really interesting!
"Nah nah, just keep that explosive on your property and you can deal with the mess. Heck no! We don't want to clean up the mes-err... endanger the safety of our employees. Don't worry, we'll keep your money for you. It'll be safe and sound in our bookkeeping dept."
KIK Customer Satisfaction Specialist: "Please provide the UPC number, description, size and sell-by date on the bottle."
"Okay, the UPC number is 100009246aaaarrrrrrgh! Oooooooooooh, holy shit! I'm blind! I'M BLIND!!!!!"
KIK Customer Satisfaction Specialist: click.
Please mail bloated bottles to:
Neverland Ranch
ATTN: Michael Jackson's Face
So where are you supposed to keep your bleach bombs while you wait for their impromptu hazmat team to come get them? IN your apartment? In the apartment main hallway? How about on collection day? Just leave it by the curb for random kiddies walking to school to come jump on?
This sounds well managed.
Not sure what would make bleach do this aside from a small amount of ammonia accidentally mixed in (making Mustard Gas).
I say screw it - take it back to the store: QFC is run by Kroger. Their website says the following:
EVERY DAY LIVING REGULAR BLEACH, 128 OZ., EVERY DAY LIVING MOUNTAIN BLEACH, 96 OZ. - affected in Fred Meyer, QFC stores.
Product may contain impurities that may cause the bottle to swell and potentially explode, causing a safety hazard. Please return the product to this store for a full refund.
Just take it back people.
Holy Chemical Burn, Batman!
Do not taunt Happy Fun Bleach.
If I were faced with a swollen bottle of bleach, I would for-the-love-of-God put on some gloves and safety glasses and either GENTLY unscrew the top, or puncture the container near the top with a long, pointy object and then unscrew the top. Then I would pour it into a lot of water. Then I would dump said water down the sink.
It just disproportionates into salt and chlorine anyway, and chlorine is what your friendly local sewage treatment plant will use to de-sewage it. So no environmental worries. Unless your sink runs into the great outdoors directly. Even if you have a septic tank, it would take a lot of bleach to harm it.
this happened to some material at work. there is a contaminant in the bleach that is casusing gas to evolve. we didnt have any explode, just slow leaks from the caps. It is unnerving to see a bulging bottle of bleach
Just got off the phone - the notification is poorly written...the true situation is you might get squirted or splashed a bit when you open the botttle (guess it's due to slight pressure in the bottle introduced during manufacturing).
If you're using the product, you've got nothing to worry about.
@Imaginary_Friend: Damn you, that was funny.
This is a pretty strange recall, what impurities would cause this? and it's a fairly dangerous thing to have explode.
@Lo-Pan: looking in my "disposal of hazardous chemicals" book: anything with a hydroxy group on it, so like starch, or alcohol, or rubbing alcohol, or cellulose (cloth, paper) in particular.
so, next time someone tries to get you to do bleach shots? don't do it.
For those who don't know what the video has to do with this, its a Japanese cartoon named Bleach
What's not reported here is that Fred Meyer sent out an e-mail several days ago to Rewards Card members informing them of the recall-- which is one of the best uses of a customer information database that I can think of!
I'd just take it out in the back and shoot at it. Exploding bleach sounds like way more fun as a target than cans.
I got this email a few days back. What I liked about it is that now the customer has to go through the trouble of calling the manufacturer and scheduling a pick-up time. And if other industries that require setting up appointments for in-home visits are any indicator (ahemComcastahem), you could be in for a lot of hassle. The retailers are like, don't look at us. You're on your own!
how can you screw up making a simple chemical like bleach
Yes, self, an exploding beach purchased at a supermarket doesn't make much sense. You better re-read that again. Ahh. much better. Well for my sanity at least. Not so much for those newly blinded.
@opsomath: On top of that chlorine will actually naturally dissipate into nothing. at least on a scale as small as a bottle of bleach.
'If you purchased the product, you should put the bleach in a garbage bag, and place it in a second bag if the container looks bulged.'
And then run, far, far away!