how do you all dispose of Ferric Chloride?

[petemoore]

We here are probably just a drop in the bucket.
  Aren't All drops in all buckets just 'other' drops in the bucket, if taken one at a time?
  Is the same is true for a drop in the eye?
  Those questions are harsh, but so is F.C.
  Markm, or anyone who believes in F, I mean B ucket theory...How big is 'the bucket' ?
 
 

[Dirk_Hendrik]

Especcially since all those bucket drops probably contaminate more than those few companies who dump their waste irresponsibly.

[petemoore]

  Hate to be a nose rubber, but who's going to clean that Schtuff up...nobody?
  WAYYY Easier to not 'dispose' of it improperly...WAYYYYY WAYYYY WAYYY X100X easier.

[Hiwatt25]

I just finished neutralizing the Ferric Chloride I used for the board I just posted about.  God I love arm and hammer.  Is there anything that stuff won't do?  You can clean silver, brush your teeth and neutralize deadly chemicals with it.  I poured the baking soda in sloooooowly and sure enough, I ended up with what looked like a very bad, very thick marinara sauce. 

I originally come from Seattle where everyone is an earth nut and it makes me feel good to know my hobby isn't going to kill any indigenous fish or wildlife or....me.  Thanks for the tip.

[Seljer]

you only used it for one board?  you can save the stuff and reuse it for a couple more before its all used up

[gez]

Or a lot more if you don't mind each board taking longer than the last.

[MetalGod]

Thanks for all the replies.  I'm really happy that this thread has at least caused a few people to consider how they dispose of this stuff.

[markm]

Here's my spent FC.

[Hiwatt25]

Crap!  Oh well, I'll know next time.  That stuff gets down right unpleasant when it's finally dry and crumbly. 

[Dave_B]

  Isn't there some 'precision cut' dremel that could cut traces...

Sort of.  Some people are building CNC machines for PCB's.  Here's one of many examples on the 'net.  http://cq.cx/pcb-router.pl For people on dial-up, the page has a lot of images.  This photo will give you an idea.

[petemoore]

  Well I'm feeling a little better about this subject.
  I'd feel great if I knew none of this stuff got dumped.
  It appears many take the "Extra Kudos" Environmental Preservation steps to PCB production.
  Kind of a toxic subject, I wish I hadn't stepped in it.
  ...And got a bit activist when jumping on Markm about 'drop in the bucket' ...please accept my apologies...it appears your'e taking the time and dealing with the toxic waste...KUDOS !!!
  None of this entered into the water supply is the message I'd like to remain pristine.
 

[markm]

No need to apologize to me at all.
Unfortunately, what I do with this hobby I generate more waste than perhaps the average person but, I handle it properly as well.

[GibsonGM]

Aww, don't feel bad guys, LOL!  I'm a little green, but I was working FOR companies that pollute, keeping them in compliance. Saw a lot of 'negative externalities'...and my company was very selective on what they 'saw'.  One thing I learned...there's always a down-side when we use chemicals.  FeCl is no worse than mineral spirits or muriatic acid over the long haul, and the amt. of copper taken from a board isn't huge.   I'm more pointing towards the property damage end of things than health.  The health risk is immediate and decreases over time...the copper build-up, iron and cl components accumulate over time.
 
So, if you would be ok to paint something out in your yard, you have the environmental skills to etch boards, lol.  Just take Mr. Hammer's advice, use the baking soda, and don't dump it on the ground!    A couple of phone calls might locate a good place to take it, or just dry it up & in the trash it goes.  Photographers have similar problems, on a larger scale (they use silver, very bad!), and manage to get by...
Good topic, worth talking about 

[sfr]

In my area, there's a big truck that drives to towns in the county on various days of the month and picks up hazardous waste for free.  Things like old paint, used auto fluids, cleaning chemicals, all sorts of stuff, and takes care of it for you.   All you need to do is make sure it's in a decent container and properly labelled.  I believe there's a limit of how much you can bring, to try and keep businesses from taking advantage of the free disposal, but it's convenient.  They also take hazardous chemicals at several of the waste disposal sites, although there is a small fee.  (Depending on the quantity.  For the amount I bring, they often don't bother to charge me - they're mostly just happy that it's not getting dumped down a drain.)

I had never heard of any of this stuff at all until I called up the fine folks at the dump, who directed me to the county waste district, and asked them "what can I do with this?" they where more than happy to point me in the right directions, and gave me several options.  I'm sure there are similar situations in many places.

[RLBJR65]

You need to find out  how that truck disposes of those chemicals. I used to work at a machine shop where we rebuilt engines. The owner was paying a disposal company to pick up the used oil, solvent etc. Years later he found out that the stuff was being shipped in tanker trucks to somewhere in NewJersey where it was diluted with sea water to a legal parts per million mixture then dumped in to the Atlantic!!!! All totally legal but not very environmentally friendly.

[petemoore]

In my area, there's a big truck that drives to towns in the county on various days of the month and picks up hazardous waste for free.
  Great idea...I wish we had that around here.
  I worked as a mechanic, once every two weeks or so, about 50 gallons of hydraulic jack oil [for the lift] would be 'added', because of a leaky cylinder in the jack...where did the other 50 gallons go? Anti-Freeze drained into the drain instead of into the recycle container...etc. Lots Of Environmentally Unfriendly acitivities went on there, I asked if the Jacks' seal could be repaired, citing that it's probably cheaper to just fix the thing than to frequently reload it with new hydraulic oil [as well as making the lift safe again, it would get to bouncing the front end of the car up/down...]...it got fixed 3 days later, before I had to mention informing the EPA. I don't think the manager liked it and I was gone 3 weeks after that...it's hard to hold people 'in charge' responsible, especially when they don't do it themselves, often you have to 'become the antagonist' first..getting them to admit they fight to pollute without the influence getting turned into 'fightin' words' is difficult.
  In the early days of oil exploration in Ohio [1970's- 80's] Brine dumping was common, sick people, cows, and polluted streams got people mad. Dumpers caught got hammered down hard, and many dumpers got put out of business as a result, the other result was the environment, cows and people were allowed to become healthy again. It is hard to watch every stream all day and night, indefinitely...
 

[Pushtone]

Great topic. I'm very concerned about all the etching going on around here and no talk about best practices.

I pour it back into the container it comes in. When it's spent the container is marked as "USED".

I contacted a recycle. Nice folks. They offered to take it for no charge as I generate a small amount compared to their reg customers.
I plan on dropping off several small containers when I get the chance. It's about an 1.5 hour drive.

[Mark Hammer]

1) The number of sincere and conscientious responses from people who inquired about safe disposal is gratifying.

2) Safe disposal by municipal hazmat folks iscommendable, but far better to render the hazardous materials NONhazardous and make their job easier.  The "baking soda solution" (NOT my idea, incidentally, just something I read about somewhere a while back) permits an otherwise difficult substance to become benign and as treatable a waste product as your coffee grounds and poop.

3) Note that a number of other things around your house are also made from copper that can be etched by ferric chloride.  Most notably, the plumbing you flush it down!  So, even if you cared not a whit for the future, drinking water, and subsequent generations, the potential plumbing bills arising from irresponsible use of ferric chloride can be substantial.  That alone is reason enough to sate its hunger for copper by filling it up on sodium bicarbonate.


QUESTION:  I've never worked with any of the alternate etchants.  What sorts of disposal problems do they present, and what (if any) are preferable methods for safe disposal?

[RLBJR65]

I worked as a mechanic, once every two weeks or so, about 50 gallons of hydraulic jack oil [for the lift] would be 'added', because of a leaky cylinder in the jack...where did the other 50 gallons go?

Pete I think everyone of those darn old lifts leaked! At least every one that I ever used. Yuck! One of the worst things I ever did was getting down in the pit to help remove one for repair. Some of the nastiest slimy smelly goop you have ever seen down there. I'm sure a lot of the oil was leaching into the ground to. BTW the owner of that lift didn't decide to fix it until a brand new pickup got bounced off and landed on to its side. He didn't give a rats behind about the environmental issues. Actually neither did I back then, to young and dumb. Good for you for taking a stand!

QUESTION:  I've never worked with any of the alternate etchants.  What sorts of disposal problems do they present, and what (if any) are preferable methods for safe disposal?

Mark thats a very good question! I was going to pose that question awhile back since I have never used anything else either. I got about half way through the posts here concerning etchants and then got side tracked:( Lazy? A.D.D.? C.R.S? don't know which. Anyway my intention was to gather as much info as possible about other etchants that are out there, have a list with safety concerns, ease of use, mixing, pros and cons, safe / proper disposal etc. I was thinking something that could be put in the WIKI or FAQ page for all to use.

[Austin73]

Great topic chaps will bare this in mind if i ever get round to making pcb's! ha ha But my god the CNC route is a bit sledgehammer cracking the nut kinda thing don't you think!

Aus