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#1
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Mystery Leftover Material - Please Help Identify
I found a large unlabeled bucket of (leftover?) material in my in-laws'
basement. Nobody seems to remember what it is. It might even be there when they moved into the place. The stuff is light grey, granular, gravel-like, with a grain size of about 0.5 mm to 3 mm. When I soaked a sample in hot water for several minutes, the grains disintegrated and the sample turned into a dark grey, muddy mixture. At first, I thought it was some kind of fine gravel, but gravel doesn't disintegrate in water. (Does it?) If we can't figure out what it is, and what it can be reused for, it'll probably end up in a landfill somewhere. Hate to see that happen. Does anyone have a guess what the material might be based on the description? TIA |
#2
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Mystery Leftover Material - Please Help Identify
A. Learner wrote:
I found a large unlabeled bucket of (leftover?) material in my in-laws' basement. Nobody seems to remember what it is. It might even be there when they moved into the place. The stuff is light grey, granular, gravel-like, with a grain size of about 0.5 mm to 3 mm. When I soaked a sample in hot water for several minutes, the grains disintegrated and the sample turned into a dark grey, muddy mixture. At first, I thought it was some kind of fine gravel, but gravel doesn't disintegrate in water. (Does it?) If we can't figure out what it is, and what it can be reused for, it'll probably end up in a landfill somewhere. Hate to see that happen. Does anyone have a guess what the material might be based on the description? TIA My guess is cement that is no longer good. -- Joseph Meehan Dia 's Muire duit |
#3
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Mystery Leftover Material - Please Help Identify
On Sat, 12 May 2007 12:50:02 -0400, "Joseph Meehan"
graced this newsgroup with: A. Learner wrote: I found a large unlabeled bucket of (leftover?) material in my in-laws' basement. Nobody seems to remember what it is. It might even be there when they moved into the place. The stuff is light grey, granular, gravel-like, with a grain size of about 0.5 mm to 3 mm. When I soaked a sample in hot water for several minutes, the grains disintegrated and the sample turned into a dark grey, muddy mixture. At first, I thought it was some kind of fine gravel, but gravel doesn't disintegrate in water. (Does it?) If we can't figure out what it is, and what it can be reused for, it'll probably end up in a landfill somewhere. Hate to see that happen. Does anyone have a guess what the material might be based on the description? TIA My guess is cement that is no longer good. or mortar |
#4
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Mystery Leftover Material - Please Help Identify
On May 12, 12:33 pm, "A. Learner" a.learner@earth wrote:
I found a large unlabeled bucket of (leftover?) material in my in-laws' basement. Nobody seems to remember what it is. It might even be there when they moved into the place. The stuff is light grey, granular, gravel-like, with a grain size of about 0.5 mm to 3 mm. When I soaked a sample in hot water for several minutes, the grains disintegrated and the sample turned into a dark grey, muddy mixture. At first, I thought it was some kind of fine gravel, but gravel doesn't disintegrate in water. (Does it?) If we can't figure out what it is, and what it can be reused for, it'll probably end up in a landfill somewhere. Hate to see that happen. Does anyone have a guess what the material might be based on the description? TIA or kitty litter |
#5
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Mystery Leftover Material - Please Help Identify
"Joseph Meehan" wrote in message ... A. Learner wrote: I found a large unlabeled bucket of (leftover?) material in my in-laws' basement. Nobody seems to remember what it is. It might even be there when they moved into the place. The stuff is light grey, granular, gravel-like, with a grain size of about 0.5 mm to 3 mm. When I soaked a sample in hot water for several minutes, the grains disintegrated and the sample turned into a dark grey, muddy mixture. At first, I thought it was some kind of fine gravel, but gravel doesn't disintegrate in water. (Does it?) If we can't figure out what it is, and what it can be reused for, it'll probably end up in a landfill somewhere. Hate to see that happen. Does anyone have a guess what the material might be based on the description? TIA My guess is cement that is no longer good. Sounds about right- are there any fenceposts, bird feeders, mailboxes, clotheslines, etc., set in cement, on the property? Not uncommon for frugal people to use half a sack of sackcrete or similar, and try to store the rest. It seldom works, since it sucks moisture from the air. I'd just dig a hole in the backyard and bury it. Not likely to hurt anything. aem sends... |
#6
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Mystery Leftover Material - Please Help Identify
A. Learner wrote:
I found a large unlabeled bucket of (leftover?) material in my in-laws' basement. Nobody seems to remember what it is. It might even be there when they moved into the place. The stuff is light grey, granular, gravel-like, with a grain size of about 0.5 mm to 3 mm. When I soaked a sample in hot water for several minutes, the grains disintegrated and the sample turned into a dark grey, muddy mixture. At first, I thought it was some kind of fine gravel, but gravel doesn't disintegrate in water. (Does it?) If we can't figure out what it is, and what it can be reused for, it'll probably end up in a landfill somewhere. Hate to see that happen. Does anyone have a guess what the material might be based on the description? TIA That's toilet cleaner. Just place it in the toilet, let stand for 15 minutes, then flush. |
#7
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Mystery Leftover Material - Please Help Identify
On May 12, 11:33 am, "A. Learner" a.learner@earth wrote:
I found a large unlabeled bucket of (leftover?) material in my in-laws' basement. Nobody seems to remember what it is. It might even be there when they moved into the place. The stuff is light grey, granular, gravel-like, with a grain size of about 0.5 mm to 3 mm. When I soaked a sample in hot water for several minutes, the grains disintegrated and the sample turned into a dark grey, muddy mixture. At first, I thought it was some kind of fine gravel, but gravel doesn't disintegrate in water. (Does it?) If we can't figure out what it is, and what it can be reused for, it'll probably end up in a landfill somewhere. Hate to see that happen. Does anyone have a guess what the material might be based on the description? TIA Oilsorb - akin to kitty litter. Funny story - We bought an investment property with a large cardboard drum marked as some nasty cyanide compound. I was stressing out about how to dispose of it properly, when someone else working there recognized that it was Oilsorb. The former owner of the property worked at a chemical supply house, and had brought home drums for storing things in the garage. :-) JK |
#8
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Mystery Leftover Material - Please Help Identify
"Big_Jake" wrote in message ups.com... On May 12, 11:33 am, "A. Learner" a.learner@earth wrote: I found a large unlabeled bucket of (leftover?) material in my in-laws' basement. Nobody seems to remember what it is. It might even be there when they moved into the place. The stuff is light grey, granular, gravel-like, with a grain size of about 0.5 mm to 3 mm. When I soaked a sample in hot water for several minutes, the grains disintegrated and the sample turned into a dark grey, muddy mixture. At first, I thought it was some kind of fine gravel, but gravel doesn't disintegrate in water. (Does it?) If we can't figure out what it is, and what it can be reused for, it'll probably end up in a landfill somewhere. Hate to see that happen. Does anyone have a guess what the material might be based on the description? TIA Oilsorb - akin to kitty litter. Funny story - We bought an investment property with a large cardboard drum marked as some nasty cyanide compound. I was stressing out about how to dispose of it properly, when someone else working there recognized that it was Oilsorb. The former owner of the property worked at a chemical supply house, and had brought home drums for storing things in the garage. Chuckle. DoD used to sell empty 'triple rinsed' 55 gallon drums, with 'property of DoD' markings, serial numbers, contract numbers, etc., stenciled on them. They started turning up full of HazMat at Superfund sites, and guess who EPA came after to pay for the cleanup? DoD does NOT sell empty drums any more. They crush, them, and sell for scrap metal. Crushing costs more than the metal value.They consider it cheap insurance. Your tax dollars at play, etc. I blame Congress, for allowing EPA to disregard legal transfer of ownership, and go after the deep pockets. Yeah, the taxpayers end up paying for the cleanup either way, but all those lawyers and all that paperwork suck up a lot of cash that could be better spent on the guys in the moon suits. aem sends.... |
#9
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Mystery Leftover Material - Please Help Identify
On May 12, 9:51 pm, Big_Jake wrote:
On May 12, 11:33 am, "A. Learner" a.learner@earth wrote: I found a large unlabeled bucket of (leftover?) material in my in-laws' basement. Nobody seems to remember what it is. It might even be there when they moved into the place. The stuff is light grey, granular, gravel-like, with a grain size of about 0.5 mm to 3 mm. When I soaked a sample in hot water for several minutes, the grains disintegrated and the sample turned into a dark grey, muddy mixture. At first, I thought it was some kind of fine gravel, but gravel doesn't disintegrate in water. (Does it?) If we can't figure out what it is, and what it can be reused for, it'll probably end up in a landfill somewhere. Hate to see that happen. Does anyone have a guess what the material might be based on the description? TIA Oilsorb - akin to kitty litter. Funny story - We bought an investment property with a large cardboard drum marked as some nasty cyanide compound. I was stressing out about how to dispose of it properly, when someone else working there recognized that it was Oilsorb. The former owner of the property worked at a chemical supply house, and had brought home drums for storing things in the garage. :-) JK FYI, industrial cyanide is normally a white crystaline form (granuals or briquettes). |
#10
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Mystery Leftover Material - Please Help Identify
In article l%l1i.131$Gm.99@trnddc04, a.learner@earth (A. Learner)
says... Does anyone have a guess what the material might be based on the description? Fertilizer? -- For email, replace firstnamelastinitial with my first name and last initial. |
#11
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Mystery Leftover Material - Please Help Identify
Sounds like stone dust (also called decomposed granite)... it's a type
of sand used for underlaying brick sidewalks, patios, and the like. Were any put in there in recent memory? When you dump wanter on stone dust, it semi-dissolves, semi- hardens..... On May 12, 12:33 pm, "A. Learner" a.learner@earth wrote: I found a large unlabeled bucket of (leftover?) material in my in-laws' basement. Nobody seems to remember what it is. It might even be there when they moved into the place. The stuff is light grey, granular, gravel-like, with a grain size of about 0.5 mm to 3 mm. When I soaked a sample in hot water for several minutes, the grains disintegrated and the sample turned into a dark grey, muddy mixture. At first, I thought it was some kind of fine gravel, but gravel doesn't disintegrate in water. (Does it?) If we can't figure out what it is, and what it can be reused for, it'll probably end up in a landfill somewhere. Hate to see that happen. Does anyone have a guess what the material might be based on the description? TIA |
#12
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Mystery Leftover Material - Please Help Identify
On May 14, 8:34 am, Larry Caldwell
wrote: In article l%l1i.131$Gm.99@trnddc04, a.learner@earth (A. Learner) says... Does anyone have a guess what the material might be based on the description? Fertilizer? We have a wiener... -- |
#13
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Mystery Leftover Material - Please Help Identify
A. Learner wrote:
I found a large unlabeled bucket of (leftover?) material in my in-laws' basement. Nobody seems to remember what it is. It might even be there when they moved into the place. The stuff is light grey, granular, gravel-like, with a grain size of about 0.5 mm to 3 mm. When I soaked a sample in hot water for several minutes, the grains disintegrated and the sample turned into a dark grey, muddy mixture. Thanks to everyone who tried to help. It seems that the best theories a cement, mortar, and stone dust. (Judging from how dense the material is, cat litter and fertilizer don't seem to be it). Is there a simple way to tell apart, say, cement and stone dust? |
#14
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Mystery Leftover Material - Please Help Identify
In article dB92i.9164$yy6.3066@trnddc05,
"A. Learner" a.learner@earth wrote: A. Learner wrote: I found a large unlabeled bucket of (leftover?) material in my in-laws' basement. Nobody seems to remember what it is. It might even be there when they moved into the place. The stuff is light grey, granular, gravel-like, with a grain size of about 0.5 mm to 3 mm. When I soaked a sample in hot water for several minutes, the grains disintegrated and the sample turned into a dark grey, muddy mixture. Thanks to everyone who tried to help. It seems that the best theories a cement, mortar, and stone dust. (Judging from how dense the material is, cat litter and fertilizer don't seem to be it). Is there a simple way to tell apart, say, cement and stone dust? Decomposed granite ("stone dust", which looks more or less like coarse sand, when mixed with water and tamped down firmly, will dry to form a fairly hard surface. But it will soften again once it gets wet. Cement (or concrete, which contains cement) should harden and stay hard, although as mentioned in another thread, old cement may not harden. Decomposed granite won't dissolve in water, though, so when you say it "disintegrates" in water, if you mean dissolve, then it isn't DG. Maybe it's ground bones. (aka human "ashes") |
#15
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Mystery Leftover Material - Please Help Identify
Smitty Two wrote:
Decomposed granite ("stone dust", which looks more or less like coarse sand, when mixed with water and tamped down firmly, will dry to form a fairly hard surface. But it will soften again once it gets wet. Cement (or concrete, which contains cement) should harden and stay hard, although as mentioned in another thread, old cement may not harden. Decomposed granite won't dissolve in water, though, so when you say it "disintegrates" in water, if you mean dissolve, then it isn't DG. When I said "disintegrated", I meant that the grains broke down (in hot water) into fine particles to form a darker, muddy paste. I don't think they dissolved. |
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