Until today, whenever I've hear someone say that an HVAC tech came out
and added some refigerant to their central air system my immediate
reaction was to ask them, "You know, that's supposed to be a completely
sealed system, did the tech look for, find and repair a leak before
he/she added refrigerent?

This morning I was watching the Fox News channel and their medical
consultant Dr. Manny Alvarez started talking about how teen agers have
taken to filling plastic bags with what he just called "freon" from the
service ports on outdoor AC compressors. Then they go off and breath in
the gas to "get high".

Thinking about that it'd take little more than a pair of pliers to
remove a service port cap and something to push the valve down with,
leaving no sign of what they's done until they've taken enough so your
AC starts working poorly.

Dr. Alvarez warned of the serious medical dangers of breathing freon and
mentioned that in some cases it can cause death. He also said frostbite
to kid's faces has resulted from their releasing the refrigerant
directly (without a plastic bag) and trying and suck it in as its
spraying out.

I've been hearing lots of stories about the copper parts of AC equipment
being stolen for their scrap metal value, but this is the first I've
heard about this freon breathing thing.

Dr. Alvarez mentioned that locking service port protectors are available
for "about $30.00". Those might be good enough to make the kids want to
go away and look for someone else's AC system without locks.

What next I ask?

Jeff

--
Jeffry Wisnia
(W1BSV + Brass Rat '57 EE)
The speed of light is 1.8*10^12 furlongs per fortnight.

Jeff Wisnia wrote:

Until today, whenever I've hear someone say that an HVAC tech came out
and added some refigerant to their central air system my immediate
reaction was to ask them, "You know, that's supposed to be a completely
sealed system, did the tech look for, find and repair a leak before
he/she added refrigerent?

This morning I was watching the Fox News channel and their medical
consultant Dr. Manny Alvarez started talking about how teen agers have
taken to filling plastic bags with what he just called "freon" from the
service ports on outdoor AC compressors. Then they go off and breath in
the gas to "get high".

Thinking about that it'd take little more than a pair of pliers to
remove a service port cap and something to push the valve down with,
leaving no sign of what they's done until they've taken enough so your
AC starts working poorly.

Dr. Alvarez warned of the serious medical dangers of breathing freon and
mentioned that in some cases it can cause death. He also said frostbite
to kid's faces has resulted from their releasing the refrigerant
directly (without a plastic bag) and trying and suck it in as its
spraying out.

I've been hearing lots of stories about the copper parts of AC equipment
being stolen for their scrap metal value, but this is the first I've
heard about this freon breathing thing.

Dr. Alvarez mentioned that locking service port protectors are available
for "about $30.00". Those might be good enough to make the kids want to
go away and look for someone else's AC system without locks.

What next I ask?

Jeff

--
Jeffry Wisnia
(W1BSV + Brass Rat '57 EE)
The speed of light is 1.8*10^12 furlongs per fortnight.

One can only hope that the kids dumb enough to do this sort of thing
will remove themselves from the gene pool. Their parents will of course
whine up a storm and get all kinds of undeserved sympathy from some
people while they should actually be charged with the neglect that
generally leads to this kind of behavior.

Pete C.

Pete C. wrote:
....

One can only hope that the kids dumb enough to do this sort of thing
will remove themselves from the gene pool. Their parents will of
course whine up a storm and get all kinds of undeserved sympathy from
some people while they should actually be charged with the neglect
that generally leads to this kind of behavior.

Pete C.

It goes to prove that intelligence or lack of is inherited.
--
Joseph Meehan

Dia 's Muire duit

Hilarious! LIkely an offshoot of the old R12 fad. Back in
the 60's, one could buy an aerosol can of "glass frosting"
(just R12 in a can), squirt it in a bag and sniff it.
Would fairly knock you for a loop. Got fairly popular.
I got noooooooooooo idea what R22/R410a would do (and don't
ever wanna find out).

AQ

On Wed, 01 Aug 2007 15:40:35 -0400, Jeff Wisnia wrote:


Until today, whenever I've hear someone say that an HVAC tech came out
and added some refigerant to their central air system my immediate
reaction was to ask them, "You know, that's supposed to be a completely
sealed system, did the tech look for, find and repair a leak before
he/she added refrigerent?

This morning I was watching the Fox News channel and their medical
consultant Dr. Manny Alvarez started talking about how teen agers have
taken to filling plastic bags with what he just called "freon" from the
service ports on outdoor AC compressors. Then they go off and breath in
the gas to "get high".

Thinking about that it'd take little more than a pair of pliers to
remove a service port cap and something to push the valve down with,
leaving no sign of what they's done until they've taken enough so your
AC starts working poorly.

Dr. Alvarez warned of the serious medical dangers of breathing freon and
mentioned that in some cases it can cause death. He also said frostbite
to kid's faces has resulted from their releasing the refrigerant
directly (without a plastic bag) and trying and suck it in as its
spraying out.

I've been hearing lots of stories about the copper parts of AC equipment
being stolen for their scrap metal value, but this is the first I've
heard about this freon breathing thing.

Dr. Alvarez mentioned that locking service port protectors are available
for "about $30.00". Those might be good enough to make the kids want to
go away and look for someone else's AC system without locks.

What next I ask?

Jeff

"The monkey and the baboon was playing 7-up.
The monkey won the money but he scared to pick it up.
The monkey stumbled, mama.
The baboon fell.
The monkey grab the money and he run like hell!"
- from "Dirty Motherfuyer", Roosevelt Sykes, around 1935

Alphonse Q Muthafuyer wrote:

Hilarious! LIkely an offshoot of the old R12 fad. Back in
the 60's, one could buy an aerosol can of "glass frosting"
(just R12 in a can), squirt it in a bag and sniff it.
Would fairly knock you for a loop. Got fairly popular.
I got noooooooooooo idea what R22/R410a would do (and don't
ever wanna find out).

AQ

I expect they do the exact same thing, basically asphyxiate the subject.
The various "Freons" are pretty inert and indeed some are used as
propellants in medical inhalers.

Instead of stealing Freon out of people's A/Cs, if the idiot kids had a
clue they'd just shake CO2 out of soda bottles the same way. Or perhaps
just hyperventilate into a paper bag to get a CO2 buildup / O2
reduction. Of course if our schools weren't failing and managed to teach
some biology and science, the kids would understand this...

"Jeff Wisnia" wrote...
Dr. Alvarez mentioned that locking service port protectors are available
for "about $30.00". Those might be good enough to make the kids want to go
away and look for someone else's AC system without locks.

Huffing?

This has been going on for decades; I'm surprised it took "Dr. Alvarez" or
your local station this long to get around to reporting on it. Well, maybe
it was a slow news day.....

Jeff Wisnia wrote:

Dr. Alvarez mentioned that locking service port protectors are
available for "about $30.00". Those might be good enough to make the
kids want to go away and look for someone else's AC system without
locks.
What next I ask?

Being sued for an un-locked A/C unit. It's an "attractive nusiance," like an
unguarded swimming pool.

Having accidentally gotten high on paint or gasoline fumes a couple of
times, I can't believe that some people do it on purpose. It is an
awful experience! Why would anyone snort solvents or unknown
chemicals from air conditioning equipment when pot is so easy to find?

But surely this will lead to a mandate for locking caps on AC
equipment.




On Aug 1, 3:40 pm, Jeff Wisnia wrote:

This morning I was watching the Fox News channel and their medical
consultant Dr. Manny Alvarez started talking about how teen agers have
taken to filling plastic bags with what he just called "freon" from the
service ports on outdoor AC compressors. Then they go off and breath in
the gas to "get high".

Pete C. wrote:
Alphonse Q Muthafuyer wrote:

Hilarious! LIkely an offshoot of the old R12 fad. Back in
the 60's, one could buy an aerosol can of "glass frosting"
(just R12 in a can), squirt it in a bag and sniff it.
Would fairly knock you for a loop. Got fairly popular.
I got noooooooooooo idea what R22/R410a would do (and don't
ever wanna find out).

When I first read that I pictured the "glass frosting" stuff as
something used to make ordinary glass windows look like frosted glass
ones and wondered how the heck R12 could do that. (For very long at least.)

Then I woke up and realized it must have been a product used to
(temporarily) frost the rims of cocktail or beer glasses.

Jeff

--
Jeffry Wisnia
(W1BSV + Brass Rat '57 EE)
The speed of light is 1.8*10^12 furlongs per fortnight.

On Wed, 01 Aug 2007 14:52:39 -0700, The Reverend Natural Light
wrote:


Having accidentally gotten high on paint or gasoline fumes a couple of
times, I can't believe that some people do it on purpose. It is an
awful experience! Why would anyone snort solvents or unknown
chemicals from air conditioning equipment when pot is so easy to find?

Because they're stupid. (I'm not recommending pot.)

On the tv they are always telling parents to "Talk to your children
about drugs/sex/AIDS/alcohol/drinking and driving/cocaine/huffing
whatever.

Frankly, I would have been insulted if my parents thought I was so
stupid I didn't know how dangerous most of those things were, and I
think a lot of kids would be not only insulted, but would resent it
and go out of their way to prove their parents foolish.

I don't have kids but my parents' method seems a lot better to me.
For years before I had any access to those things, when they watched
the tv news, or tv dramas, or read the paper, and they saw someone get
in trouble with any of those things, they would say outloud, How
stupid can that guy be. What if he killed someone? How much does he
think it takes to kill his own brains. What is she going to do with a
baby and no husband?

They didn't address these comments to me, so I wasn't insulted.

And it was clear that they really believed what they said, and weren't
just being more cautious than necessary parents. Or trying to ruin my
fun.

They also didn't have to either wait until the last minute, wait
longer than the last minute (like after I was already 15 and getting
drunk at parties) or spend a lot of time wondering when it was too
early and when it would be too late.

mm wrote:
On Wed, 01 Aug 2007 14:52:39 -0700, The Reverend Natural Light
wrote:


Having accidentally gotten high on paint or gasoline fumes a couple
of times, I can't believe that some people do it on purpose. It is
an awful experience! Why would anyone snort solvents or unknown
chemicals from air conditioning equipment when pot is so easy to
find?

Because they're stupid. (I'm not recommending pot.)

On the tv they are always telling parents to "Talk to your children
about drugs/sex/AIDS/alcohol/drinking and driving/cocaine/huffing
whatever.

Frankly, I would have been insulted if my parents thought I was so
stupid I didn't know how dangerous most of those things were, and I
think a lot of kids would be not only insulted, but would resent it
and go out of their way to prove their parents foolish.

I don't have kids but my parents' method seems a lot better to me.
For years before I had any access to those things, when they watched
the tv news, or tv dramas, or read the paper, and they saw someone get
in trouble with any of those things, they would say outloud, How
stupid can that guy be. What if he killed someone? How much does he
think it takes to kill his own brains. What is she going to do with a
baby and no husband?

They didn't address these comments to me, so I wasn't insulted.

And it was clear that they really believed what they said, and weren't
just being more cautious than necessary parents. Or trying to ruin my
fun.

They also didn't have to either wait until the last minute, wait
longer than the last minute (like after I was already 15 and getting
drunk at parties) or spend a lot of time wondering when it was too
early and when it would be too late.

If there isn't a news report, tv drama, paper or other media around with the
"right" warning story when the kid happens to be around - it is a parents'
obligation to let their child know about the dangers that are out there. To
assume my kids are too smart for this or that is not something I'm willing
to do. I don't believe it is an insult to their intelligence to inform them
of dangerous practices - if they do know about whatever it is, great, it
doesn't hurt to hear it twice. If they don't know, it's an education. They
already know I don't think they are stupid. But, they also agree that many
times they just plain don't know what they don't know - and they can learn
from others' experience (that belief fades between for a period between 16
and 21 in my experience ;-)).

I agree you can dissuade by implication of stupidity where the opportunity
is available, but where it is not, better safe than sorry.

Case in point - the recent fad huffing propellant out of those key board
cleaner sprays. Sounds like same thing as this a/c stuff with same effects -
except some of these kids got frostbitten tongues, etc. Some died, some had
major lung/tissue damage. Some probably just got high and moved on. BUT - I
talked to my 15 year old about it *just in case* he knew someone who was
doing it who might not be totally aware of the risk. A "new" fad often seems
safer than the old "bad" things.

I also let my kids know that it is not okay with me if they do x, y or z -
not because I'm p***ing in their wheaties, but because I love them. As they
get older they can make their own decisions, but until then, it is my job
as a parent to do what I am able to do to keep them safe and out of trouble.

My .02 - Laurie

"Huffing" has been going on for decades, as was previously mentioned.
Refrigerant, spray paint, you name it and they have probably tried it.
FWIW, I think those "keyboard cleaners", and other similar sprays are
134A refrigerant. You can't vent it when working on car a/c, but they
can use it for that-- go figure. A few years ago I bought 2 of those
Ronco glass frosters at a second hand (junk) shop for $3 each--two full
cans of R12 for $6. They were like regular aerosol cans, where you
pushed down on a stem in the top to dispense.My side puncture can tap
fit just fine. I used one to recharge a friend's freezer after fixing a
leak they caused -- broke the cap tube while moving the box. Stlll
working AFAIK. Still have the other can. Larry

On Wed, 01 Aug 2007 18:05:11 -0400, Jeff Wisnia
wrote:

Pete C. wrote:
Alphonse Q Muthafuyer wrote:

Hilarious! LIkely an offshoot of the old R12 fad. Back in
the 60's, one could buy an aerosol can of "glass frosting"
(just R12 in a can), squirt it in a bag and sniff it.
Would fairly knock you for a loop. Got fairly popular.
I got noooooooooooo idea what R22/R410a would do (and don't
ever wanna find out).

When I first read that I pictured the "glass frosting" stuff as
something used to make ordinary glass windows look like frosted glass
ones and wondered how the heck R12 could do that. (For very long at least.)

Then I woke up and realized it must have been a product used to
(temporarily) frost the rims of cocktail or beer glasses.

When you're high on R12, you can't tell the difference.

Jeff

"Jeff Wisnia" wrote in message
...

I've been hearing lots of stories about the copper parts of AC equipment
being stolen for their scrap metal value, but this is the first I've
heard about this freon breathing thing.


Been going on for years...

"Alphonse Q Muthafuyer" wrote in message
...
Hilarious! LIkely an offshoot of the old R12 fad. Back in
the 60's, one could buy an aerosol can of "glass frosting"
(just R12 in a can), squirt it in a bag and sniff it.
Would fairly knock you for a loop. Got fairly popular.
I got noooooooooooo idea what R22/R410a would do (and don't
ever wanna find out).


It displaces oxygen, just like a lot of things.

"Laurie" wrote in message
news:c89si.1428$BQ.793@trnddc03...

I also let my kids know that it is not okay with me if they do x, y or z -
not because I'm p***ing in their wheaties, but because I love them. As
they
get older they can make their own decisions, but until then, it is my job
as a parent to do what I am able to do to keep them safe and out of
trouble.


Like the wise man said.... you can't fix it AFTER they did something where
they didn't know the outcome.

Talking to your children BEFORE is just a wise thing to do... just like
under age pregnancies. You can't undo it after they're pregnant, but you can
prevent it by talking to them!

On Wed, 01 Aug 2007 15:40:35 -0400, Jeff Wisnia
wrote:


Until today, whenever I've hear someone say that an HVAC tech came out
and added some refigerant to their central air system my immediate
reaction was to ask them, "You know, that's supposed to be a completely
sealed system, did the tech look for, find and repair a leak before
he/she added refrigerent?

This morning I was watching the Fox News channel and their medical
consultant Dr. Manny Alvarez started talking about how teen agers have
taken to filling plastic bags with what he just called "freon" from the
service ports on outdoor AC compressors. Then they go off and breath in
the gas to "get high".

Thinking about that it'd take little more than a pair of pliers to
remove a service port cap and something to push the valve down with,
leaving no sign of what they's done until they've taken enough so your
AC starts working poorly.

Dr. Alvarez warned of the serious medical dangers of breathing freon and
mentioned that in some cases it can cause death. He also said frostbite
to kid's faces has resulted from their releasing the refrigerant
directly (without a plastic bag) and trying and suck it in as its
spraying out.

I've been hearing lots of stories about the copper parts of AC equipment
being stolen for their scrap metal value, but this is the first I've
heard about this freon breathing thing.

Dr. Alvarez mentioned that locking service port protectors are available
for "about $30.00". Those might be good enough to make the kids want to
go away and look for someone else's AC system without locks.

What next I ask?

Jeff

Why is it a sick teenager who won't take a prescription pill that will
make them well, will happily consume an unknown concoction from
someone they don't know? And pay for the privilege?

--Andy Asberry--
------Texas-----

On Thu, 02 Aug 2007 13:54:54 -0500, Andy Asberry
wrote:



Why is it a sick teenager who won't take a prescription pill that will
make them well, will happily consume an unknown concoction from
someone they don't know? And pay for the privilege?

And why is it that the same people who worry about healthy food and
food additives seem to be the same ones who use recreational drugs the
most.

And I who give not a thought to food additives** have never taken and
would never take any illegal drug, and avoid prescription drugs too..


**Until the recent food problems. Now I give a teeny thought.

--Andy Asberry--
------Texas-----

Jeff Wisnia writes:

This morning I was watching the Fox News channel and their medical
consultant Dr. Manny Alvarez started talking about how teen agers have
taken to filling plastic bags with what he just called "freon" from the
service ports on outdoor AC compressors. Then they go off and breath in
the gas to "get high".

"Huffing" has no doubt really happened at some point in history, but I
expect this is rare enough to be considered an urban legend.

R134a is an inert narcotic gas you can buy cheaply and legally at Walmart.
Great for humanely euthanizing small pets.

"Richard J Kinch" wrote...
R134a is an inert narcotic gas you can buy cheaply and legally at Walmart.
Great for humanely euthanizing small pets.

In the legal sense Tetrafluoroethane isn't a narcotic.

Meat Plow writes:

The gas displaces oxygen so basically the high comes from starving the
brain for oxygen.

No, it is narcotic even if supplied with a proper concentration of O2.

"Richard J Kinch" wrote in message
. ..
Meat Plow writes:

The gas displaces oxygen so basically the high comes from starving the
brain for oxygen.

No, it is narcotic even if supplied with a proper concentration of O2.

Sorry, that is incorrect. The United States legal definition of narcotics
refers to opium, opium derivatives, and their synthetic substitutes. Some
illegal drugs that are classified as "narcotics" in the U.S. Controlled
Substances Act (CSA), are technically not narcotics.

Travis Jordan writes:

Sorry, that is incorrect. The United States legal definition of
narcotics refers to opium, opium derivatives, and their synthetic
substitutes.

I use the adjective "narcotic", you the noun "narcotic(s)" in law. Two
different meanings. My use is correct. Look at any MSDS he

http://www.google.com/search?q=r134a+narcotic

E.g., "in low concentrations may cause narcotic effects".

Now stop your quibbling.

On Aug 1, 3:40 pm, Jeff Wisnia wrote:
Until today, whenever I've hear someone say that an HVAC tech came out
and added some refigerant to their central air system my immediate
reaction was to ask them, "You know, that's supposed to be a completely
sealed system, did the tech look for, find and repair a leak before
he/she added refrigerent?

This morning I was watching the Fox News channel and their medical
consultant Dr. Manny Alvarez started talking about how teen agers have
taken to filling plastic bags with what he just called "freon" from the
service ports on outdoor AC compressors. Then they go off and breath in
the gas to "get high".

Thinking about that it'd take little more than a pair of pliers to
remove a service port cap and something to push the valve down with,
leaving no sign of what they's done until they've taken enough so your
AC starts working poorly.

Dr. Alvarez warned of the serious medical dangers of breathing freon and
mentioned that in some cases it can cause death. He also said frostbite
to kid's faces has resulted from their releasing the refrigerant
directly (without a plastic bag) and trying and suck it in as its
spraying out.

I've been hearing lots of stories about the copper parts of AC equipment
being stolen for their scrap metal value, but this is the first I've
heard about this freon breathing thing.

Dr. Alvarez mentioned that locking service port protectors are available
for "about $30.00". Those might be good enough to make the kids want to
go away and look for someone else's AC system without locks.

What next I ask?

Jeff

--
Jeffry Wisnia
(W1BSV + Brass Rat '57 EE)
The speed of light is 1.8*10^12 furlongs per fortnight.

If you want top check out the locking cap go to the website
http://www.noventcaps.com/

wrote:
On Aug 1, 3:40 pm, Jeff Wisnia wrote:
Until today, whenever I've hear someone say that an HVAC tech came
out and added some refigerant to their central air system my
immediate reaction was to ask them, "You know, that's supposed to be
a completely sealed system, did the tech look for, find and repair a
leak before he/she added refrigerent?

This morning I was watching the Fox News channel and their medical
consultant Dr. Manny Alvarez started talking about how teen agers
have taken to filling plastic bags with what he just called "freon"
from the service ports on outdoor AC compressors. Then they go off
and breath in the gas to "get high".

Thinking about that it'd take little more than a pair of pliers to
remove a service port cap and something to push the valve down with,
leaving no sign of what they's done until they've taken enough so
your AC starts working poorly.

Dr. Alvarez warned of the serious medical dangers of breathing freon
and mentioned that in some cases it can cause death. He also said
frostbite to kid's faces has resulted from their releasing the
refrigerant directly (without a plastic bag) and trying and suck it
in as its spraying out.

I've been hearing lots of stories about the copper parts of AC
equipment being stolen for their scrap metal value, but this is the
first I've heard about this freon breathing thing.

Dr. Alvarez mentioned that locking service port protectors are
available for "about $30.00". Those might be good enough to make the
kids want to go away and look for someone else's AC system without
locks.

What next I ask?

Jeff

--
Jeffry Wisnia
(W1BSV + Brass Rat '57 EE)
The speed of light is 1.8*10^12 furlongs per fortnight.

If you want top check out the locking cap go to the website
http://www.noventcaps.com/

I learned that when someone breathes in the refrigerant they also breath in
the oil that is mnixed with the refrigerant and that coats their lungs.

--
Moe Jones
HVAC Service Technician
Energy Equalizers Inc.
Houston, Texas
www.EnergyEqualizers.com