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This topic comprises 3 pages: 1 2 3
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Author
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Topic: disposing of xenons?
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Paul G. Thompson
The Weenie Man
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Posts: 4718
From: Mount Vernon WA USA
Registered: Nov 2000
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posted 03-10-2002 11:09 PM
There are several ways of disposing them. I install the protectors, place the bulb with its protector in an extremely thick cardboard box slightly bigger than the bulb istelf, tape the box securely with duct tape, and toss the box containing the bulb down an unused stair case or out the booth window. (with nobody under or near the window. Make sure the "coast is clear" before you toss them) Do one bulb at a time, and use a different box each time. Don't hit the box with a hammer.....the hammer could break the box, and glass fragments will fly out.
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Aaron Sisemore
Flaming Ribs beat Reeses Peanut Butter Cups any day!
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Posts: 3061
From: Rockwall TX USA
Registered: Sep 1999
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posted 03-11-2002 01:02 AM
Basically I use the same method as Paul and Joe. Place the bulb in its box (preferably without the hard plastic protective cover, (if its an ORC/PerkinElmer, you can leave the flimsy worthless vinyl wrap on it))Then take and tape the box so that it doesn't open itself and toss it up and away from you. If there is a loud POP then its broken, if no pop, carefully shake the box listening for shards. If the bulb didn't break after that (I have had a Chinese bulb once that required pitching unboxed against a wall to get it to break ) In most cases the box will take all of the blast with little to no damage (Especially the ORC/PerkinElmer boxes-Osram and Christie boxes usually have some minor damage to them after absorbing an xenon explosion) Then simply throw the box into the trash. -Aaron
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Leo Enticknap
Film God
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Posts: 7474
From: Loma Linda, CA
Registered: Jul 2000
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posted 03-11-2002 02:23 AM
The reseller I used to buy xenons from always put an instruction sheet in the packaging stating that used lamps should be returned to them for disposal.I never really liked that idea. One of the riskiest times in a xenon's life must surely be during shipping. OK, the polystyrene wrappers will absorb a certain amount of shock but the way some postmen chuck parcels around I'm convinced that one or two must blow up. By shipping the lamp twice, you're doubling that risk. I suspect that the real purpose of that sheet was to cover the reseller's ass against any claims arising from someone attempting to dispose of the lamp themselves and causing an injury. One suggestion for disposing of a xenon, though: If Brad and Joe don't manage to win the best documentary Oscar for 'Booth Training II' and want to have a go at next year's awards, a video of an exploding xenon would make an excellent training resource for chief projectionists to push home the point to trainees that xenon safety has to be taken seriously. I don't know how you'd video it or induce the explosion, though. The only way I can think of is to replace one lamphouse panel with a pane of very thick perspex, put polarising and UV filters on the camcorder, strike the lamp, retire to a very safe distance, i.e. another room (taking care not to look into the lamp, of course), and then increase the current till it blows. Of course this would take quite some organising and the downside is that this would risk writing off some expensive gear, so I can understand if no-one is exactly enthusiastic about the idea.
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Joe Redifer
You need a beating today
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Posts: 12859
From: Denver, Colorado
Registered: May 99
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posted 03-11-2002 02:40 AM
Paul doesn't like to throw the bulbs down on the booth floor because it scares the dog. Of course this raises questions:1). Are you referring to the "dog" as a real dog or just a lazy projectionist? 2). If it is a real dog, what is it doing in the booth? Sure, Ian may have his cat sleep on the platter decks, but you're better than him, right? I mean, who isn't? Dogs != Clean. 3). If you are referring to a lazy projectionist, wouldn't half the fun be scaring the crap out of him/her? I'd throw the box as close to that projectionist as safely possible just to be amused by the reaction! Jeff, you didn't happen to get a 3D picture of your sliced finger, did you? That must have been some cut. 25 stitches is A LOT of stitches! Aaron, your new picture makes you look like a ghost! A happy ghost with beer. Lemme guess... flash camera? Leo, I had an exploding xenon in Booth Training I. Two, in fact.
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Brad Miller
Administrator
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Posts: 17775
From: Plano, TX (36.2 miles NW of Rockwall)
Registered: May 99
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posted 03-11-2002 04:01 AM
Actually, a video "how to dispose of a xenon bulb" has been in the works for awhile now, but I need to find a bulb manufacturer that can send me some of those dummy bulbs like were on display at ShoWest for safety reasons. Anyone care to donate some fake bulbs? In the meantime, Jim Ziegler's method is the safest.
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Jonathan Worthing
Master Film Handler
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Posts: 384
From: Hereford, UK
Registered: Apr 2001
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posted 03-11-2002 04:12 AM
I find the best way to dispose of xenon lamps is to cut a small hole in the box just enough to expose the end cap. Insert a small steel rod. Rap the lot in a dust sheet & hit the rod with a hammer.
I have recently disposed of a lode of 4 kW using this method. The good thing about this method is 1/ the lamp 99 out of 100 will degas with the first hit. The second hit will usually smash the glass. 2/ The safety jacket around the lamp will contain any explosion & the box & dust sheet will contain any glass dust. 3/ when the lamp has been broken you can seal the hole in the box & dispose of it safely. It is a bit long winded but works & is safe. The most important thing is to be safe. IF IN DOUBT DO NOT DO IT.
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Leo Enticknap
Film God
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Posts: 7474
From: Loma Linda, CA
Registered: Jul 2000
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posted 03-11-2002 04:15 AM
What I had in mind was a full-on, no cuts continuous shot of a real lamp being struck, burning for a little while and then exploding. I'm sure the sight of it would be enough to convince anyone that xenon lamps are things which need to be treated with great respect. With any luck, the majority of projectionists will never experience an actual explosion. I didn't until almost a decade after I first worked in a booth, and during training I had to take the chief's word for it that these things could kill me if I didn't take the necessary precautions. I'm not trying to suggest that I didn't believe her, but seeing a film or a video of an actual explosion would have pushed the message home very effectively.By the same token, the National Film and Television Archive show This Film is Dangerous, a 1940s instructional film which includes shots of 2,000 foot reels of nitrate on fire, to all newly hired archivists as part of their induction process. What I had in mind was something similar only with xenon lamps. Obviously this would not be straightforward to produce. Perhaps a lamp manufacturer could be persuaded to support such a video...
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