Oil painting - disposing of hadardous materials
sherry
but I am concerned about how to dispose of the used [odorless] turp, rags,
etc. Please share your methods with me.
Thanks,
Sherry
Charles Eicher
You should always dispose of the residue of painting in the approved
manner for toxics, that is, check with your local city garbage collection
folks to ask when they collect toxics. Most cities have semiannual toxics
collection, usually free (well, if you don't count your taxes)...
The key concept is to reduce the amount of toxics, the biggest volume is
usually the tupentine. You can reduce the amount of turpentine you use by
recycling it between sessions. Here's how to do it:
Get TWO coffee cans, one with a tight fitting plastic lid. On your first
session, pour a good amount, about 3-4 inches deep, into can #1. Don't
skimp and pour out only an inch, or it won't settle out later. When you're
done using it, it will be quite dirty of course. Pour it into can #2, and
cover it with the lid. Wipe out can #1 so it wil be clean when you next
use it. Let can #2 set still for a day or two, until your next painting
session. When you're ready to paint, the pigments should have settled.
Carefully, without sloshing the turps, pour off the clean turps from can
#2 back into can #1, stop pouring just before the settled pigments at the
bottom of the can start to rise. You now have clean (well, pretty clean)
turps in can #1, and some sludge left in can #2. Repeat the process when
you're done, keep reusing can #2 as the sludge can, settling the turps
there..
2 problems might occur with this process.
1. Sometimes the pigment is really persistent and won't settle well.
Solution: Just let it sit longer, maybe a week or so if necessary. Yellow
seems to settle poorly.
2. Eventually the sludge gets so thick that it gets hard to settle. Let
the sludge can sit for a week or so, then pour off all the clear turps you
can. You could dispose of the wet sludge with the local toxics collection
facility, or you could dry the sludge.. Let the sludge can sit open and
evaporate off the sludge until its dry, which of course, pollutes the air
somewhat, which is a BAD thing.. so try to get all the turps out that you
can. Then, you can dispose of the small volume of dry waste in the
approved method for toxics (which varies depending on your locality)..
Oh yeah.. Be careful with oily rags, they can catch fire spontaneously.
Don't let them pile up in the corner or something, keep them in a sealed
bag (to deprive any fire of oxygen) while waiting for toxics disposal.
Realize that oil painting is an inherently polluting activity, the turps
pollutes the air while you're using it, and the waste pollutes the
landfills and groundwater when you dispose of it. Be sensible, use your
materials economically, and be kind to Mother Earth.
--
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Charles Eicher
cei...@inav.net
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Patricia Powers / Grey Dun Studio
>I'm just beginning to experiment with oils - bought first supplies yesterday -
>but I am concerned about how to dispose of the used [odorless] turp, rags,
>etc. Please share your methods with me.
I've cut my use of (and exposure to) turps to nearly none by using
paint removing soaps both for brushes & hands. The pigments will go
down some drain, of course. The various soaps (I prefer the solid
green hand bars for everything) can be found in catalogs & stores.
Some folks are keeping brushes soft between sessions by dunking in
mineral oil. I can't vouch for the effectiveness or compatability, but
I've tried it and it seems a bit messy but adequate....
-*-
Patricia Powers Grey Dun Studio
gre...@taconic.net