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  • 1.  Leaks in waste water pipes

    Posted 09-26-2025 13:20
    Hello everyone,
    I am working with an historic house museum that has an issue with fumes from the waste water pipe.  They have done some exploration and remediation, discovering a few pin holes and patching them.  They still have issues with overwhelming odors coming from as-yet-undiscovered holes in the pipe.  One possible solution for finding the holes was to set off a "smoke bomb" in the pipe (down stream) and allow the smoke to move up through the pipe to find the leaks.  It's not smoke in the typical sense, but it is a chemical reaction that mimics smoke.

    These types of smoke bombs are used a lot by plumbers.  However, I don't know what chemicals are typically used or what the possible effect might be on various collection materials.

    Has anyone had experience with this?  Does anyone know where I might find information on possible material interactions with these?

    Thank you.
    Jerry

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    Jerry L. Foust, Ph.D.


  • 2.  RE: Leaks in waste water pipes

    Posted 09-26-2025 13:24

    Hi Jerry-

    I wanted to say as a first step I'd get with the company doing the smoke bombs and ask for their MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheet) sheets. This will at least give you an an idea of the chemicals that go into the materials. 

    If any body in the community has had experiences with these feel free to share!



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    Robin Bauer Kilgo (she/her/hers)
    Connecting to Collections Care Coordinator, FAIC
    c2cc@culturalheritage.org
    National Heritage Responders WG Co-Chair
    Contract Registrar/Consultant
    rbkilgo@gmail.com
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  • 3.  RE: Leaks in waste water pipes

    Posted 09-29-2025 14:59

    Hi Jerry!

    Most smoke tubes that I've used in the past are glass ampules that you break on either end and then use a bulb to push air through it. Every time you do that "smoke" is emitted and it can be used to test air movement. Most of them are made with ethylenediamine and/or acetic acid, so they can be respiratory irritants, but I can't speak to the impact those would have on a collection, so I second Robin's point to ask for an SDS before proceeding with any product. 

    I've had the most experience using SKC and/or Draeger equipment. You can search for "ventilation smoke tubes" and do some additional research, but I can't speak to whether there are the same products used by the plumbers in question. 



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    Jessica Ricchio
    Program Leader Workforce Health and Safety
    Northwestern Medicine
    Woodstock
    United States
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