[ARC5] Cleaning Capacitor Oil Leakage

[Kenneth G. Gordon]

On 27 Oct 2012 at 18:52, Richard Knoppow wrote:

>      What mainly concerns me is the oil. The wax or potting 
> compound has to be removed enough to get the new caps in but 
> its pretty soft.  The oil is toxic and I am not sure how to 
> deal with it safely.

As several of us have mentioned, the small amount of PCBs in those caps (IFF in fact it IS 
PCB) is certainly not going to be dangerous in our situation.

I investigated this at some length back when I was still working at the University of Idaho. I 
had some PCB filled capacitors and other such devices.

I was told that 1) if they weren't leaking, they were perfectly safe to use, and 2) if they WERE 
leaking, such a small quantity was not dangerous, but if I wanted to take care of it, put it in a 
ziplock bag and put it in the trash.

Even the damned EPA doesn't care unless you have at least a MINIMUM of 10 gallons of the 
stuff, and even then, they aren't particularly concerned, Anything LESS THAN 10 gallons 
does not concern them in the least.

Don't worry about it. Wear nitrile gloves (as John told you) put the stuff in a ziplock and toss 
it.

Ken