[Milsurplus] Transformers...

[Richard Brunner]

This PCB in transformers scare is vastly overdone.  Askarel (PCB in 
transformers) has only one advantage over oil; it will not support 
combustion.  Askarel was also much more expensive than oil, and was only 
used in big transformers intended to be used indoors or in mines, where 
combustibility is a serious concern.  Thus, we are unlikely to encounter an 
askarel-filled transformer.  Regular transformer oil is merely a highly 
refined mineral oil, and will do you no harm unless you ingest it, (not 
recommended) in which case you will spend much time in the bathroom.  So, 
the next time, tell him, "No, Mr. Chicken Little, the sky is not falling, 
and that is most probably not an Askarel-filled transformer."

Richard Brunner, AA1P