What is that smell ... - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: Joule Thief
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: April 01, 2015, 04:48:01 am
content: that smell I call the "Harbor Freight import" smell. Everytime I open a package from Harbor freight, there is this indescribable odor, mainly present on rubberized products. EPDM bungee cords, rubber duster bulbs, air hoses, always that smell.The smell will dissipate after weeks of exposure outside the packaging but can become quiet noticeable in a small enclosed area. My question is if there a way to remove the smell quickly from these products. I purchased several sets of rubber feet for project cases and bam.... there it is, that smell again.Any ideas?

author: marshallh
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 01, 2015, 05:11:18 am
content: Outgassing of the petroleum based products, I dont know any way to stop it, just needs time and heat to accelerate the process.

author: iampoor
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 01, 2015, 05:32:04 am
content: "ooouuuuuuoooouuuuuuu that smellll......cant you smell that smelll...." O0

author: KJDS
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 01, 2015, 05:34:04 am
content: It's the smell of the stagnant water that's sloshing around in the bottom of the sea container.

author: pickle9000
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 01, 2015, 06:01:57 am
content: I'm trying very hard to restrain myself.

author: pickle9000
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 01, 2015, 06:03:09 am
content: Are you sure it's coming from the package?

author: Joule Thief
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: April 01, 2015, 07:07:12 am
content: a wise guy eh?https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=yscaDkzHqek

author: Fraser
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 01, 2015, 07:51:42 am
content: I don't know about Harbour Freights specific 'smell' but I can say that my pleasure senses are atuned to the smell of new electronicsWhen you get that new 'toy' and first open the box....that lovely aromour that tells you its brand new and shiny, just waiting to be played with. New cars also have the 'new' smell and you can even buy a spray can of polish that has a similar smell to prolong the joy of new car ownershipAurora

author: pickle9000
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 01, 2015, 08:05:35 am
content: Quote from: Joule Thief on April 01, 2015, 07:07:12 amI prefer the term jocular.Although I'm told in person I'm quite intimidating.

author: Joule Thief
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: April 01, 2015, 11:34:28 am
content: No worries, your comment gave me the only good laugh I had last night!

author: ModemHead
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 01, 2015, 12:25:23 pm
content: I bought one of those really cheap PCB holders mentioned in another thread recently. When I opened the package, I said to myself "Hmmm... that smells just like Harbor Freight." The device is all metal, except for some little stick-on feet. A little bit of localized sniffing reveals that the feet are indeed the source of the smell.I think it's psychological conditioning. I now have an overwhelming urge to go buy cheap flashlights, batteries, and little red multimeter-like toys.

author: xrunner
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 01, 2015, 12:57:50 pm
content: Most things have their own "smell". Example - my next door neighbor. He's 85 and his house is chock full ofjunkcollectibles. So much so that in two of the bedrooms you can't go into them. At all.Anyway, when I go over there it has a smell ... like the cellar of a museum that has about 15 mummies down there. I mentioned it once to his daughter, and she told me she called it "old man smell".

author: GreyWoolfe
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 01, 2015, 12:59:01 pm
content: Quote from: ModemHead on April 01, 2015, 12:25:23 pmNo, it is an overwhelming urge to scarf up coupons for free cheap flashlights and little red multimeter like toys

author: Rory
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 01, 2015, 03:49:25 pm
content: Phthalic acid?

author: Stonent
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 01, 2015, 03:56:34 pm
content: Quote from: iampoor on April 01, 2015, 05:32:04 amtoo much Taco Bell.....

author: Bassman59
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 01, 2015, 10:21:33 pm
content: Quote from: marshallh on April 01, 2015, 05:11:18 amXcelite screwdrivers and such have that smell, too, and it never goes away.

author: Fraser
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 01, 2015, 10:41:22 pm
content: Xcelite nut drivers .... Yep know that smell well ! That is a smell I do not like though.Aurora

author: cosmicray
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 02, 2015, 12:41:11 pm
content: Quote from: Bassman59 on April 01, 2015, 10:21:33 pmI recall those stinky plastic handles, from the 1970s.

author: Stonent
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 02, 2015, 01:31:49 pm
content: Quote from: GreyWoolfe on April 01, 2015, 12:59:01 pmIt is somewhat handy to be able to open any cabinet or drawer in my apartment and find a multimeter and flashlight.

author: calexanian
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 03, 2015, 03:44:05 am
content: Xcelite screw and nut drivers have been covered in another post. They contain butyric acid in the resin used in the handles. When that outgasses you have that smell. If your tools are left in open bins like ours are it never builds up and is hardly noticeable. Another shop i frequent has them all in a cabinet and even though the newest tool in there is 25 years old you get hit with a wall of that funk when you open the door every day. We have some screwdrivers with PVC handles and they just do not feel the same.

author: Ian.M
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 03, 2015, 04:18:27 am
content: Quote from: Stonent on April 02, 2015, 01:31:49 pmNot if you and your guests can simply follow your nose to the nearest multimeter or flashight!

author: marshallh
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 08, 2015, 03:19:43 am
content: Get your Hazard Fraught Tools flyer here:http://itsamanslife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/ToolSale.pdf

author: Whales
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 08, 2015, 04:54:22 am
content: Pesticide spray used in storage house? Even better if it's soluble in the otherwise smelly rubber handles too!

author: max666
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 08, 2015, 04:12:12 pm
content: I bought this ESD mat from RS:http://at.rs-online.com/web/p/esd-schutzmatten/7873120/I washed it, went at it with bleach, let it hang in the sun for a couple of days, now I have the smelly bastard hanging in my basement for half a year now and the smell is still not bearable to have the mat in a closed roomIf only i hadn't thrown away the packaging

author: Shock
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 08, 2015, 06:54:45 pm
content: Quote from: max666 on April 08, 2015, 04:12:12 pmYou should be able to return it without the original packaging, I wouldn't go into details on how you had to clean it though, just that it has an unbearable smell and is unusable.

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 08, 2015, 07:04:07 pm
content: It is vulcanised rubber. Best way to treat it if the smell is too much is to wash in boiling water for a few hours, in a drum over a fire would probably be best. Add a half kilo of sulphur into the water as well. That way you vulcanise it fully, and then it should smell less like new car tyre. Otherwise you just leave it out in the sun on a roof for summer, which should bake it nicely. Leaving in the cold dark worsens it, you need to get it nice and hot.

author: jlmoon
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 08, 2015, 07:15:09 pm
content: Quote from: Aurora on April 01, 2015, 10:41:22 pmOh wow.. I have one of those Xcelite tool cases.. brown one that attempts to look like leather. It has that smell as well. Almost like puke.

author: Ian.M
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 08, 2015, 07:27:52 pm
content: Pack it for return with an inner wrapper of an opaque heat sealed heavy gauge plastic bag and 'mature' it in a nice warm place for a week or two so that customer service can fully 'appreciate' your problem! <Evil Grin>

author: max666
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 08, 2015, 09:36:39 pm
content: Quote from: SeanB on April 08, 2015, 07:04:07 pmHmmm ... that sounds interesting, gonna try that on the weekend. Thanks SeanB!

author: edavid
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 09, 2015, 01:21:04 am
content: The Harbor Freight smell is plasticizers, mostly phthalate esters. It's not the same as the Xcelite/butyric acid smell (fortunately).

author: Melt-O-Tronic
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 09, 2015, 12:59:31 pm
content: On the other hand, old electronics can have a wonderful smell. I recently acquired some obsolete instruments from the late 60's and early 70's. The interior of an old Wavetek 130 in particular has that glorious old electronic smell. There was also an old force gauge in a wooden box lined with velvet that smells of ancient machine oil and fabric.Mmmmmmmmm, love those smells.

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 09, 2015, 06:37:25 pm
content: Quote from: max666 on April 08, 2015, 09:36:39 pmI use old scrapped conveyor belting as a soldering base, it is well cured vulcanised mat ( really well cured, a worn out belt that was worn down to the ply layer on the one side) and it is slightly conductive, and will survive the soldering iron on it, though it will smell then. Yours probably is just new, and needs to cook a little, and the sulphur will help to finish vulcanising it as well. Bleach will damage rubber, which worsens the smell.

author: max666
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 12, 2015, 05:03:58 pm
content: Quote from: max666 on April 08, 2015, 09:36:39 pmNope, did not work at all. Smells at least as bad as before.And just to be clear, it is a new car tyre, rubbery smell.I also question whether the sulphur in boiling water is doing anything, the sulphur powder came out of the water the same condition as I poured it in. Obviously sulphur is insoluble in water and I think 100°C is too low for any expected chemical reaction with the sulphur.I boiled it for 6 hours, during which loads of the lovely rubber and a little bit of sulphur smell pervaded the vicinity of my cauldron. That didn't make me very popular with everyone around meAt first the fact that the boiling forced out the rubber smell in high concentration made me hopeful, but hanging the mat outside for a day now, the smell is just as bad.