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MADE ROOT BEER
To
make one gallon of root beer: One pound sugar One gallon water Two ounces
root beer extract Add 1 to 2 pounds of Food
Grade Dry Ice to carbonate. Tip for carbonation: put in a triple size
plastic container (1/3 liquid and 2/3 air) and put the lid on tight. The
pressure will dissolve more into the mix and make it fizzier. Otherwise
have Club soda to add for carbonation. If you let the root beer fog too
much you will loose the carbonation. Bring several pounds extra dry ice
and put in as you are serving in order to let the kids see the fog affect.
You must keep the root beer from freezing. Dry ice is -109.3°F and
it will freeze the liquid. Add extra water if freezing starts. Do not ladle
Dry Ice into cups. Put regular ice directly into cups for additional cooling.
For different ideas add dry ice to grape juice and pineapple juice for
a goolish witches brew.
CARBONATE
LIQUIDS
When
CO2 is added to plain water it
will make sparkling mineral water. CO2
is extensively used throughout the world in the beverage industry for making
soda pop.
DENTS
& HAIL DAMAGE
Dry Ice will condense metal and
thereby shrink small dents on your car. Place the Dry Ice on the inside
of the dent if possible. Use heavy gloves and press flat sheet against
dent. If it is not possible to get on the inside concave part of the dent,
then using heavy gloves hold the Dry Ice so a corner can fit into the bottom
lowest part of the cratered dent. Hold the Dry Ice until the metal is frosted
at least 2 inches beyond the dent. Let the metal warm up (in the sun is
the best) and repeat the procedure. Sometimes the dent will pop out perfectly.
More often it will not be possible to get a flat smooth finish, but the
dent will be reduced noticeably. Creased metal will still show the crease
line but the dent will be far less pronounced. I have not seen any paint
damage, but I'm sure if the paint is not strongly adhered, it could peel
away.
FOOD
STORAGE
Placing
Dry Ice in the bottom of a dry food storage container is a very economical
way to fumigate and store dry goods for an extended amount of time. Make
sure the Dry Ice is not frost covered, as that will add moisture. Put one
to two ounces of Dry Ice per five-gallon storage container in the bottom
and then pour in the dry food. As the Dry Ice sublimates it replaces the
oxygen in the container with CO2. Leave the lid on but not tightly sealed
until the Dry Ice completely sublimates. Then snap the lid tight. Without
oxygen neither bugs nor bacteria can grow. This process is good for seeds,
grains, legumes, flower, powdered milk, etc. An excellent site for further
information can be found at Walton Feed Inc: http://www.waltonfeed.com/self/upack/dryice.html
REMOVE
FLOOR TILE
Dry
Ice will loosen floor tile by freezing and slightly shrinking them allowing
easier removal. The cold temperature of the Dry Ice will break the bond
of the adhesive. Place the Dry Ice sheets centered on the tile to be removed
and wait until it is completely frosted. If it has not popped off, slight
tapping with a hammer or prying with a screwdriver will allow it to be
lifted off easily. It is too time consuming to remove a whole floor, but
is ideal for removing a few tiles that need replacing.
GOPHER
ERADICATION
Dry
Ice is heavier than air so it will find its way to the bottom of gopher
dwellings. Place 1 to 2 inch pieces as deep into each hole as can be reached
and fill the front of the hole with dirt. If you miss some holes the process
may have to be repeated. Jerry Yamamoto of Hayward, California reports
that he successfully used Dry Ice to eradicate regular Argentine ants from
his front yard. Perhaps this could work on fire ants too.
PROTECT
SPORT FISH AND GAME
Pack
your trophy animal or fish in Dry Ice to minimize spoilage while transporting
or shipping it home. Do not let the Dry Ice touch the game directly as
it may cause superficial damage. Dry Ice can be added to regular ice to
extend its cooling. For best results use an insulated container.
BRANDING
Dry
Ice is used to super cool alcohol for branding horses, cattle, and hunting
dogs. The alcohol must be 90% pure - not rubbing alcohol. Methyl alcohol
is most commonly used. Liquid Nitrogen is too cold to work properly. This
is now the second most common way to brand according to Tony Clark of Bassett,
Nebraska.
MEDICAL
Doctors,
to freeze skin for wart removal, use Dry Ice or liquid nitrogen. Many medical
offices ship biological specimens in Dry Ice for laboratory testing or
further processing. Dry Ice is also used to keep bone morrow frozen when
it is shipped.
TRANSPORTING
PLANTS
Dry
Ice will keep flowers cool and delay blooming. Maintaining ready to flower
plants at 34°F will retard blooming. Do not allow Dry Ice to
get too close and freeze plants.
PLANT
GROWTH
A
small additional amount of Carbon Dioxide will increase the rate of plant
growth.
CHEMICAL
RETARDANT
Its
low temperature slows or stops some chemical reactions. It is used to store
and ship special adhesives It is also a neutralizing agent for alkalis.
PRESSURIZING
AGENT
When
Dry Ice changes from a solid to a gas it absorbs heat and expands to over
800 times its original volume.
INERTING
MEDIUM
Dry
Ice will replace oxygen in a container preventing or putting out fires.
It is used to safely remove underground gas storage tanks.
SHRINK
FITTINGS
Dry
Ice will shrink metal to slide on sleeves, bushings or bearings. Add Dry
Ice to a 90% pure alcohol bath to create a cold liquid near -109.3°F.
that can be used like liquid nitrogen.
DEFLASHING
MOLDED PLASTICS AND RUBBER
Dry
Ice will cool and shrink whatever it touches. Rubber parts are tumbled
in a barrel with Dry Ice, making them brittle for easy flash removal. It
is used in cold grinding of Plexiglas, PVC resins and vinyl's.
FRESH
MEAT PROCESSING
Dry
Ice will keep the temperature cold and reduce spoilage while processing
meat. This is used in industrial processing of ground meats and sausages.
MOSQUITOES
CO2
may attract mosquitoes away from animals and people. Place pieces of Dry
Ice away from areas where people are congregating. The theory is that mosquitoes
find animals and people by their CO2
exhaled during breathing. Melissa Palm reports that dry ice does attract
mosquitoes. "I use dry ice in some of my mosquito traps as bait and find
that it works rather well." The Clarke Family of Companies of Roselle IL.,
sells a mosquito trap designed for using Dry Ice.
WELLS
Dry
Ice combined with detergent, or alone, will improve porosity in irrigation
wells. Bill Hayoz of Reliant Dry Ice in New Mexico, explains that dry ice
is used regularly by the ranchers to improve water flow. He used about
60 pounds of dry ice in his windmill well, capped it off, and waited several
days before the water came back with a greater flow. The city of
Mosquero used 800 pounds of dry ice for their city wells. Most well men
will use dry ice before drilling deeper.
OIL
INDUSTRY
Dex
Welch reports "Dry Ice has been used in the oil fields for years to clean
tank bottoms. When paraffin, sludge, etc build up, a chemical is added
along with Dry Ice to roll (stir up) the tank bottom. This breaks out the
liquids & separates water from oil in paraffin mixtures so that water
can be removed & the oil saved." Liquid CO2 is also used to crack and
increase oil flow in wells.
BAKING
INDUSTRY
Dry
Ice is used in mixing ingredients and retarding yeast growth until the
proper time.
FREEZE
FRESH STRAWBERRIES PERFECTLY
Karyn
Gilbert writes: "I use Dry Ice to freeze my strawberries - fresh, washed
ones, once a year:
Wash
fresh strawberries
Place directly
on top of dry ice in cooler for about 20-30 minutes
Close cooler
Remove when
solid
Place in freezer
safe plastic bag, mark with date
Place in freezer
- to thaw take out and set on plate at room temp (use within a year to
be sure freshness)
They will thaw
almost like fresh - without being soggy like usual frozen strawberries
are.
I
suppose this might work for other fruits and veggies because of the quick
freeze time, not allowing them to get soggy..."
AIR
QUALITY TESTING
Used for United
States EPA (40 CFR 60 App.A Meth.25) Method 25 emissions testing. "Determination
of Total Gaseous Non-methane Organic Emissions as Carbon". The dry ice
is encased around a sample "trap" during each one hour run. The trap is
preserved on dry ice until it reaches the laboratory for analysis. It is
not uncommon to purchase at least 200 lbs of dry ice for a 3 run test series
performed on a 1200 F incinerator exhaust stack on a hot August day in
Florida. This is why so many stack testers use dryiceDirectory.com.
Many are on the road and need a reference source to dry ice vendors all
over the U.S. For a professionally illustrated schematic of Method 25 and
other USEPA emissions test methods visit: www.activeset.org/methods/index.htm.
FUMIGATION
- Powder-Post Beetles in Furniture
Jim Lockhart
of Littleton Colorado writes: "After allowing the infected cabinet to spend
18 hours in the closed freezer with 30 lbs of dry ice at -25 deg F, I went
ahead and removed the dry ice, saving what was left of it in a small ice
chest. I closed the freezer up again and allowed the cabinet inside to
slowly warm up to room temperature (another 12 hours) then took it out.
I checked for signs of life with a stethoscope in the places where the
powder post beetles could be heard and – not a sound. I checked again for
signs of life 24 hours later – still nothing. It would appear that the
insects either froze, suffocated or both. Of course I have no way to tell
whether or not the freezing or lack of oxygen also killed any eggs – only
time will tell. I am confident enough at this point that this worked and
would recommend it to anyone in a similar situation.
Feel free to include any and/or all the info I’ve given you on your website.
This is a much less toxic way of killing insects than the use of chemical
sprays and fumigants."
Jim
writes one year later to update there is no sign of any beetle activity
and "I’ve been telling fellow woodworkers about the idea and they, too
have met with success without doing any damage to the wood or it’s finish." |