Quote Originally Posted by moeburn
Ok, I tried the isopropyl extraction technique, to extract resin from an old lightbulb vapourizer. I swashed some rubbing alcohol in the lightbulb for a few minutes, then i put it in a pot on the stove, and then put that pot in another pot of boiling water, and i boiled the water.

I had never seen a 2 foot tall isopropyl flame before, until a few minutes ago.

I burned the stove's exhaust fan, which sent the whole kitchen up in smoke. I ran around aimlessly with a flaming pot of rubbing alcohol. I managed to burn a few towels, luckily they didnt catch on fire. While I was confused as to what the fuck to do (because water spreads fire), i thought it would be a great idea to pour baking soda on the flame. Cause thats what they put on grease fires, right? Well that made the flame start to pop like popcorn. Little bits of spark started flying out on the fake hardwood floor. Luckily, that also was not flammable. Finally I remembered if i put a lid on the pot, the thing would extinguish. But the lids were upstairs, and I was now downstairs, to avoid the smoke alarms! I then found a suitable metal item: a paint can. I put the pot on the ground, the paintcan on top, and the flame went out. Then I ran upstairs to open the door and turn on the exhaust fan (which still works, and only looks burnt if you put your head under it), and open the door. So now its fucking cold, and smells like shit everywhere. But i got the smoke out, and I had the door to the kitchen closed, so it didnt set off the smoke alarm.

And in this whole process, I don't think I woke my parents up.

And this is the 2nd fire I had to put out today.

Don't let potheads play with fire.
I bet you have a gas stove, right? NO OPEN FLAMES WHEN DEALING WITH FLAMABLE VAPORS! EVER! It's like sparking your bowl while sitting in a puddle of gasoline! Even if it wasn't a gas stove, flamable vapors are heavier than air, so your range vent wasn't able to completely remove the iso vapors before they hit ignition temperature (according to the MSDS for isopropyl alcohol, ignition temperature as a vapor in the air is as low as 93c or 200f!), OR the fan it's self may have caused the fire, as electric motors spark as they run. (don't believe me? Look in the air vent holes in an electric drill while is running... one crazy lightshow!)
I'm glad your ok, and you posted this, so hopefully no one else has the same experience you did! You might even save a life! (I hope that thought makes you feel a little better )
A few guidelines for boiling isopropyl out of a "mixture" (for hashoil or resin) from someone who has NEVER done it, but spent alot of time hanging out in the chemistry lab in high school. (ok... I'm a total geek!)
1. Outdoors ONLY! Unless you have a lab with flamable vapor extraction hoods! Even then, It's a good idea to do it outside on a breezy day.
2. NO OPEN FLAMES! NO SPARKS! NO SMOKING! The safest way is just set it somewhere safe for a couple days, and the alcohol will evaporate all by it's self. The next safest way is to boil water outside on an electric hotplate, remove it from the heat, and then set the pan containing the "mixture" into the boiling water. (you will have to repeat several times depending on how much "mixture" you have, and the concentration of the alcohol used) The least safest way I would ever attempt would be to use a double boiler, outdoors, on an electric hotplate, with an ABC fire extinguisher in my hand!