cool or dangerous?

So the guy pours water from a metal pot into a plastic bottle..... then puts the plastic bottle into the fire, instead of placing the metal pot on top of the fire. :confused:

Yeah, I vote dangerous as well.
 
Yeah I second the dangerous vote. Part of a chem lab was to boil water in a paper cup over a flame. It can be done, but not the smartest thing in the world to do. The best method I ever heard of if you are lacking a container was to collect the water in a hollow wooden depression or fashion a wooden bowl holding the water to be boiled. Heat several rocks, not from a river bed, and place them in the water until it boils.
 
With the cap on your basically putting a potential steam powered bomb into the fire. With out the cap I doubt it's very dangerous. If all I had was poor quality water and a plastic bottle, I wouldn't think twice about boiling the water in a bottle. Sure some of the chemicals might leech into the water, but were talking about food grade plastics here. People still drink out of pewter mugs that had very real levels of lead in them. I doubt the danger is anywhere near where some people in this thread will imply...
 
It seems risky to me as well. Also, I was always taught to boil water for at least 5 minutes to make it potable. I wonder if the plastic bottle would last 5 minutes, but I know I am not going to try and find out :D .
 
Yes the hot rocks can be dangerous. It is fairly easy to make tongs from a pair of sticks or a single Y shaped branch. Of course, if you are the guy making the video you could just put the rocks in the pot ;)
 
The toxins from heating soft plastics are (reportedly) only dangerous cumulatively. Many of us used tuperware and other plastic containers in the microwave for years. To date, however, I don't personally know of anyone with dioxin poisoning. I do, however, question the integrity of the plastic bottle when heated to(or above)212 degrees.
 
Given the alternatives ( dehydration or worse, illness caused by drinking untreated water) I'd vote safe.
seems like you'd have to drink one hell of a lot of water using this method before actually becoming ill.
 
I vote safe for survival use. Of course using a pot is better, but it is very likely that you will not have one in a survival situation, but it is entirely likely that you may have a plastic bottle. As long as the bottle is filled with water it will work. I wouldnt think twice.

It will not exceed 212 degrees so long as the thing is full of water, until you have a very large heat source. A standard camp fire will not make it blow up if you keep it on logs not the coals.
 
Racerx2oo3 said:
With the cap on your basically putting a potential steam powered bomb into the fire.
Click to expand...

That was my first thought as well, but if you do the math (or rather the chemistry :) ), it is pretty harmless. The vapor pressure of water is obviously (because that's why it boils) 1 atm gauge, which is equivalent to 15 psi gauge. As long as you are not right next to the bottle, that is a fairly harmless pressure. You are right though, if you heat it beyond the boiling point (which is possible because the bottle is closed and pressurized), you are getting up to more significant pressures.

I would also think a thin bottle would work better, and yes, I think you will see some leaching of chemicals. But in the video, he doesn't bring it to full boil either. I think the real advantage of this technique could be, that you can potentially heat the water to more than boil, and I think you need 130 deg C to kill all bacteria (botulism - just looked it up, you need 121 deg C for 3 minutes). The problem is, that at 120 deg, most plastics are already very soft, and would probably rupture.

And I think the title of this thread should be "hot or dangerous".....:D.
 
with no air in the bottle, i don't think explosion is an issue

i think the bottle would melt before enough pressure could build to be dangerous

i don't think the vapor pressure the way you are describing is applicable to this

water takes more heat/higher temperature to boil under pressure

if you had a rigid metal container with water and air in it, and threw it into a fire, you could have problems

beer is a bit different, but i think the potiential is pretty similar:

http://www.beerinfo.com/index.php/pages/explodingkeg.html
 
"I vote safe for survival use. Of course using a pot is better, but it is very likely that you will not have one in a survival situation, but it is entirely likely that you may have a plastic bottle. As long as the bottle is filled with water it will work. I wouldnt think twice."

Exactly right. Of course, a tin can is better.... if you have one. Hell, a glass bottle works too.
 
In a survival situation, you'd also have to consider the fact that you could ruin an otherwise perfectly good water-carrying device if you happen to melt or burst your water bottle. If I had a water bottle, I'd first try to purify some water by boiling it using rocks in a wooden bowel. That way if that works, you can carry some of your purified water with you in the water bottle.
 
I'm with Dave on this one...losing your only way to carry water on your person does'nt seem very bright in hindsight...which is what the guy will end up realizing after he burns a small hole in his.
 
lighthiker said:
Yeah I second the dangerous vote. Part of a chem lab was to boil water in a paper cup over a flame. It can be done, but not the smartest thing in the world to do. The best method I ever heard of if you are lacking a container was to collect the water in a hollow wooden depression or fashion a wooden bowl holding the water to be boiled. Heat several rocks, not from a river bed, and place them in the water until it boils.
Click to expand...


+1

Hot rocks also work if you have a waterproof hat, fill the hat with water and drop in the hot rocks.
 
Way cool Snakedoc! I had never thought of that. I typically wear an OR Seattle Sombero that qualifies. I will have to try it to see how the lining holds up.
 
+1 for Snakedoc, I too have a waterproof boonie hat and I never thought of that. With my noggin being as big as it is I bet my hat would hold at least a quart!

Other than that, I have two words for you: canteen cup :D
 
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