[Len Gribble]

As I said earlier the chemical company


Safety data sheet
Page: 1/5
BASF Safety data sheet according to 91/155/EEC
Date / Revised: 18.07.2003 Version: 1.0
Product: Basotect
(30221255/SDS_GEN_EU/EN)
Date of print 19.07.2003
1. Substance/preparation and company identication
Basotect
Use: Open cell foam blocks for the production of sound and thermal insulation for the building and
motor industries.
2. Composition/inform ation on ingredients
Chemical nature
Condensate based on: melamine, formaldehyde
3. Hazard identication
No particular hazards known.
4. First-aid measures
General advice:
The rst aid measures are valid exclusively appl y to the contact with the developing dusts.
If inhaled:
Keep patient calm, remove to fresh air.
On skin contact:
Wash thoroughly with soap and water.
Page: 2/5
BASF Safety data sheet according to 91/155/EEC
Date / Revised: 18.07.2003 Version: 1.0
Product: Basotect
(30221255/SDS_GEN_EU/EN)
Date of print 19.07.2003
On contact with eyes:
Wash affected eyes for at least 15 minutes under running water with eyelids held open.
5. Fire-fighting measures
Suitable extinguishing media:
usual extinguishing media, water, dry powder, carbon dioxide
Specific hazards:
The substances/groups of substances mentioned can be released in case of fire.
Specific hazards:
carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, hydrogen cyanide, fumes/smoke
Further information:
The degree of risk is governed by the burning substance and the fire conditions.
Dispose of fire debris and contaminated extinguishing water in accordance with official regulations.
6. Accidental release measures
Personal precautions:
No special precautions necessary.
Methods for cleaning up or taking up:
For small amounts: Pick up with suitable appliance and dispose of.
7. Handling and storage
Handling
Protect against moisture. Avoid dust formation.
Processing machines must be fitted with local exhaust ventilation.
Protection against fire and explosion:
No special precautions necessary.
Storage
Storage class according to VCI: (11) Combustible solids.
Storage stability:
May be kept indefinitely if stored properly.
Page: 3/5
BASF Safety data sheet according to 91/155/EEC
Date / Revised: 18.07.2003 Version: 1.0
Product: Basotect
(30221255/SDS_GEN_EU/EN)
Date of print 19.07.2003
8. Exposure controls and personal protection
Components with workplace control parameters
50-00-0: formaldehyde
Personal protective equipment
Respiratory protection:
Breathing protection if dusts are formed.
9. Physical and chemical properties
Form: blocks, sheets, foam material
Colour: white
various, depending on the colourant
Flammability: not readily ignited
Ignition temperature: > 580 °C
Density: approx. 10 g/l
(20 °C)
Solubility in water: insoluble
Other information:
The product can absorb up to 100 times its own weight of liquid.
10. Stability and reactivity
Conditions to avoid:
Avoid humidity.
Thermal decomposition: > 350 °C
11. Toxicological information
LD50/oral/rat: > 5,6 mg/kg
Primary skin irritation/rabbit: non-irritant
A sensitizing effect on particularly sensitive individuals cannot be excluded.
Page: 4/5
BASF Safety data sheet according to 91/155/EEC
Date / Revised: 18.07.2003 Version: 1.0
Product: Basotect
(30221255/SDS_GEN_EU/EN)
Date of print 19.07.2003
Additional information:
Based on our experience and the information available, no adverse health effects are expected if
handled as recommended with suitable precautions for designated uses.
12. Ecological information
Additional information
Add. remarks environm. fate & pathway:
Due to the consistency of the product, dispersion into the environment is impossible. Therefore no
negative effects on the environment may be anticipated based on the present state of knowledge.
13. Disposal considerations
Must be dumped or incinerated in accordance with local regulations.
Waste key:
070213 waste plastic
14. Transport information
Not classified as hazardous under transport regulations ( ADR RID ADNR IMDG/GGVSee
ICAO/IATA )
15. Regulatory information
Regulations of the European union (Labelling) / National legislation/Regulations
EEC Directives:
The product does not require a hazard warning label in accordance with EC Directives.
Other regulations
Water hazard class (Self classification): (0) Generally not water polluting.
Page: 5/5
BASF Safety data sheet according to 91/155/EEC
Date / Revised: 18.07.2003 Version: 1.0
Product: Basotect
(30221255/SDS_GEN_EU/EN)
Date of print 19.07.2003
16. Other information
Recommended use: for industrial use only
In addition to the information given in the safety data sheet we refer to the product specific 'Technical
Information'.
Vertical lines in the left hand margin indicate an amendment from the previous version.
The information contained herein is based on the present state of our knowledge and does not therefore
guarantee certain properties. Recipients of our product must take responsibility for observing existing
laws and regulations.



Len

[Roger Koh]

Paul,

Soak up the sponge with rinse3.0.
 
Or, Spray rinse3.0 as you clean with these Melamine Sponge.

The pH is just right for leather!

Eureka!!!

Roger Koh
Leather Doctor System

[carpet guy]

Well researched and concluded Roger.

rob

[Roger Koh]

For you guys who think that there are no chemicals in these sponges, here is further reading from Smitty.

11-17-2006 @ 5:41PM
Smitty said...

I'd like to add a little clarification to all of this.

Almost all materials on earth have a measurable pH.

pH is the measure of an objects acidity/alkalinity or neutrality.

The sponge needn't contain any additional cleaning chemicals to have an overly alkalinity pH, the melamine foam itself has an 8-10 pH.

8 being more to the neutral side of the scale and 10 being more alkaline.

Even your tap water can be more acidic or alkaline than a typically "neutral" level.

As with acids (lower pH levels), products that have pH higher on the scale (alkaline) can cause severe burns.

These burns are no doubt intensified as the alkaline material can affect the flesh below the skin once the melamine abrades the outer layer of skin, and at a microscopic level is HIGHLY abrasive.

This incident is not isolated by any measure and should certainly be addressed by the companies marketing these sponges.

Ms. Kerflop, thank you sincerely for taking the time to post what happened to your son for the benefit of our children.

As a father of 3 my heart goes out to you and him and I hope all is well now.


Do you agree that we are talking about 2 subjects here?

1.   Inherent high alkaline pH value in these Melamine Sponges (pH 8-10) can cause severe burns to human skin pH 4-5.5 and denature leather pH 3-5 too!
2.   And these sponges are HIGHLY abrasive.

We cannot control the HIGHLY abrasive nature of these sponges.

But we can control the High Alkalinity to suite our purpose for cleaning leather without causing chemical burns to sensitive skins or denature leather.

Picture shows acidifier2.0™ and rinse3.0™ as antidotes to neutralize the high alkalinity.

Paul, will have to tell us his satisfaction on the effectiveness of these sponges without any further addition of alkaline cleaning solution (preferably working only with rinse3.0™ pH 3).

Tested on my white tennis shoes it works!

Roger Koh
Leather Doctor® System

[*paul_moss]

The cleaning solution I use most with these sponges is Ultra clean ( ph 8.5), but any good high foaming leather cleaner will do, just use your own prerference. As regards ph on cleaning pigmented leather, I dont think ph makes a difference as your cleaning a finish and not the actual leather ( as long as the ph is not too high or too low ie ph 1 or ph 14).
Andy Alcock put  good info up some time ago on this subject which I think is spot on.

To quote.

"This is a response to several articles on leather cleaning recently posted on various forums.  It has taken some time to compile as we wanted to check all our facts and needed to discuss various points with a tannery, leather technologists and our product research specialists.  The views expressed below have been formed over 20 years of leather cleaning and restoration experience and with constant reference to the sources mentioned above.





There has been reference to the IICRC S300 Leather Cleaning Method as a safe and effective guide line.  This is an extremely limited over view on cleaning leather and makes no reference to problems that can be created by incorrect assessment of leather condition prior to beginning the cleaning process.  There is some good advice there, but too many gaps for it to be a safe guide line with the range of finishes currently on the market. E.g. The S300 mentions the possible use of dry solvents to remove certain soils and stains.  I would strongly advise against this unless you are experienced in restoration.  Dry solvents (acetones etc.) will almost certainly damage finishes applied to leather surfaces which will then need repairing.  To suggest that ‘application of leather conditioners to replenish natural oils’ when you are faced with a dissolved coating is very poor advice and very misleading and dangerous for inexperienced cleaners of leather.
 
On some forums recently there has been much reference to the pH levels. I find this very confusing and unnecessary.  In 20 years of successful cleaning and restoring leather I have never once referred to or been influenced by pH values.  My advice would be to use specific leather products that have been tried and tested by your supplier who should also be willing to support you through any problems.  The constant reference to pH may lead some cleaning operatives to think that pH is more important than product formulation and can therefore use any cleaner of the correct pH.  Leather is NOT a fabric and cleans in a different way for which specific products have been formulated.  These would have the correct pH values for the job they are designed for, you and I do not need to worry about them even if we do know them.  Strong acids and strong alkalines and dry solvents all have the potential to damage leather finishes, don’t use them for cleaning, your cleaners if correctly supplied will not be of that nature.
 
 
Spotting and problem solving in the cleaning process should be done using the same specified cleaning products but with reference to CHAT (TACT) Chemical, Heat, Agitation, Time (see separate article – to follow).
 
As a general rule and particularly with pigment coated leathers you will only be cleaning the surface or finish so your cleaning process will never come into contact with the actual leather (think wiping down a painted wooden surface) so why is the pH of the leather so important.  Things that cannot be resolved in this way are more likely not cleaning problems.  Ink, colour loss, fading, finish cracking, permanent staining, surface abrasion, most paints, nail varnish, dye transfer, excessive soil due to body oils, inappropriate use of products etc. are damage not dirt and excessive cleaning without fully understanding the problems, the causes and the solutions is more likely to cause further damage.
 
Learn what is cleaning and what is restoration and do not let the first develop into the second unless you are prepared to deal with it.  It can be expensive if you can’t.
 
Then we return to the ‘feeding’ ‘conditioning’, ‘nourishing’ topic.
It is incredibly difficult to remove the ‘natural’ oils from leather especially using detergent cleaners so replacing them is totally unnecessary and possibly detrimental on both finished and unfinished leathers.  Modern C/T (Chrome Tanned) upholstery leather is a very sophisticated product and has been for decades.  The notion that it is something straight from nature that has to be fed and nourished is totally incorrect (unless you are dealing with conservation and restoration in the museum and antique sense).  The oils and fats in C/T leather are introduced after the C/T processes have reduced the skin to pure collagen fibre (there maybe a tiny amount of fat left but it is of no significance).  The fat liquoring process carefully introduces fats/oils of a specific type back into the leather to coat the fibres,  These are balanced to produce the desired end product and are very stable and very difficult to remove.  Trying to add more fat/oil etc is totally unnecessary and is of no benefit.  On an absorbent leather products used for ‘conditioning’ and ‘feeding’ will soak into the leather upsetting the balance and over time change it to the detriment of the leather.  If the leather is non absorbent then these products have no where to go so will sit on the surface, getting slightly sticky and attracting more dirt.  If they do manage to ‘get in through the cracks’ the results will be the same as absorbent leathers with the added problem of adversely affecting the bond between surface coatings and the leather.   I thought the object was to clean it!!!!!"

[Roger Koh]

Paul,

Tell us why there are brand new pigmented leathers that are semi-absorbent to highly absorbent?

Are we then merely just cleaning the “finish” only when solution do absorbed into the leather structure?

In practical cases, most time we see worn areas, abrasion or cracks etc when the finish is gone from those areas how do we prevent undesirable products to be absorbed into the leather structure?

This picture shows typical cracks that make pigmented leather absorbent.

The second picture show that fatliquor being absorped through these surface weakness to reduce dryness, creases and wrinkles.

Creases and wrinkles are sign of diminishing original fatliquors.

Roger Koh
Leather Doctor® System

[Doug Holloway]

Hi Guys

I have cleaned two pigmented leather suites this week using the sponge which Paul kindly gave me.

I  soaked my sponge in warm water with a tiny bit of Pureclean, applied LTT Strong Foam cleaner so as not too cause too much friction and it cleaned brilliantly!

I was cautious not too apply too much pressure on the high wear areas and did a preclean with a normal sponge and the suites both looked wonderful afterwards for half the normal effort.

As the sponge has largely disintegrated I am now looking for supplies any advance on the above suggestions ?

Cheers

Doug

[LTT Leathercare]

Doug
Have sent an email

[Straker Cleaning]

Are these the sponges from Cornwall 

[davep]

I tried one, dont know if its my big hands but it only lasted 15 minutes 

[garyj]

From what I understand about these sponges the ones from Cornwall are the best ones to get but the blocks you buy in Walworths or JML are pretty much the same thing.

Is that right.

On WOC they are called Micro Power Large Hand Pads and cost £1.42

The JML Magic Sponge is £3.99 but is much bigger than WOC and they can be cut down

www.jmldirect.com/Magic-Eraser-PM4712/

Let me know if I am wrong 

[Mike Osbourne]

On Grand Design Live last week they had massive sheets of the stuff, it's used in the sound insulation industry. This particular sheet 8x4 even had the black sandwich layer, which apparently gives extra magic.

Bet it would work out pennies if you had a band saw.

[Joe H]

Garyj - thats the ones at £1.42 on Solutions. I have not seen the others from JML so cant comment.
There is one called "It Works" or somethng like that which I dont thiink is as durable.

DaveP - 15 minutes! - is that one from Solutions or another source. If its the one from Solutions you are using it different to me. I did 6 seater and the pad is still fine to go another one.
You got to keep it wet and I didnt rub too hard,  but it did a good job.

[Steve Chapman]

I tried one of these last week and although it was good, it did seem to disintergrate very rapidly, in fact i did not quite half a sofa and it was basically crumbs. Maybe i ws rubbing too hard  :

As this was the only one i had i tried a bug & tar sponge i had in the van (as we do car valeting aswell !) and it worked a treat, probably not as aggressive as the melamine sponge but it was still in  one piece at the end   

Has anyone else tried these, they are like a normal sponge but wrapped in a nylon type mesh which gives a bit more friction when cleaning.

I assume they must be safe as they are normally used on car bodyworks, mainly to get dead flies of the front 

a fairly good alternative i thought.....

regards
steve

[*paul_moss]

When I fisrt used these sponges 18 months ago I was going through about 3 per suite( 3 half sponges as I cut a full one into 2)
They are very agresive if used mildly dry or with a chemical that has not much foam. Doug I think this may be the case with pure clean as its a powder. I tried a number of different chemicals including m/s but found that the soapier detergents worked best and my favorite is Furniture clinics Ultra clean.
Now a Half sponge lasts me through 2 suites before its all disintigrated.
It has to be kept vey wet and soapy, and you dont need alot of presure.

This week I did a carpet clean h/s/L for a customer that had had spilage from a radiator leak. fter the cleam I gave her one of my leaflets, she says OH you do leather, well I had my leather suite cleaned 2 weeks ago. hen I cheked it out it was a cream leather suite 3 years old and this was its first clean, the cleaner had done a rubbish job. It was the local Rainbow franchise that cleaned it for £70 : ::)and trained by guess who  , I put the sponge through it with some ultra clean and the difference was like night and day. another £150 job booked in 

The again this week a carpet shop I do work for asked me to look at a schools vinyl floor,  It had a big black patch on it from a builder and 3 cleaners had tried to remove it and failed. I dont normally do hard floors, but I had a go because of the work the put my way. I used a citrus formulation ( very soapy) and used the Solution sponge. After 2 half sponges had disintergrated after hard elbow grease rubbing the stain was removed. The school head was so pleased I have now priced for the whole corridoor clean and other work from some oft he other teachers .

These sponges are a little miracle 

[LTT Leathercare]

Steve

We have found the bug and tar sponges to be quite good for cleaning, they are actually less abrassive than the magic sponges.

The problem with either sponge (apart from the previously discussed problems) is that they do not clean down in the grain pattern efficiently.  You are far better using a kitchen brush (not a tampico - these are too soft) to agitate the foam cleaner into the grain pattern so that the foam can do the job where it is needed.

Hope this helps

[*paul_moss]

Sorry Judy but beg to differ.
A brush especially a hard nylon type ( kitchen brush) is very dangerous to use on leather and will and can do a lot of damage.
The sponges from Solution Uk are the best thing I have found for leather cleaning and certainly get down into all the grain( all be it about 0.5 of a millimetre :)

Steve I will have ago with one of those tar sponges,
The Solution sponge needs to be used very wet and soapy to stop it breaking down quickly. I can do a suite plus with half a full sponge which works out at about 50 pence, I charge £150 a suite for clean and condition
Picture of a really bad one I did a couple of weeks ago it took no time at all to clean it, but the bigest thing was the easy at which the much came out of the grain.

[Glynn]

Looks good paul.

[LTT Leathercare]

Kitchen brushes are certainly not dangerous to use on leather unless you are using them to scrub the dirt out as with a magic sponge.  You use a brush to make sure the foam cleaner  is down into the grain pattern in order for the product to release the dirt.  Stiffer bristles are necessary for this as with something like a tampico brush the bristles simply bend on top of the grain pattern and have no effect whatsoever.

Cleaning leather should be a gentle process where the product does the work not elbow grease.

There are still many occassions when Magic Sponges will remove the finish (this of course leaves a very clean looking leather).

Regards
Judy

[carpet_care]

Must admit I use various brushes to good effect on leather ,starting with soft bristles right up to very course bristles depending on the type of leather and the degree of soiling.

 I have found this sometimes to be the only way to get truly clean results although I hav,nt tried these magic sponges so cannot compare the reults.



  Regards Andy Locke.