[ Ref. 060215 MMDigest, "Composition of Phenoseal Liquid Caulk in 1996"
 [ by Craig Smith

Hello automuse, Jim McFarland writes in 060218 MMDigest:

> Hundreds of very good reasons to not use Phenoseal are to be
> found at the web site you recommend.  The MSDS sheets are
> rather scary.
>
> Shellac is approved for food contact!

Tin is approved for use in water stills by the World Health
Organization.  In other applications it can kill you.

MSDSs [Material Safety Data Sheets] are written for reasons of legal
liability.  Just about everything is hazardous in some way or another.
Anything that has sand in it must list the hazards of silicates.
Everything that has alcohol in it must list its various hazardous
properties.  Shellac may be approved for food contact but not when
it is dissolved in alcohol.

Look up the MSDS for shellac.  I found them on the web but can not
copy them because they are in PDF.  If you mix it yourself with just
ethyl alcohol you are pretty safe but commercial offerings include
methyl isobutyl keytone and other nasties.

You can kill yourself with just about anything and then have your
heirs sue to recover for your stupidity.

I might be concerned with the long term effectiveness of Phenoseal
(different from the caulk for which the MSDS were listed) but I feel
pretty confident that something else will kill me first.

By the way, the Phenoseal that is used for sealing player components
(which I have used successfully) is different from the caulk.
Phenoseal is a trademark that applies to a variety of products made by
the Phenoseal company.  The liquid is used mainly for sealing concrete
against water penetration and is a water born polymer, probably a
combination of one or more of acrylic, latex, or vinyl monomers which
form a water (and air) impermeable membrane upon polymerization.  When
cured, all of these materials are quite stable and pose little hazard
to health.

When using any of these substances on a regular basis, I would recommend
personal protection.  Who knows what may compromise your health.  Living
leads to death in all cases.  Anxiety may exacerbate it.

Best regards,
Spencer Chase

 [ The trademark "Phenoseal" is now controlled by DAP, who bought
 [ the product rights from Gloucester Co., Inc.  At
 [ http://www.dappromotions.com/termsofuse.html :
 [
 [   13. Specific Trademark Information
 [   ..., Phenoseal(R), ... and all DAP logos, individually and/or as
 [   may be combined with one another, are trademarks of DAP Products
 [   Inc. and/or DAP Brands Company, whether or not registered.
 [
 [   -- Robbie