Rat Poop In Brass

[stubbicatt]

Damn. Just take them to the recycler. You guys must be some cheap so-and-so's to even think about messing with that nasty brass.

I am frugal, but there is a point where even I won't touch something. This is that point.

 

[hceuterpe]

Rats pee where they poop. So over time they probably got covered in uric acid and it's (along with ammonia) I'm pretty sure very caustic to brass. Why have you not considered tossing it already? Ewww

 

[jerkface11]

Just bring them home and ask your wife to clean them.

 

[BigG]

Brass - I would take it to a laundromat and run it thru a cycle. It will come out like new.
But before you start processing it to reload I would inspect any "found" brass to make sure it isn't worn out. I have seen much brass that was way over worked to reload. Either fired multiple times or loaded too hot, or fired in Glocks, especially 40 S&W which is known as problematic due to high pressure and weak head support.

 

[jcwit]

Ya, Take it to a public laundry mat, possible contaminate the washer with lead residue.

We in the shooting sports have enough of a hard time being accepted by the masses, this is a sure way to find more folks to accept the shooting sports as a good thing.

Doesn't anyone think of consequences anymore?

Plus the fact those two calibers are likely # 2 & 3 in being the most common after 9mm. Why not just recycle them?

 

[LiveLife]

Ammonia is the main problem

Yup. You can see the poop. You can't see the ammonia from the urine.

If you have any concern over the quality/damage done to the brass, you can always take the cases in question to the local recycling center for bulk brass.

 

[BullfrogKen]

That's exactly what I'd do with it. It's not as if he paid anything for it; it was a find.

 

[*Kemosabe*]

Thread Evolution!!!

Wow! I'm glad I posted this thread!

I was just looking to make the brass biologically safe for me to handle.

What I learned:

rcmodel told me that bleach will tarnish brass badly.

kerreckt reminded me that the FDA permits lots of rat droppings in our food. Geez kerreckt! Right before lunch?!?

armoredman has a recipe for rat poop flambé.

RussellC might possibly pass on the brass if it was infested with the plague.

Schwing says damn the torpedoes... just tumble with a little mineral spirits.

243winxb points out that ammonia from the urine that we were not initially thinking about is a worse problem that can’t be solved with disinfecting.

splattergun is the first to mention a specific pathogen, hantavirus. So do as he says and break out the nitrile gloves and the dust mask.

RusellC pipes up again saying that barring hemorrhagic fever he’s ready for me to send him the brass. Do you think he might consider paying the postage?

mbopp advises that a 10% bleach bath kills EVERYTHING!

gamestalker who is admittedly OC, suggests acetone or a less expensive soaking in 91% alcohol. Do you think that we would trade his OCD for my CRS (Can’t Remember Poop)?

jinxer made an astute observation that the poster who suggested using the sink could not possibly be married!

blarby says breathe deep because it’s already too late!

4895 has a plan - see it in post #20 . His lunch was also made less appetizing by the multiple mentioning of the rat poop permitted in our food.

LAGS laments that it wasn’t Bat Guano (aka Goonie) instead of rat poop as an ecological solution to the current powder shortage. Goonie, really goonie???

Comedians kelbro and morcey2 added some more humor to the mix.

stubbicat who must be walking in high cotton and eating high off the hog is looking down on us cheap so-and-so brass scroungers.

jerkface11 is either not married or won’t be for long if mamma sees that suggestion. Another possibility is that he is married and his wife gave him that screen name.

BigG figures to make it the public’s problem by using a Laundromat. jcwit holds BigG’s feet to the fire on that one!

Kudos and honorable mention to all the other posters….. Sabe

 

[RussellC]

So with all these responses, what does kemosabe do? Do tell...

Russellc

 

[jerkface11]

I hope he doesn't take my advice.

 

[*Kemosabe*]

RussellC - "So with all these responses, what does kemosabe do? Do tell..."

I'll give you a hint... keep checking the obituaries!

jerkface11 - "I hope he doesn't take my advice."

My wife can shoot, so not on your best day! However, there is an Ex that I might try and get to do that for me... on second thought, I taught her how to shoot too!

 

[blarby]

says breathe deep because it’s already too late!

If you were worried about plague or the hanta virus- thats true.

As for the ick factor, well.......

 

[Field Tester]

I agree with washing out the poop in an area outside and something to neutralize the ammonia. Dawn dish soap wash after. This should be pretty cheap and easy.

If it was me, I'd buy a 5 gallon bucket, fill wash and dump a few times with the garden hose. Get all the poop out. If you have a concern of the ammonia, neutralize it. Bottle of dawn and the same bucket with the same garden hose should work for the final clean and for disinfection.

A mask and gloves for any concerns about self contamination.
And of course he's going to check any brass he uses, this should automatically be done when anyone is reloading, but it's not a concern for cleaning right now.

I agree, this was blown way out of control.
BTW, congrats on the haul!

 

[medalguy]

Hantavirus is only carried by a couple of species of mice. Do you have the deer mouse, the white-footed mouse, the rice rat, and the cotton rat in your area? If not, you're likely fine. These are the only species of rodents so far known to harbor the virus.

Me, I'd wash well with detergent by sloshing the brass around in a big bucket with a lid(wear gloves), rinse well and repeat as necessary. Dry and inspect, and toss any suspect brass. As stated, this is pretty common brass. These days, at least. Next month, who knows?

 

[horseman1]

Shoot the cr@p out of em', Kemosabe. Bird wants to see flying rat turds.

Tonto

 

[splattergun]

Hantavirus is only carried by a couple of species of mice. Do you have the deer mouse, the white-footed mouse, the rice rat, and the cotton rat in your area? If not, you're likely fine. These are the only species of rodents so far known to harbor the virus.

Me, I'd wash well with detergent by sloshing the brass around in a big bucket with a lid(wear gloves), rinse well and repeat as necessary. Dry and inspect, and toss any suspect brass. As stated, this is pretty common brass. These days, at least. Next month, who knows?

Which is not too dissimilar of a process for taking care to avoid picking up hanta(or any other)virus spread by rodents. Rice rats or cotton rats living in Texas? Only a few of the several different species of those 2 tribes live in Texas.
"Since it is hard to tell if a mouse or a rat carries a hantavirus, it is best to avoid all wild mice and rats and to safely clean up any rodent urine, droppings, or nests in your home." -- Centers for DiseaseControl pamphlet
http://www.cdc.gov/hantavirus/pdf/hps_brochure.pdf

 

[FROGO207]

The only downside I see is cleaning the crap-out of it will cause it to weigh less when taken to the recyclers. So as I see it now you will have to work harder to reap less profit.

PS: I liked the recap a lot.

 

[stubbicatt]

Kemosabe, I do not look down on you or any other human being. There are safety concerns which have been detailed by many here, as well as health concerns, which together tell me to pass on this nastified brass, aside from the practical issues of properly cleaning this "treasure".

In the same vein, I don't bust up automobile batteries to get the lead to make bullets either. I don't shoot powders which have deteriorated.

The few bucks you save on this brass, if you get sick, and have to go to the hospital, will pale in comparison to the medical bills you will incur. If one of those urine soaked cases fails and blows up your firearm, or peppers you with debris, I wonder whether you will re-think the prudence of this decision.

Like I said, it is your choice. Your responsibility. If we meet on the firing line, please let me know you are shooting this stuff, so I can take a safe position a little further down the line?

 

[*Kemosabe*]

Lighten up!

stubbicat - Lighten up! Can’t you tell when a little fun is poked at you. When I inferred that blarby said, “breathe deep…” it was a joke… he never said that, but instead, he jumped in and made even more of a joke about it.

My whole recap, which included you, was meant to bring some levity into a post that should have ended a page ago. It didn’t end there because posters were having fun with it. Look at all the posters and you’ll notice that it seems that you are the only one who has taken any offense to a little jest.

I didn’t get through two wars and a career as a street cop and homicide investigator, not to mention completing graduate and post graduate work, by being a little “light in my shoes”. So give me some credit for being smart enough not to blow myself up after all that and over four decades of hand loading without incident.