Can trick

[insain]

I seen on a show/movie called "Burn notice" that if you turn a can of something upside down that it would work like hot ice or something like that and i was wondering does anyone know what that can would be called?

[shetlan]

An air duster.
Sold at every electronics store (or in practically every other store's electronics section).

Incidentally, this would have been cleared up by a simple google search, but I'll pop through it anyway.

"Burn Notice" is a series airing on the USA network.
The use of air dusters to break locks has been displayed on the show at least five times in three seasons.
The air duster trick has no correlation to "hot ice" - it's 100% cold, that's the entire point.
The reason the reaction works is usually explained on the show as it's being performed - I'll leave that for you to find on your own.

[willi-wurm]

ohhhh... took me a while to get it!

yeah, in the fight club book, this is how they open doors. but using airdusters would be expensive!and you still need some force. never tried it though.

little tip: get a pressurized air can, and a fork, or some metal. now, spray the metal thing for a while. then feel it. what do you notice?

[shetlan]

Originally Posted by willi-wurm

ohhhh... took me a while to get it!

yeah, in the fight club book, this is how they open doors. but using airdusters would be expensive!and you still need some force. never tried it though.

Do you mean the fight club novel that the movie was based on, or is there actually a "fight club book" somewhere?

You can get airdusters at many bulk stores for $3 a piece. These are the larger cans, and it only takes half of one to freeze the lock.

[willi-wurm]

no chuck palaniunks book, 'fight club'. amazing novel.

i havent heard of a fight club book, if your thinking of a book with like, little pictures from the movie and stuff [:

ugh. well gasses that have been under pressure for a while tend to liquify (if at the right pressure). releases them forces them back to their original state (gaseous form), due to the rapid temperature shape. however, as the gasses are pretty cold for a short period of time, you can convert this to another object that isnt quite so heat conducting, causing it to cool down, making it more liable to shattering.

[ninefingers]

Or, maybe, gasses going to liquid, then expanding to gasses again as they warm will expand inside the cold lock forcing something.

Hi, Will.

[Bahr]

The gas used in the can is "freon". Held upright it just blows pressurized air, held upside down it will blow liquid. It you hold it upside down and spray a metal object for a while it will freeze. The theory is if you spray it long enough it will freeze and become brittle, making it easy to break. If you touch the frozen metal you will get burned. Not like a burn from a flame but feels very much the same.
I tested this trick with a whole jug of freon from my cousin who works on air conditioners. We sprayed a combination master lock for a good five minutes. It was completely iced over and froze inside and out. We then beat the hell out of it with a hammer. It did not shatter like in the t.v. show. I'm not saying I completely disproved this trick. It may have been the lock or any other small factor. I'm just saying I believe its a t.v. trick.

[ninefingers]

Exactly, Bahr. We used to throw a smoldering (smouldering) cigarette butt on the shop floor, then open a Freon (F-12 in those days) tank a few seconds, then turn it off . The gas would creep along the floor, eventually snuffing the 'smoke!

That's why I Don't believe Fluorocarbons are a Threat--anything reacts with Ozone; but these heavy gases Can't get Up There to cause damage.

You can actually used any compressed gas that will liquefy. Flammables like hair spray or toxins like insecticide aren't recommended, of course.

[shetlan]

Originally Posted by Bahr

The gas used in the can is "freon". Held upright it just blows pressurized air, held upside down it will blow liquid. It you hold it upside down and spray a metal object for a while it will freeze. The theory is if you spray it long enough it will freeze and become brittle, making it easy to break. If you touch the frozen metal you will get burned. Not like a burn from a flame but feels very much the same.
I tested this trick with a whole jug of freon from my cousin who works on air conditioners. We sprayed a combination master lock for a good five minutes. It was completely iced over and froze inside and out. We then beat the hell out of it with a hammer. It did not shatter like in the t.v. show. I'm not saying I completely disproved this trick. It may have been the lock or any other small factor. I'm just saying I believe its a t.v. trick.

The trick works fine, but it doesn't work on all locks - locks made of certain materials don't shatter under the influence of the cold.

In the last few years, manufacturers of bike locks have been building locks that are less vulnerable to shattering - largely by adding nickel (or other metals) to the alloy to resist cold. On the other hand, many lock cylinders are still made from cheaper types of stainless steal, which means that they are still vulnerable.

Overall - it's a crap shoot. Sometimes it'll work, sometimes it won't.