Sciencemadness Discussion Board

Lab/Chems in Storage Unit in FL for sale

thehemi - 29-7-2011 at 15:42

This is a difficult situation, but I'm going to give it a shot. I moved from a house in Florida to an apartment California and I left my huge collection of reagents and labware in storage. It was just too much to move, and I don't have the time or space to practice out here.

The unit is in the Gainesville/Ocala region of Florida. Unit is climate controlled. I've been paying for it for such a long time and it's just sitting there, so it's a long shot, but if there's anyone near this region who's looking for bulk labware or reagents or just wants to take the whole thing off me for a reasonable price, I could get a friend out there to show it to you. I could even transfer the whole unit into your name if you wanted to buy but not move it all immediately.

I'd rather not list everything I have publicly, and I don't have an exact inventory, but obviously if you're interested I'll do my best to compile as comprehensive list as I can. I have to have spent $20,000 on the contents, though I'd probably offload it all for $4,000 OBO. Glassware alone is worth that. I have a 5L mag mantle stirrer that cost $2,500.

I have boxes and boxes of lab grade reagents, many watched, nothing illegal to have together as far as I know (i.e. no Red P/Iodine). It's a mix of sources, as an amateur I sourced some things creatively.

I did a lot in electro-chemistry, and most of my bulk (>20KG,>10Gallons) chemicals are for that. Such as 99% toluene, 38% and 90% sulfuric acid, 99% methanol, MnSO4, other fertilizers that I recrystalized. I know these are OTC for most people, hey chuck it if you don't want it.

Huge amount of electronics supplies and metals for electrochemistry, freezer, pumps and an A/C unit ripped apart for radiator cooling, centrifuge, boxes of misc lab and science equipment I collected over years.

This particular storage unit was cleared for having volatile/flammable chemicals properly contained. If I do get anyone interested, I assume there's nothing to legally be concerned about possessing all this in one place?

If anyone is interested or has any ideas on what I should do with all this, PM me or reply here.

TerryFlamingo - 29-7-2011 at 17:12

I feel for you in regards to leaving things behind. I was just getting a nice lab together in Ohio when I moved to South Carolina that I had to leave to a friend due to shipping costs.

I was going to visit a friend at FSU before the next semester started up to help move him in, but I would love to browse your collection if you are still looking to offload it in late August. I am really interested in the power supplies and other electrochemical apparatus you mentioned collecting, and whether or not you have any smaller heating/stirring mantles or distillation equipment that is larger than microscale.

MeSynth - 29-7-2011 at 17:44

Take a journy and u-haul it to your new house. It sounds so worth it.

thehemi - 29-7-2011 at 22:41

MeSynth: I'm in SF, it'll be a long time before I can afford a house out here :( Also sorta illegal to U-Haul so much Hazmat.

Terry, I don't see the unit going anywhere yet, so sure, PM me some time and when you're in the area I'll sort you out.

That reminds me, I have a bunch of converted PSU units which put out great amperage. I have various vessels and materials for beefy overhead stirring (dozens of motors, rods of all types, bearings), materials from a huge magnetic stirrer/heater experiment for my cells (10G+ extremely viscous), drillpress, oscilloscope, probes of all sorts, k-probe heat controller unit, all sorts of teflon, a 5L bucket I made from sheet lead, 3 high powered Neon sign transformers, Microwave transformers. Random huh.

Distillation equipment is 24/40, most of it larger scale, I was distilling up to 5L at a time given the size of the collection vessels.

I have a good old reliable heating/stirring mantle, I forget the brand.

The more I write the more eclectic I realize my collection is. I'll probably never make much on this. Like you said, it sucks leaving it all behind, and I hate to see it go to waste. Years of purchasing and experimenting, I 'll never have the patience to do all this again.

I had the FBI at my door for openly ordering about a dozen of the most harmless non-watched reagents in this collection. Talking to the FBI was the most interesting, hilarious, psychologically bizzare, and alarming experience I've ever had. That really gave me an insight into the stigma attached with chemistry in this country. Building my entire lab all over again? Don't think I have the heart or stomach for it.

uchiacon - 23-8-2011 at 04:12

Sort of illegal? Who cares??! It's so totally worth it mate! You aren't hauling a collection of narcotics, just run with it and keep cool.

Uh, this is assuming you can cart it yourself?

[Edited on 04-07-09 by uchiacon]

thehemi - 24-8-2011 at 01:15

I'm working full-time in SF. I don't have time to go back there, and can't hand it off to movers. It's not impossible, but I just don't have the time or space to experiment any more. I keep thinking one day, but it's been a year of storage costs so far.

I'd just as well hand it off to someone who'd appreciate this as the little goldmine it is (even buying blind you can't go wrong), get a few thousand, and hand over the combo, whether someone wants to keep the unit or just empty it out.

Mixell - 24-8-2011 at 02:42

I would suggest making everything possible to get all of this stuff to your new location. Just call in a few favors or try to be creative: may be take a few days off work, or find some moving contractor that you have mutual friend with. Its a lot better for two reasons: 1) If you would like to pursue chemistry again, you will have all of your equipment and materials. 2) Its a lot better to sell those items individually for a good price than in bulk.

thehemi - 24-8-2011 at 04:28

You make a good point. The girlfriend made me leave it initially, she did not like my hobby, but she's gone now, I shouldn't feel so guilty about keeping the option open. I may be able to fly there for a weekend, seal it for transport, and pay someone to haul cross country, it would still be profitable.

Well, I guess I won't give up all hope, maybe my mad science can continue one day. Still, in the mean time, if anyone is around that area, feel free to hit me up.

watson.fawkes - 24-8-2011 at 05:59

Quote: Originally posted by thehemi  
The more I write the more eclectic I realize my collection is. I'll probably never make much on this. Like you said, it sucks leaving it all behind, and I hate to see it go to waste. Years of purchasing and experimenting, I 'll never have the patience to do all this again.
You might find it interesting to consider that there are two fundamentally different monetary values that you can assign to your collection.

The first is your personal use value, when you value this gear according to both the time and the money to replace it. Do not make the mistake of devaluing your time when you consider this value. If you had to replace it, you'd end up needing to expend roughly the same amount of time doing acquisition, modification, construction, customization, etc. In addition, this value includes the money you'd spend out of pocket to replace things.

The second is the disposal value, when you sell off the collection in the market. This value, obviously, is much less than your use value, since it gets eliminates most of the value of your time.

Now, having estimated these two, you can choose rationally whether it's worth spending money to maintain the difference by paying for storage. If the present value of paying for storage is less than your use value, you come out ahead storing it rather than reconstructing it. As a related aside, if you've got access to family land or the like where you could park a storage unit indefinitely, a half-length (20') shipping container is on the order of a thousand dollars; that price is from a few years ago. Even renting land to put such a container on might be feasible. Consider renting a parking space in a lot somewhere.

Arthur Dent - 24-8-2011 at 07:33

I think your best option would be to take a few days sometimes in the future to drive down to your storage space, when you arrive, make a detailed inventory, grab everything you wish to keep (valuable glassware, electronic equipment) and leave what you don't want to keep behind.

Then, make an Ebay or Craigslist ad, mentioning that you wish to part with what's left in your storage space, and sell it as a bulk lot. Winner of the bid gets the "key" to your storage space and that's it. Just make sure storage fees are paid for and that the list in your ad is detailed and complete. People hunting for a deal will definitely jump on the opportunity of a good deal if the price is right.

Best of both worlds, you keep what's worth keeping, and you get rid of the bulky stuff that you won't need anymore.

Yeah it's worth it, besides, your trek will be pleasant (judging by your nickname, you have a powerful, spacy ride?)... :)

Robert