[Glod]

Some hours ago, I just put out a small fire in the garbage container of our neighbors.

When I came home with my youngest son this evening, he said fire, smoke! He’s only 4 (almost 5) but understood the seriousness of the situation. In our neighborhood, most people keep their containers close to their houses and, usually, actually under the overhanging roofs.

Out of this PVC plastic container, heavy, thick white smoke was coming out. I rang their doorbell, heard some noises, but no one opened(!) I thought, I better put this out as soon as possible before the lid bursts up and it will set everything on fire, including our house...

I took out the garden hose, and after have felt the container with my hand to check how hot it was (it was all cold) I opened the lid and sprayed the innards with water.

The thick smoke subsided and I took a peak inside. The only thing I found was a pair of shorts; "Bermuda" style, perhaps made of cotton.

The mystery is: How could that piece of cloth just catch fire? I have heard of spontaneous ignition of cloth drenched in linseed oil, but are there other fluids that can react in the same way? The neighbors didn’t make sense when I asked what it could have been. They thought somebody deliberately had tried to set the container on fire. That is hardly likely in our quite neighborhood.

 

[skudmunky]

maybe some passerby dropped a not quite extinguished cig in there?

 

[pne]

nothing in an ordinary household...

maybe they emptied an ashtray into the garbage can hours earlier, and it continued to smoulder?

 

[Glod]

Quote:

Originally Posted by skudmunky maybe some passerby dropped a not quite extinguished cig in there?

Plausible, but not likely. You really have to walk up the driveways to get to the containers here in general. Considering the social demographics of this neighborhood/village/town, I don't think it is likely that a passing individual would have taken the effort, and have got the idea in the first place, to walk up to a house and thrown a cigarette in a container. But yes, that could certainly have happened somewhere else I suppose. Thanks for thinking along with me.

All the containers had been emptied this afternoon. It looks like the neighbor had thrown away these trousers after that the container had been emptied.

 

[Born2bwire]

Maybe even a shower and change of clothes couldn't make him feel clean enough.

 

[Glod]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pne nothing in an ordinary household... maybe they emptied an ashtray into the garbage can hours earlier, and it continued to smoulder?

Yes, very likely too. But they are non-smokers, and I don't think they had visitors.

In period houses, I know that certain wooden floors are maintained with linseed oil, and, that it happens that it seeps down between the tiles and starts to heat up the old fashioned, isolating, sawdust to eventual self ignition. However, the neighbours do not have any wooden floors.

I think it must be a some sort of other possible self-combustible fluid. The question is just which.

 

[bazmonkey]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Glod I have heard of spontaneous ignition of cloth drenched in linseed oil, but are there other fluids that can react in the same way?

Um, in many conditions hyrdazine spontaneously combusts. But that would've been a bit more violent than smoky shorts. It sounds like a cigarette or something collecting smoke in the trash can. It would make sense that the container was cool to the touch.

Quote:

That is hardly likely in our quite neighborhood.

It could certainly happen in your neighborhood, too. Demographics or not, a cigarette or cigar carelessly extinguished makes more sense than your neighbor just happening to have a pair of bermuda shorts and a mysteriously pyrophoric liquid in their trash can, you know?

What about something like your neighbor's child or husband sneaking out to have a cigarette without the family knowing, and casually tossing it in the trash?

 

[Glod]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bazmonkey Um, in many conditions hyrdazine spontaneously combusts. But that would've been a bit more violent than smoky shorts. It sounds like a cigarette or something collecting smoke in the trash can. It would make sense that the container was cool to the touch. It could certainly happen in your neighborhood, too. Demographics or not, a cigarette or cigar carelessly extinguished makes more sense than your neighbor just happening to have a pair of bermuda shorts and a mysteriously pyrophoric liquid in their trash can, you know? What about something like your neighbor's child or husband sneaking out to have a cigarette without the family knowing, and casually tossing it in the trash?

Yes

, eventually it became clear the husband was home alone, and didn't react/heard the door bell. The wife and small kids arrived when I was just about finished with the garden hose. The thing is just that these neighbors are so straight, uncomplicated and transparent in every aspect that I cannot imagine the man having a cigarette in secrecy.

That said, it looks like he was the one who had thrown the material in the emptied container, since the wife had not been home after that the container had been emptied. This starts to get really interesting. What had he been up to? Trousers, some kind of, perhaps, oil...

 

[milkpowder]

Reminds me of the project I did on spontaneous human combustion back in grade 7. Something smells fishy! What evidence was he trying to dispose of

 

[Glod]

Next time I shake his hand, I think I'll wash my hand afterwards

 

[werdwerdus]

This same exact thing happened at our house to us! But it was pretty obvious answer: Old hamster cage bedding (basically sawdust) and a candle that my brother thought he had extinguished.
Oh, and it wasn't just smoke, it was flames about 8 feet high and actually blackened the overhang and the side of our house. It was really scary.

 

[kramer5150]

someone walking by threw a cigarette butt in there.... and kept walking

 

[Bob_McBob]

There are plenty of liquids with the potential to spontaneously combust. Linseed oil, for instance, can ignite if left to dry on rags or paper towels.

Edit: Er, I guess I should have read the other half of your post