Ozone Generators - pros/cons

[bstreep]

I can tell you from first hand experience that ozone is hard on rubber/plastics. An old boss of mine had one in his office. Kept wondering why his CD/DVD players kept dying after just a few months. The little belt on them got eaten up by ozone. I also have one on my reef tank. Quit using it, because everything plastic around it was being destroyed. Silicone is fine around it.

[StoneCrab]

I've been using an ozone generator for over 20 years and swear by them. I originally bought a marine unit from Panda (who is now out of business) because I had some gear in a truck fire. The owner of Panda told me he'd take it back if it didn't work. Well work it did. It completely eliminated all the smoke odors.

I started to use it in the boat when I would be away for a few days and was impressed with how dramatically it improved the smell.

When I moved off of our boat into a house, I put the ozonator in the basement. No more basement odor. It really works!

It is the O3 which breaks down the odors and attacks the membranes of the mold spores. It breaks long molecular chains by giving up one of the oxygen molecules. I don't think an ionizer would do the same thing.

Washing items in Hydrogen Peroxide is an inexpensive way to eliminate odors and mold as well. If they can be soaked for a while, all the better. I just buy the bulk bottles at the pharmacy and don't bother to dilute it. The Peroxide works the same way as the ozonator from a cleaning standpoint and I have had success in removing the black mold stains on some clothing with the peroxide.

Ozonator pricing is all over the map. They don't last forever but I've gotten good service life from every one I've had. Lately my source has been resale shops where you can buy them for around $5. With all the health concerns, they are readily available.

The only thing that I owned which showed any sign of deterioration from the ozone was a Halloween mask that I left directly in the air flow coming from the ozonator. After about six months of exposure with the unit on a low setting, the mask turned into dust. I was impressed by how thoroughly the mask was destroyed. So that said, note that there are some risks to your Halloween costumes.

[StoneCrab]

I am going to follow my own post with another thought regarding the health concerns. There are health risks to fluoride, bleach, paint solvents, paints, epoxy, gasoline, diesel exhaust and most any cleaning solution.

The ozone generator is a great tool which produces awesome results. Don't be afraid of it, but do use common sense as far as its use. Too much ozone isn't good for you or your equipment so use it appropriately.

[Lepke]

I have one on the high side of cost and use it in cabins and spaces not used recently. It does kill smells. I have a wood boat with deep bilges an operate it in the bilge space in the hope of stopping mold and rot. Although the best method I have found to stop the boat smell is low power venting my bilge areas. Outside the bilge doesn't seem to make smells, just collect them.

[A4Dit]

Here is a list and protocol for the chemical compatibility of ozone with other materials and the steps you should take to protect items made on the following list of materials.

The main thing to note is that ozone is a powerful oxidizer.

1 Remove all people and pets.

2 Remove and bag all plants, plants can be damaged or even killed by the ozone treatment.

3 Remove any sensitive and irreplaceable valuables such as oil paintings, silver jewelry, etc. Natural rubber is damaged very quickly by ozone. Items containing natural rubber can be removed or "bagged" and sealed to stop the ozone damage however complete removal is preferred.
Wrapping sensitive equipment that contains rubber-based products, in plastic garbage bags will help block ozone from reacting with them.

4 Turn off the water lines (if rubber hoses) to any appliances within the treatment area and "bag" them. If the hoses are cracked, discard them and replace before turning on the water again.

5 Remove and discard any area rugs, furniture, clothes, etc. that are of little value and are destined for disposal. Any items in the room that have a problem such as mold or heavy odours will increase the work and reduce the effectiveness of the ozone treatment.

6 Lift items off the floor. Mattresses or other items such as couch cushions and area rugs that you would like to have treated need to be lifted and hung or set to stand on end so the ozone can get to all surfaces. Clothing can be hung in a closet with the closet door open. Any furniture that is on the floor and stops air movement under it will also stop the treatment from doing its job on that part of the floor, lift these items if possible. Clothing, fabrics, or items that contain elastics or spandex should be bagged or removed.

There is also some evidence that ozone degrades some oil paintings. This may be due to ozone reacting with iron oxides in some pigments or degrading the oils.

The underlay of carpets may be affected by the ozone treatment, however, this generally only affects older carpeting.

Any sensitive device that may have rubber products must be removed or bagged.

Older foam mattresses or now memory foam mattresses may be adversely affected by the treatment, bag or remove before treatment.

Ozone Cracking
Ozone has a severe effect on rubber. Natural rubber is almost completely destroyed on contact with ozone. Elasticity decreases immediately and overall strength never returns.

Not all rubber is affected this way. Some modern synthetic rubber performs somewhat well in an ozone environment.

Sports equipment contains rubber and will break down if exposed to ozone too long.If possible, remove any rubbers straps before treatment. Do not expose the equipment for more than 20 minutes at a time in a sealed ozone chamber.



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Material Rating (Cole Parmer)
(Ozone Concentrations not specified)

ABS plastic B - Good
Acetal (Delrin®) C - Fair
Aluminum B - Good
Brass B - Good
Bronze B - Good
Buna-N (Nitrile) D - Severe Effect
Butyl A - Excellent
Cast iron C - Fair
Chemraz A - Excellent
Copper B - Good
CPVC A - Excellent
Durachlor-51 A - Excellent
Durlon 9000 A - Excellent
EPDM A - Excellent up to 100-deg F
EPR A - Excellent
Epoxy N/A
Ethylene-Propylene A - Excellent
Fluorosilicone A - Excellent
Galvanized Steel In Water (C - Fair),In Air (A - Excellent)
Glass A - Excellent
Hastelloy-C® A - Excellent
Hypalon® A - Excellent
Hytrel® C - Fair
Inconel A - Excellent
Kalrez A - Excellent up to 100-deg F
Kel-F® (PCTFE) A - Excellent
LDPE B - Good
Magnesium D - Poor
Monel C - Fair
Natural rubber D - Severe Effect
Neoprene C - Fair
NORYL® N/A
Norprene A - Excellent
Nylon D - Severe Effect
PEEK A - Excellent
Polyacrylate B - Good
Polycarbonate A - Excellent
Polypropylene C - Fair
Polysulfide B - Good
Polyurethane, Millable A - Excellent
PPS (Ryton®) N/A
PTFE (Teflon®) A - Excellent
PVC B - Good
PVDF (Kynar® ) A - Excellent
Santoprene A - Excellent
Silicone A - Excellent
Stainless steel - 304 B - Good/Excellent
Stainless steel - 316 A - Excellent
Steel (Mild, HSLA) D - Poor
Titanium A - Excellent
Tygon® B - Good
Vamac A - Excellent
Viton® A - Excellent
Zinc D - Poor

[Johnniegee]

I was in the car business for 44 years and ozone generators works like magic.
Your stinky car one day to smell fresh. A employee have a gallon of milk soak the carpet of their SUV. Two days in the sun later you could not sit in the car.
That one took 2 days. I do not think my exposure will shorten my life. Get on and seal up the boat and go fishing for a couple of days.

[StoneCrab]

That is a great post

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, A4Dit.

[A4Dit]

I appreciate the welcome! This is a great topic and I will add that this information comes from the safe practices training material for certified ozone shock technicians, of which I am one.

Best

[StoneCrab]

Please tell us more about what a certified ozone shock technician does.

[senormechanico]

Wife left broccoli in a pan on the stove in simmering water and forgot about it until I came in and said,
"What's that burning smell?"
We vented the stinky 1600 sq. ft. house for several hours with little effect, so I turned on our O3 generator overnight with all windows shut.
Next morning, no smell at all and we didn't die.

I haven't seen any degeneration of paintings, rubber etc.

[sdowney717]

Is it a temporary solution, an ozone generator? Or does it permanently destroy whatever organism is creating the stink?

A search shows plenty of negative information on them.
https://molekule.com/blog/ozone-generators/

I have used bleach to kill odor causing organisms in bilges.

[Luckyknot]

Originally Posted by sdowney717

Is it a temporary solution, an ozone generator? Or does it permanently destroy whatever organism is creating the stink?

A search shows plenty of negative information on them.
https://molekule.com/blog/ozone-generators/

I have used bleach to kill odor causing organisms in bilges.

It kills the organism which stops the smell. If the conditions that allowed the organism to thrive are still present then there is a high chance that the issue will return sooner or later. Same with any solution regarding this.

Ozone is not good for you bottom line. People choose to take their chances with these things and that is fine for them but don't let anybody tell you that it is perfectly safe because they used one and didn't die. Be aware of the risks and make sure that YOU are the one that decides to belittle them. Don't let somebody else convince you to risk your own well being.

[Bill Seal]

Having grown up in the LA basin in the '40s and '50s, I can guarantee that ozone (smog) is NOT your friend.

[transmitterdan]

Originally Posted by senormechanico

Wife left broccoli in a pan on the stove in simmering water and forgot about it until I came in and said,
"What's that burning smell?"
We vented the stinky 1600 sq. ft. house for several hours with little effect, so I turned on our O3 generator overnight with all windows shut.
Next morning, no smell at all and we didn't die.

I haven't seen any degeneration of paintings, rubber etc.

Maybe the O3 damaged the odor receptors in your nose.