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Crock Crack Pot

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Categories: Experiences and daily life

Word count/read time: 459 words; 2 minutes

It was time to mix the electrolyte solution for my oxyhydrogen torch. Nearly four pounds of potassium hydroxide are dissolved in a little more than four liters of distilled water.

The manual calls for a 15% KOH solution but doesn't clarify by weight or volume so I looked up both online for comparison. I found myriad different answers for each situation. Some pages even contradicted themselves! This is basic math, right? If the company had any brains they'd use molarity, an unambiguous scientific standard. Hello, McFly!

The best, or at least the most logical, thing to use as a container seemed to be the crock pot ceramic insert. After all, I had used it for hot pickling. Ceramics are incredibly resilient to most acid or alkaline attacks and since it is a cooking vessel, designed to withstand higher temperatures.

I cleaned it out, dried it, put the water in, measured the chemicals, and added them to water while stirring. Waited for the impressive exothermic reaction to kick in, sometimes bringing the water temperature to boiling.

Then there was a ping. Please be the metal plate underneath shifting/expanding from the heat? No such luck. The pot cracked and was leaking! It didn't make sense; regardless, I was seconds away from a tidal wave of highly caustic scalding liquid ruining my day.

There was no time to salvage anything. Dumping the dish wholesale wasn't an option for fear that it would fall apart when picked up. I had the measuring cup nearby and bailed the liquid into a plastic bin.

(Putting the ceramic dish on an aluminum sheet wasn't the best but I didn't foresee this disaster. KOH solution dissolves aluminum, faster when it's hot, and gives off hydrogen gas. It could have turned fiery. I'll buy a glass or plastic container just for this purpose and put it inside a plastic tote for additional safety.)

Maybe it was best that it happened now instead of when the crock pot was being used as a hot pickle bath? Who knows what disaster could have unfolded if the chemicals flooded the electronics or heating element.

A $100 ruined crock pot and $30 of chemicals figuratively down the drain. And hours of cleanup with plenty of cursing. For real!

There is a happy-ish ending. The initial concentration of KOH was too strong so that could've been bad for the machine. That meant I had enough to redo the mixture properly without reordering.

I was not looking forward to buying another crock pot. Fortunately, a second-hand store had the ceramic dish for just a hair over $2. Kaching. The broken one will be perfect for a bonsai dish; the crack won't matter as long as the dish doesn't fall apart while drilling drainage holes.

Posted by M: May 4, 2026

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