Question about cleaning with vinegar

[ruffledfeathers]

i saw a post on Facebook today from the aviary where i got Gilbert that a family lost three of their parrots from using distilled white vinegar to clean their dishwasher. they assumed (as i think i would assume too) that using a natural product like vinegar was totally safe. however when heated for that long in the dishwasher, it released fumes which killed the birds.

i was going to use vinegar in my coffee pot but now i'm not so sure about the safety of heating vinegar with my birds in the house!!

anyone else have any specific info or stories like this??

 

[Jtbirds]

well that is a surprise and how did they find out that killed the birds? did they have necropsy's done because if not then there is no guarntee.

I run vinegar through my coffee pot quiet often and use vinger to clean up my cages from time to time. I have had no issues although i use apple cider vinegar as it is better. I even use vinegar in my birds drinking water from time to time as it helps even out there insides. and if a bird gets stinky poop you can use vinegar to clear it up, soo i really doubt this was the cause of death and i hope they got necropsys just to be sure if not then they may have a contagious diease they need to get help with. these are just possibilities not guarntees.

 

[ruffledfeathers]

This is how the post read, and i looked for more info online briefly but didn't see anything and came here because with so many of us, there's often some info that a few know and the rest of us haven't heard.

"He did verifiy that two Board Certified Vets did attest to the fact that white vinegar brought to a high temperature does emit TOXIC fumes for birds. I also checked the MSDS sheets for white vinegar and sure enough it states that when heated white vinegar emits toxic fumes similar to carbon dioxide. They had placed white distilled vinegar in the dishwasher and run it to clean it."

 

[ruffledfeathers]

When i look at the MSDS it says to avoid excessive heat and flames.....maybe if you use it in a dishwasher to clean it and then go through the full 'sanitize' cycle after, where it gets very hot, it causes the problem?

 

[Jtbirds]

sounds like it, is that just for white vinegar or apple cider? I had always used to applie cider vinegar as its better imo.

 

[ruffledfeathers]

the MSDS for apple cider vinegar says:

Toxic gasses and vapors may be released in a fire involving​

concentrated vinegars.

So i suppose it is the same situation---if it is VERY hot, it can be problematic.

 

[Jtbirds]

Thanks so much ruffled that is something I didn't know about vinegar. I'll still use it just never you know heat it up.

 

[henpecked]

I too use apple cider vinegar in my bird's water. Yes , i could see where burning or turning it into a gas could be a problem.I think cleaning the coffee pot would be OK , but a lot, in the dishwasher, could be bad.