Tricaine methanesulfonate (CAS 886-86-2): storage and disposal

Fish rooms are damp, so the first check at the shelf is the lid. The powder is water soluble, which means a humid room and a loose cap will clump it. Keep the jar tightly closed in a dry cupboard, away from tank water, wet benches and spray from the water system. Keep it out of reach of the stock tanks and apart from food and fish feed. Because the classification includes respiratory irritation, avoid raising dust when scooping. Label any made-up stock solution with the date and the strength, and keep it separate from the powder. A jar with no date goes on the list.

Fresh powder is white and free-flowing. Clumping or a hard cake means damp has entered the jar, and a jar kept in a fish room can take in moisture quickly. Yellowing or browning of the powder, and of made-up stock solution, is what aquarium staff watch for, and discoloured stock is usually discarded. Beyond that, check for a perished lid, powder on the outside of the jar or the shelf, a label made illegible by splashes, and a jar with no date. Little else changes in this salt. Any caked, discoloured or unlabelled jar belongs on the collection list.

By specialist collection only. It never goes down the drain or into general waste. It is normally packed in a non-regulated or low hazard laboratory pack with compatible chemicals.

Begin by recording what is in each container: dry powder in its original jar, or made-up stock solution, with the date made and the volume. Fish rooms drain to water systems, so it is worth saying plainly that unwanted solution is not tipped into a tank, a drain or a sink. A university uses 16 05 06*, and a veterinary practice 18 02 08 in the code list. The paperwork follows the hazardous route. Powder and solution are listed as separate items, and a registered carrier collects them in compatible groups. Nobody should try to treat spent solution first.

Usually held as: fish anaesthetic.

Part-used bottles and full containers are both fine. Tell us the size and how many, and an estimate is enough for a first price.