Processed food in bags

saracelica

saracelica

Pattern Altitude
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saracelica
Not to be funny but we found out the hard way that "popcorn ready to eat" those found in the chips aisle do not like to go above 7200ft. (not sure what happens when they start in places like Colorado) Had a bag for snacks and at 7201 on the altimeter the bag exploded open. Sounded like the door opening. So much for ever having food in the plane again.
 
I carry bottled coke and you need be just careful like you would if you suspected someone might have dropped it recently.

I've watched chips and the like blimp up at altitude and I've had a couple pop over the years.
 
As I've said before, no food is consumed in my aircraft and no liquids more opaque than distilled water.

I am absolutely fanatical about this. Aircraft interiors are breathtakingly expensive. One of the many reasons I'll never put an aircraft on leaseback is because renters don't care, and will take all their favorite snacks to stain the upholstery.
 
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Actually it never really occurred to me that bagged food would be an issue, but I rarely travel with food to begin with, and when I do, it's some sort of packed lunch like a salad or a burrito or something for later. But I don't eat in the plane. I hate eating in cars too.

I'll drink bottled water on a long flight. Regarding the Coca Cola incident, one of my rear seat passenger brainacs decided he needed a caffeine fix at ten thousand feet. "Don't open that...." It made a horrible mess all over the place.
 
saracelica said:
Not to be funny but we found out the hard way that "popcorn ready to eat" those found in the chips aisle do not like to go above 7200ft. (not sure what happens when they start in places like Colorado).
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They are noticeably inflated in the supermarket at Colorado Springs.

But I never had a bag explode even at the summit of Pike's Peak. Are you sure a passenger wasn't messing with it, or something heavy was on top?
 
Not sure if anyone messed with it...it was by my feet. May have to try the experiment again... :)
 
//begin recommendation to sara

Try poking a small hole in the bag the next time before the flight.

end recommendation to sara//
 
I've had a couple bags pop but they didn't throw contents around. I do like crushing water bottles by draining them at altitude, capping, and then descending.

I carry two wool blankets in "space" bags (the kind that seal and then vacuum the air from). They inflate and deflate on long climbs and descents. They're: "Take up more space at altitude" rather than space saving bags...
 
I've heard of potato chip bags popping at altitude and one friend had a paint can lid pop off. He said it gets your attention.
 
Try opening a thermos of hot coffee at altitude.
 
saracelica said:
Not to be funny but we found out the hard way that "popcorn ready to eat" those found in the chips aisle do not like to go above 7200ft. (not sure what happens when they start in places like Colorado) Had a bag for snacks and at 7201 on the altimeter the bag exploded open. Sounded like the door opening. So much for ever having food in the plane again.
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Putting a large bag of chips in the back of the plane, then taking his student up "as high as we can go" is in Hubby's bag of tricks for just before the checkride.

So, how did you handle the "emergency"?
 
I was just the passenger at the time. My husband looked to make sure the doors were still attached and carried on as if nothing happened. We were over the mountains by that point so no good landing zone.
 
When any passenger in my plane brings a bottled beverage (no cans allowed, period) I always ask them to open on taxi and take a swig first, then reseal it. That has always done the trick.

The only time we've had cans in the airplane was one day when I was going to visit some friends by air, I was supposed to fly over their house when I came in and they would come meet me at the airport - I brought along a sack full of empty beer cans and my passenger dumped them out the window as we went over the house, they were still laughing when they met up with us at the airport.
 
We take cans of soda and bags of chips back and forth from Colorado to sea level all the time without incident. Bags of chips don't ride very well in unpressurized baggage to 40,000', though. :redface:
 
saracelica said:
Not sure if anyone messed with it...it was by my feet. May have to try the experiment again... :)
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Sounds normal to me. I was driving on my way to camp in the eastern Sierra one summer, and just as I was near Tioga Pass (9941 feet) a bag of potato chips in the back seat went BAM! :hairraise:
 
When we travel cross country we bring food and water. Any chips are repackaged in zip-lock bags snack size so that we will have several resealable bags from on original bag. We also carry a small cooler with ice. These things do make traveling much nicer.

BTW I learned this the hard way, cover the PTT button with a deflated balloon or an unlubricated condom. If you don't do this pieces of salt will get into the button and ruin it.

I'm sure most of you do this but carry a survival bag with you at all times.
 
airguy said:
The only time we've had cans in the airplane was one day when I was going to visit some friends by air, I was supposed to fly over their house when I came in and they would come meet me at the airport - I brought along a sack full of empty beer cans and my passenger dumped them out the window as we went over the house, they were still laughing when they met up with us at the airport.
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Pfff hahahahahahaa
 
Ask Jay Honeck about what fun you can have with a bag of marshmallows and an Ercoupe.
 
AuntPeggy said:
Putting a large bag of chips in the back of the plane, then taking his student up "as high as we can go" is in Hubby's bag of tricks for just before the checkride.

So, how did you handle the "emergency"?
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One of the many reasons no airplane of mine will ever go on leaseback. Ever.
 
AuntPeggy said:
Putting a large bag of chips in the back of the plane, then taking his student up "as high as we can go" is in Hubby's bag of tricks for just before the checkride.
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Goodness. Does he provide the change of underwear?

Please tell me "hubby" isn't this guy:
bombsquad3kn.jpg
 
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I can't really read the altimeter, but IIRC, we're about 10K near KABQ. I decided to open it before it blew and wasted them.

One time to mess with my mom, I blew up a bunch of water balloons with air as much as I could, and filled the cargo compartment. Took of from about 500'MSL and they started blowing around 6K. Freaked her out, and she hates flying to begin with. Pretty funny if you ask me.
 
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HighFlyingA380 said:
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I can't really read the altimeter, but IIRC, we're about 10K near KABQ. I decided to open it before it blew and wasted them.

One time to mess with my mom, I blew up a bunch of water balloons with air as much as I could, and filled the cargo compartment. Took of from about 500'AGL and they started blowing around 6K. Freaked her out, and she hates flying to begin with. Pretty funny if you ask me.
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Excellent plan for helping people enjoy aviation. :screwy:

Sent via teletype
 
cheap weenie said:
Excellent plan for helping people enjoy aviation. :screwy:

Sent via teletype
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It's all good; she started laughing about it pretty quick. We've had a bit a prank war going for about 10 years now. Back when I did that, she def. had it coming.

Since then, she's flown with me quite a bit, and has recently been asking when we're going next. She still doesn't like flying commercial, but enjoys it with me. I guess it's just I take a bit of time to show her the plane and get here familiar with how it works, and why it won't just fall from the sky if the engine fails.
 
Several years ago while driving our motor home over some peaks in New Mexico I kept hearing popping noises behind me, that evening in the campground I opened the cabinet that stored all the chip bags to find all the bags had popped open.
 
I thought commercial aircraft were pressurized to 8000' inside. How come things aren't a popping all over the place?
 
mattaxelrod said:
I thought commercial aircraft were pressurized to 8000' inside. How come things aren't a popping all over the place?
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I'm guessing the airlines buy enough packaged goods to negotiate appropriate packaging to prevent that.
 
Happened to me the other day. I usually carry some snacks with me because my girlfriend is a diabetic and I need to have stuff in case her blood sugars get low. Anyway, the bag blew at about 10,500. Oh well. Luckily I had the snacks inside a duffle bag so they didn't do much damage. We don't usually fly that high but curiosity got the best of me and I wanted to see how high the airplane would go
 
Ive tested many food products in the nose of our jet.

41,000 will pop just about anything but a can of soda. But it will pop the cans ends out!
 
n20junkie said:
41,000 will pop just about anything but a can of soda. But it will pop the cans ends out!
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Interesting - that's only about 12psi differential from sea level, I'm surprised the cans don't have more margin in them against failing.

On the other hand, my company builds pressure vessels and we design them for 150% of rated pressure and test them to 130%, in this case the max load is approaching 180%, so yeah....
 
airguy said:
Interesting - that's only about 12psi differential from sea level, I'm surprised the cans don't have more margin in them against failing.

On the other hand, my company builds pressure vessels and we design them for 150% of rated pressure and test them to 130%, in this case the max load is approaching 180%, so yeah....
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Can you get me good prices on separators? We use stainless steel vessels on the project I head up. I also need a new contactor for a glymine unit I'm trying to piece together...
 
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