Hazzardous products may be lurking in thrift and resale shops

WARNING:
HAZZARDOUS PRODUCTS MAY BE
LURKING IN THRIFT AND RESALE SHOPS

Every year, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) works with manufacturers and distributors to recall around three-hundred potentially hazardous products. Some of these products include home appliances, sporting equipment, toys, clothing, power tools and many other products that people use in their homes or in recreational settings. In a 1999 study, the CPSC found that sixty-nine percent of resale and thrift stores were selling products that had either been banned, recalled or did not meet current safety standards. Because thrift stores receive thousands of times, they have a difficult task trying to determine unsafe products.

CPSC is attempting to solve the problem by working with thrift store managers through training, by issuing alert bulletins and by publishing brochures. Watching for banned products is strictly voluntary with the exception that California says it is against the law to sell a child’s crib that has been recalled and does not meet CPSC standards. Even though CPSC has teamed up with amazon.com and ebay to make it easier for consumers to protect themselves, a CPSC official says that it is strictly "buyer beware." While you can obtain a list of hazardous products from CPSC ( visit http://www.cpsc.gov) or telephone (800) 638-2772 (product recalls from 1973-1989) and you can obtain current recalls by subscribing to CPSC’s recall notice list, the burden remains with the public to become more educated about hazardous products. Large thrifts, such as the Salvation Army, Goodwill and the D.A.V. Veteran’s

Thrift stores post safety alerts in their warehouses to allow workers the opportunity to watch for potentially dangerous items. But with the volume of donations received, it is almost impossible to catch all of it. Smaller resale shops and smaller thrifts are less likely to screen for such materials. One store in the North Coastal area noted that the smaller thrifts "have no real method to determine unsafe donations." CPSC is trying to change that as they believe they all want to help -- none would knowingly place a dangerous product on sale.

The most recent bulletin issued to resale shops and thrift stores came out in January of 2004. Here is a partial list of the most popular hazardous items (go to CPSC web site for complete list):

THE PRODUCT	THE HAZARDS	WHAT TO DO OR LOOK FOR
Used Cribs	Possible suffocation /strangulation (more infants die involving cribs than from any other nursery product)	Inspect to be sure slats are spaced no more than 2/8" apart; no missing/loose slats. Mattress size: the mattress is too small if you can fit more than two fingers between the mattress edge and the crib’s side. Corner posts should be no more than 1/16" high. No cutouts in the headboard/footboard-those can entrap a child’s head. No unsecured mattress support hangers; children can be entrapped and suffocate.
Mesh-Sided Play Yards & Cribs, Portable Wooden Playpens	Suffocation, strangulation; choking from being trapped, and caught when hinge collapses; a teething infant can chew off vinyl pieces covering a play yard’s railing and choke.	Mesh-sided play yards and portable cribs with drop sides have warning labels that say the sides should never be left in the down position; top rails with a center hinge automatically lock when the rails are lifted into the normal position; no rivets should be protruding; no tears or loose threads; slats should be no more than 2-1/8" apart.
Infant Car Seats-Carriers	When used as a car carrier, the Century handle can break, al lowing the infant to fall to the ground. With the others, locks on each side of the seat can release without warning or can move and cause the seat to rotate suddenly, causing the infant to be ejected.	Look for these names: Century (Jan. 1991-July 1997); Evenflo Dec. 15, 1995-July 27, 1997); Cosco (Arriva, Turnabout-Mar. 1, 1995-Sept. 8, 1997); Kolcraft (Infant Rider, Secura, Travel-About, Plus 4-5, Playskool Infant Car Seat- Jan. 1, 1993-June 30, 1999.)
CLOTHING DRAWSTRINGS	Hood or neck drawstring can catch on objects, such as a playground slide and cause a child to strangle. Strings can also catch in the door of a bus or car and cause a child to be dragged, killed or injured.	Remove the drawstrings on children aged 14 months to 14 years old.
HAIR DRYERS	Hand-held dryers without an immersion protection device. If accidentally dropped into water without this device, electrocution is possible.	Look for the immersion protection device, a rectangular shaped plug at the end of the cord (usually on new dryers). Also look for certification mark of a testing lab, such as UL or ETL on the hair dryer itself.
HALOGEN FLOOR LAMPS	Fire is the main hazard.	Look for a wire or glass guard over the glass bulb shield in the bowl at the top of the lamp. The top of the guard should be three inches from the glass bulb shield. (Free wire guards are available from: Catalina Lighting, 18191 NW 68th St., Miami FL 33015). Tubular halogen light bulb should not be over 300 watts, even if the lamp states 500 watts is ok. Plug should be polarized (one blade wider than the other). No mechanical damage on the cord or signs of corrosion, bent or loose parts on the lamp itself.
SMALL ELECTRICAL KITCHEN APPLIANCES	Small electrical appliances can cause shock, electrocution, burns, and fire. Property loss from these fires amounts to almost $24 million a year.	Each appliance should have a certification mark (UL); the exterior metal surface should not be corroded, cracked, deformed or severely discolored; nothing should rattle around inside when shaken; no discoloration or deterioration of the plastic between the blades of the plug; no damage to the plug or power cord such as severely bent plug blades or cord abrasion; no damaged, cracked, chipped, loose or missing feet or supports; handles should not be loose or missing; test on a UL-listed power strip with a built-in circuit breaker if possible. Test each appliance at each of its settings; for example, a toaster oven should operate properly at both the "bake" and "toast" settings. Turn each heat-producing appliance that contains a fan on and off at least a dozen times; the fan should start turning at once and operate continuously, smoothly and quietly. Make sure that appliances turn on and shut off when they are supposed to. A coffee maker with a built-in clock timer should turn on at the preset time, then shut off automatically.