The lab was throwing out this vacuum dessicator because the lid is stuck.
I want to turn it into a terrarium / ecosystem, but first I have to get the lid unstuck.. Things I have tried:
- Dissolving the hardened grease between the ground surfaces in alcohol
- Softening the grease with sunflower oil
- Heating the interface with a hair dryer for almost half an hour
I’m afraid to put more heat in it because I don’t want the thing to explode. I know it’s safe to -1 bar (relative to atmospheric pressure) but I don’t know how much positive pressure it could take. It’s pyrex glass though so it should be able to take concentrated heat.
Maybe I’ll have to make a wooden jig to slide the lid off with a lever, after applying the hair dryer again to soften up the old grease.
To be continued.