Hang this poster in the prep room or beside the demonstration bench, where demonstrations are planned.
What is on the poster
Metal salts color a flame. No flammable liquid is needed.
Do
- Dip wooden splints in metal-salt solutions and hold them briefly in a burner flame: the same colors, no flammable liquid.
- Goggles on, hair back, nothing flammable near the burner, the teacher at the bench.
- Where even that is more risk than the lesson is worth, show a vetted video.
Never
- The rainbow demonstration with methanol or another flammable solvent in a K-12 room.
- Pour more fuel near a flame, or onto something smoldering.
- A bulk container of a flammable liquid at a demonstration.
- A flammable liquid near spectators.
Any demonstration with a flammable chemical: the CSB's four lessons
- Do not use bulk containers when small quantities are enough.
- Written procedures, effective training and the required protective equipment.
- A comprehensive hazard review before the demonstration.
- A safety barrier between the demonstration and the audience.
Methanol vapor travels unseen, ignites at room temperature and flashes back into the container. Reno, 2014: methanol poured onto smoldering cotton hurt 13 people.
The poster draws a wooden splint, soaked in a metal-salt solution, held briefly in a burner flame: the same colors with no open container of fuel near the flame.
Built to the Science Safety Teaching Standard
This poster carries the SSTS mark. Like every Science Safety course, it is built to the Science Safety Teaching Standard (SSTS): every rule on it is taken from the body that governs it, at its current edition, and the source is printed on the poster, so you can check it yourself.
Stay current
When you get this poster, it is saved to your Science Safety account. If we revise the poster, or the Methanol Safety module it comes from changes, we will email you, and the latest version will be waiting under Downloads in your account. Every revision carries its revision number and date at the bottom of the poster, so you can tell at a glance whether the copy on your wall is current.
Printing and hanging
- One-page PDF, US letter (8.5 by 11 inches).
- White background, so it prints clearly on any office or classroom printer without using much ink.
- Hang it in the prep room or beside the demonstration bench.
- The QR code in the blue title band opens this page, so anyone can get their own copy.
- The QR code at the bottom opens the Methanol Safety module.
Learn more
The Methanol Safety module teaches the full topic this poster comes from.
Sources:
- Key Lessons for Preventing Incidents from Flammable Chemicals in Educational Demonstrations (2014) – U.S. Chemical Safety Board (reviewed October 2, 2026)
- Statement warning against methanol in combustion demonstrations (2014) – U.S. Chemical Safety Board (reviewed October 2, 2026)
- Safety Alert: The Rainbow Demonstration – ACS Committee on Chemical Safety (reviewed October 2, 2026)
- Safety Alert: Do Not Use Methanol-Based Flame Tests on Open Laboratory Desks – National Science Teaching Association (reviewed October 2, 2026)
Poster SSP-0053, Rev. 1, October 2026.
