Bottles Are ‘Bombs’

I am dismayed that the article of the resurgence of home-delivered seltzer (“2 Tiny Seltzer Firms Are Making a Splash,” June 3) did not adequately stress the dangers of these pressurized glass “bombs.”

Buried in the text of the article are the facts that the bottles are pressurized at 130 pounds per square inch and that they are old, heavy and sometimes break.

Unfortunately, I discovered these facts the hard way last year, when a seltzer bottle on the floor of our home tipped onto its side and exploded, propelling sharp glass fragments more than 25 feet. One of these fragments struck my then 7-year-old son and inflicted a gash that required several stitches. We were very lucky that none of the fragments struck him in an eye--based on the force of the explosion, he could easily have lost it.

I considered changing to the rechargeable glass siphons sold in department stores, which are wrapped in mesh. Should one of these bottles explode, though, I do not know if the mesh would be adequate to contain the glass. Consumers should beware of home-delivered seltzer bombs and use either store-bought seltzer, as we now do, or the somewhat more risky rechargeable soda siphons.

GARRY MARGOLIS

Los Angeles