General purpose cleaner/degreaser?

Gerald Sylvester wrote in message . com...
I don't want to use anything that will hurt
the paint, aluminum, or rubber.

Mineral spirits.

mineral spirits will eat away at plastics and rubber. I can't
say it works but isopropyl alcohol works well at work where
materials and residue are quite sensitive (linear accelerators
with exotic materials and lots of radiation). If you don't
want a residue get high grade (90% plus) but you might
have to get that at a special store as it is considered
a HazMat.

Gerald

Gerald,
I've been using mineral spirits for many years and haven't seen any
problems with plastics or rubber.
Can you post a spec or document which states this?
If i'm causing a potential problem, I'd like to know about it.

Thanks

Dave

"dave" wrote in message
om...
Gerald Sylvester wrote in message
. com...
I don't want to use anything that will hurt
the paint, aluminum, or rubber.

Mineral spirits.

mineral spirits will eat away at plastics and rubber. I can't
say it works but isopropyl alcohol works well at work where
materials and residue are quite sensitive (linear accelerators
with exotic materials and lots of radiation). If you don't
want a residue get high grade (90% plus) but you might
have to get that at a special store as it is considered
a HazMat.

Gerald

Gerald,
I've been using mineral spirits for many years and haven't seen any
problems with plastics or rubber.
Can you post a spec or document which states this?
If i'm causing a potential problem, I'd like to know about it.

Thanks

Dave

I use it also and have never had a problem. It's great stuff on grease and
oil and dirt cheap. It is the same as Stoddard solvent which has been used
on aircraft since the Wright brothers.

Dave,

I've been using mineral spirits for many years and haven't seen any
problems with plastics or rubber.
Can you post a spec or document which states this?
If i'm causing a potential problem, I'd like to know about it.

well i did a very quick search using yahoo for "mineral spirts plastic
damage." I came up with some non-definitive stuff including:


http://www.logwell.com/tech/servtips/cleaning.html
Our work bench is supplied with a MENDA dispenser full of garden variety
mineral spirits. Buy the low odor or deodorized kind; the really cheap
stuff does smell stronger. Mineral spirits is useful for degreasing and
is generally safe for short term use on most plastics. Real Turpentine
is more aggressive than mineral spirits, smells stronger, and is more
expensive.


http://www.automotiveforums.com/t44343.html
I tried it on my tails and it had no effect on anything. But my friend
tried it on his interior plastic pieces and it melted and warped the
hell out of them. I guess it all depends on the type of plastic you're
using it on.


http://www.speedballart.com/faq.asp
How do I clean my brayer after using oil based block printing ink?
You can use mineral spirits to clean the brayer by wiping the brayer
roller off with a cloth dampened with mineral spirits. DO NOT IMMERSE
THE BRAYER-this will damage the plastic core and ruin the brayer.


admittedly, that is not rock solid evidence but it does appear mineral
spirits damages some plastics. It also sounds like it is also a
function of how it is applied.

I'll ask my coworkers who did this research a while ago and maybe
it is related to aviation, maybe not. I do know that the ultra pure
methanol (90% or higher) is very clear, not-insanely agressive cleaner.
It also does not leave any residue (lower grades will leave a residue
though). I'm not sure if mineral spirits will leave a residue. Granted
the residue might or might not be a factor. With the applications
at work where our equipment can put out upwards of 20000 monitor units
(MU, amount of emitted photon/electron radiation) per day, pretty much
any contaminant gets cross-linked, turns gummy or turns brittle and can
make a mess out of moving parts.

BTW, I'm definitely not claiming to be an expert in this. Just from
the little info I know, it *could* be damaging. Granted, a little
knowledge is a lot more dangerous than knowing nothing or knowing a lot.

gerald sylvester