Alternatives to IPA as degreaser
In the current environment, IPA of essentially any purity, and certainly not 90+% is essentially unavailable. I have a small supply that I bought like a year ago but it doesn't seem to be working terribly well at the moment. Is there a suitable alternative that is safe for the machine but actually available for purchase?
Also: The hackerspace that I'm a member of is gearing up to produce face shields (though not of the prusa design, they take too long to print). There is no supply of either ethanol or IPA available for disinfection, is there something else that can be readily found for purchase right now that would suit that purpose?
RE: Alternatives to IPA as degreaser
I've been able to get Denatured Alcohol at home improvement and hardware stores. It is pretty much the same as IPA and works for me. You can buy it by the gallon in the paint section.
RE: Alternatives to IPA as degreaser
@cory
re: "It is pretty much the same as IPA"
Depending on what is used to denature the ethyl alcohol it may be OK to use or may not. For instance methyl alcohol which would probably be OK. Others may not be kind tor the build plate – here is a list of some things used:
- Isopropanol
- methyl ethyl ketone
- methyl isobutyl ketone
- pyridine
- benzene
- diethyl phthalate
- naphtha
I would recommend checking the label before using denatured alcohol on a build plate.
Jerry
RE: Alternatives to IPA as degreaser
@jerry-v2
That is precisely my concern (nevermind that it's pretty toxic). I'm wary of denatured alcohol because I don't necessarily know what's in it, or which brands are "safe". If someone knows, that would be great.
RE: Alternatives to IPA as degreaser
Did a super quick search and found this, it claims it's denatured with IPA and methanol and should have a very low water content... but it also says it's not for home use
RE: Alternatives to IPA as degreaser
@corey-m7
I think methyl alcohol is the problem and should it not be used like IPA on the skin nor drank like ethyl alcohol as it can kill you. A little on the hand I'm guessing would not be a problem.
I think I would go ahead and use the product but in a well ventilated area and probably not worry about gloves. Look up the MDS for methyl alcohol and see what it says.
Jerry
RE: Alternatives to IPA as degreaser
@jerry-v2
There are apparently a couple things with methanol. For one it's pretty toxic (though, so is IPA). That's exactly why it's added to ethanol to denature it. Another is that it has a really high vapor pressure relative to IPA, so it will tend to evaporate too fast to wipe (so you need more of it) plus the fume and fire hazards that come with that. I'm hesitant to use denatured alcohol (though it is mostly ethanol) for these reasons, though I'm not sure where IPA can actually be found right now (at a reasonable price)
RE: Alternatives to IPA as degreaser
@corey-m7
There is always dish detergent and water 😀
I print almost entirely PETG and quit using IPA some time ago - just the occasionally trip to the kitchen sink and Windex between prints.
RE: Alternatives to IPA as degreaser
I don't know where you're located, but I just ordered some more IPA from ebay; there's still quite a lot from UK suppliers, though the shipping is a little slower than usual
RE: Alternatives to IPA as degreaser
@ghogu14
Northeast USA. There's essentially nothing to be found retail around here, nor on amazon. Ebay might be an option though probably at a huge markup. Someone at my hackerspace is attempting to get some through McMaster Carr, so we'll see how that goes.
RE: Alternatives to IPA as degreaser
I've been using 91% denatured alcohol before I bought 2 bottles of IPA. It stinks and you should not drink it (why would you drink chemicals sold in hardware stores anyway???) but for cleaning plates - it does the job.
RE: Alternatives to IPA as degreaser
Use dish soap to clean bed, and start printing, more is not needed.
Petg could hold on to much to the bed(pei), use glue stick or window cleaning spray, at the moment i use both not to print petg, but this could damage the bed(the pei bed).
RE: Alternatives to IPA as degreaser
RE: Alternatives to IPA as degreaser
So I'll add this here instead of creating a new thread - I have a small stockpile of ISO, but haven't been able to find dawn or nearly any dish soap in weeks for heavy cleaning. I finally found a bottle of "Palmolive Free & Clear" and it worked great on my smooth sheets. Both had about 200 prints per side removed in the last week. First layer went from spaghetti time to brand new. Just an FYI for anyone wondering about alternatives to actual Dawn.
Is your printer grinding? Bearings squeaking? Motors smoking?
Step 1) Wash your Steel Sheet
Step 2) Return to Step 1
RE: Alternatives to IPA as degreaser
Every dish soap will work, try to look for concentrated dish soap, this is stronger.
RE: Alternatives to IPA as degreaser
@corey-m7
As of 3/5/2021, there are several screens full of 99% IPA on Amazon (Smile). Perhaps Amazon filters by state. I'm in Texas, where people can still carry guns in public places, so you can get almost anything here.
RE: Alternatives to IPA as degreaser
The situation has improved markedly since April 2020 when this thread was started. Just like toilet paper.
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