Isopropyl Alcohol
Hi all.
Quick question.
In the past I've bought 70% isopropyl alcohol - I haven't had any issues with this, from what I can tell.
I know 90% is recommended.
What about 99% as this and 70% seems to be more common for me than 90% - is 99 going too far?
And 70%, is that ok?
Thanks
RE: Isopropyl Alcohol
The concentration determines how effective a given volume of alcohol will be at breaking up a given amount of grease. With a higher concentration you can use less alcohol. Your 71% should work, but you're likely to need a bit more of it. Even those little wipes can work, but you may need a lot of them.
This is the main reason washing under the sink is so effective. There's a lot more soap and water being applied than a splash of alcohol, and enough volume to wash crud away rather than just move it around.
The reason 71% is easier to find is that a bit more distilled water in the solution makes it more effective against bacteria, so it's more common in pharmacies.
and miscellaneous other tech projects
He is intelligent, but not experienced. His pattern indicates two dimensional thinking. -- Spock in Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan
RE: Isopropyl Alcohol
I agree with bobstro, Constant running water with a nice clean soapy sponge job done.
I know its not the answer to your question but may help others 🙂
RE: Isopropyl Alcohol
91% is now commonly available here in the states again.
RE: Isopropyl Alcohol
Soap and water is great, but a little bit too much work. Paper towel with IPA before each print is very fast and effective solution most of the time. Once there is too much fat on the sheet and starting to have adhesion issues, soap and water comes to help. I know that best thing would be to wear gloves when working with the print sheet and do not take it to the hands at all. But again, gloves? Too much work. No reason to make it so complicated. It should be fun to work with printer, not a lab exam.
Here 99% IPA is commonly available. In the spray for electronic parts cleaning or in the bottle. Works really well.
RE: Isopropyl Alcohol
I kindda hold with theory that alcohol just moves the crud about so I go belt and braces, boiling water and dish soap every 20-30 prints and alcohol wipe left to right and front to back every 2-5 prints - probably completely unnecessary but considering how long even a short print take don't fix it if it works.
RE: Isopropyl Alcohol
During the height of the pandemic, the 91% IPA was impossible to find, so for a while I switched to 'denatured' alcohol from Ace Hardware and then found a good source of 99% 'technical grade' IPA which I still have several bottles of.
The denatured alcohol (the term here in the States for ethanol which has been adulterated so it's nasty to drink) seems to cut the glue stick residue better than IPA but I seldom use glue stick and IPA seems to do a better job, overall, on both the Prusa steel plates and the glass plate on the 'other' printer.
Alcohol is my solvent of choice, mainly because I do not have a running-water sink handy to the home office, where the printers are located.
IPA
Heck, the prices are down. You can get a gallon for $32 or less.
During the height of the pandemic, the 91% IPA was impossible to find, so for a while I switched to 'denatured' alcohol from Ace Hardware and then found a good source of 99% 'technical grade' IPA which I still have several bottles of.
The denatured alcohol (the term here in the States for ethanol which has been adulterated so it's nasty to drink) seems to cut the glue stick residue better than IPA but I seldom use glue stick and IPA seems to do a better job, overall, on both the Prusa steel plates and the glass plate on the 'other' printer.
Alcohol is my solvent of choice, mainly because I do not have a running-water sink handy to the home office, where the printers are located.
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Chuck H
3D Printer Review Blog