Difference Between Vodka/Rubbing Alcohol/Everclear?
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Haha, nope. I use shitty stuff that gets left at my house, Jim Beam and what not. A couple ounces mixed with a pint of everclear makes ALOT of cleaner.
SPC uses Denatured Alcohol for cleaning & retorts (at least as of 4 years ago according to the thread noted above by Embers).
From the Klean Strip Denatured Alcohol MSDS (provided by rcstan of SPC in the cited thread):
Thanks for the heads-up, Embers.
Sticking with 190-proof Grain Alcohol or high-proof Rum.
From the Klean Strip Denatured Alcohol MSDS (provided by rcstan of SPC in the cited thread):
Methanol is too toxic for use on pipes. I wouldn't buy an estate pipe cleaned with Denatured Alcohol. (Nor am I keen on acetone used to strip finishes during some restorations).
Thanks for the heads-up, Embers.
Sticking with 190-proof Grain Alcohol or high-proof Rum.
It took forever to remember where I saw that then remembered I started that thread about a Ben Wade I got from pipestud.
Well, between ethanol and iso I would say its personal preference, they serve the same purpose and whatever you're comfortable with. For me, I know enough to know that While iso is harmful if drank (although I've know bad alcoholics that in a pinch will drink it and kill their organs in the process) I've worked with some of the deadliest chemicals on the planet (vx nerve agent and the like) that the extremely small possibility that there might be a few nano grams of iso that doesnt evorpate off the pipe after a day of rest is so slim that it doesnt concern me in the slightest since the air itself has more harmful chemicals in it (and tobacco smoke itself). I still stand by my statement about denatured alcohol tho. Not so much about the concern of the methanol (that would evaporate just as quickly as the iso and ethanol) but unless you know for certain what they put into it to denature it its rolling the dice for sure. If it was JUST methylated, then that's fine. But get that bitter compound or everything else they toss in there and its game over. Your pipe would quickly be ruined.
Is an everclear/bourbon mix ok for cleaning all types of stems as well? Acrylic, Vulcanite, Ebonite, Kryptonite, Meteorite, etc?
I would not use anything I couldn’t drink just for safety sake. If you can’t get everclare use a hi grade vodka. All so if you do use real moonshine not the store bought kind be sure to pour a beer bottle cap full and light it up the flame will be blue if it was distilled correctly. Any other color don’t use it or drink it.
I've used Everclear and ISO and don't notice any difference other than Everclear is sweeter smelling.
Yea there is a big difference actually. With solvents I always try to get get as close to 100 percent pure without breaking the bank...Without getting into the details of how mixed solvents work and all the chemistry behind that, just know there is a pretty big difference. But just as a simple example, take a pure product and mix it with a couple percent of impurities and it can change a whole reaction. It will change everything from its melting point and freezing point to its density. In some really sensitive reactions even something like a drop of water will ruin the whole reaction and give you an entirely different product. That's why there is a huge difference In price from consumers grade chemicals to 100 percent pure chemist grade chemicals
Everclear is better than other forms of alcohol to clean tars and other residues drom pipes because it has the least flavor and lowest percentage of water. This makes it a better solvent and doesn't soak into the briar. Alcohol doesn’t absorb well in wood. That’s why whiskey gets stronger in a barrel, rather than weaker. The water absorbs more readily and is evaporated at a much faster rate than the water in the whiskey.
That said, on rare occasion, I use high proof rum as a pipe sweetener by dipping my pipe cleaner into it.
That said, on rare occasion, I use high proof rum as a pipe sweetener by dipping my pipe cleaner into it.
Hi there, could someone help me to identify what this pipe stem is made of and how I could best bring it back some dignity?
I smoke mainly cob pipes with plastic stems.
70% rubbing alcohol discolored the stems, while 50% rubbing alcohol did not. there might be some difference in how the two alcohols affect vulcanite and acrylic stems, but I couldn’t say for sure.
Bottom line for me is that I ain’t performing surgery with my pipes so sterilization is not necessary. I just want the brown stuff out of my stems. So 40 proof whiskey is just fine by me, too.
70% rubbing alcohol discolored the stems, while 50% rubbing alcohol did not. there might be some difference in how the two alcohols affect vulcanite and acrylic stems, but I couldn’t say for sure.
Bottom line for me is that I ain’t performing surgery with my pipes so sterilization is not necessary. I just want the brown stuff out of my stems. So 40 proof whiskey is just fine by me, too.
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