Are there any downsides to using isopropyl instead of denatured alcohol with shellac? Hard to find denatured around here, but it's easy to get 99% isopropyl. Can isopropyl damage the wood in any way? It does a number on some plastics etc.
[OP]
Member
Are there any downsides to using isopropyl instead of denatured alcohol with shellac? Hard to find denatured around here, but it's easy to get 99% isopropyl. Can isopropyl damage the wood in any way? It does a number on some plastics etc.
Are you sure it's not 91%.
That's the highest percentage I've ever seen.
I always am able to find both at drugstores and supermarkets.
Moderator
Just don't use rubbing alcohol (which is partly IPA and partly water).
IPA will dry slower than ethanol (denatured). This can actually be helpful when brushing or padding, because it gives you a tad more time. However, it is also not quite as efficient at dissolving flakes, so that can take longer than ethanol.
IPA is in fact slightly less aggressive a solvent than ethanol, so if your IPA is damaging plastics, etc, then so too will the ethanol.
Last edited by Bill Jobe; 12-08-2018 at 3:42 PM.
Member
The 99% is very hot stuff. Not all that much use that I have seen other than cleaning flux from solder joints in electronics work. I've looked for it before at the supermarket and not found it.Originally Posted by Bill Jobe
Dojo Kun, 1: Be humble and polite.
[OP]
Member
Here in Canada, 99% isopropyl is easily found (you can get 2L for ~$10 at Costco), but good luck finding DNA...
Thanks to all who replied.
Contributor
Look for Bioflame denatured ethanol,sold as fuel for tabletop fireplaces. Canadian Tire,Rona and Home Hardware all carry it.Costs about $8/litre and works well with shellac flakes.Same thing as denatured alcohol.
Contributor
I'll second Bill's nomination for the Bioflame fuel. It is 99% ethanol, and non-toxic with none of the poisonous additives you get with BigBoxStore Denatured Alcohol (such as Methyl Alcohol - bad stuff!). In order to get around the whole Government taxation issue, the Bioflame folks add a food-safe "Bitterant" to make it taste really-really-really bad. That way nobody is tempted to mix a cocktail with it.
Been using this as my exclusive flake shellac solvent for over 5 years and have nothing but good things to say about it. If you look on Amazon, you can find free shipping on cases of "Royal Flame" one-liter bottles for around $7/liter. Good stuff!
Contributor
"Regal Flame." About $10/qt.
Contributor
Here's a quote from another forum on the use of Bioflame you may want to consider. "I tried to seal a plywood subfloor using shellac that I mixed with BioFlame denatured alcohol. I did a test patch outside, and it seemed to work fine. After applying the mixture to my floors (a bedroom about 11x17 feet), the smell of the BioFlame did not go away. I then tried to seal in the smell of the BioFlame with 5 coats of AFM Safecoat’s Polyurseal BP. This helped but the smell persisted above 68 degrees F and it gets much hotter than that during the summer. "
This was posted about a month ago, The poster hasn't resolved the problem to my knowledge based on the latest posts. The discussion has included sealing the plywood with Kilz primer, adding a vapour barrier, sanding the finish off and replacing the plywood. I can provide more details of the other forum thread if requested. Don't think I can post a link to the other forum but it's in Canada.
Contributor
I've never had any problems using the Behlen "Behkol" solvent for shellac. The dissolved shellac seems to stay good longer than when I've used DNA from the Borg. Seems to be a blend of alcohols. Somewhat more expensive, yes, but I don't have to worry about can-to-can variation in how they chose to formulate the DNA this week or what weird adulterant might have been added. I don't use but a couple quarts a year, so the absolute dollars are pretty small.
Contributor
I'm another Bioflame user. So far (about six quarts) so good. I'd like to find some of that Canadian 99% isopropyl.
Contributor
Hi,
Amazon has plenty of listings for Isopropyl Alcohol 99% Anhydrous.
One of the major uses of it is for cleaning the rollers on offset printing presses. For this reason I buy mine from a local printing supply place for about $12/gallon. The brand is called Pressman's Pride. There will be several printer supply places in most major cities.
I much prefer it to DNA because of the slower flash off, better flow out that has been mentioned by others.
Contributor
The downside - It takes a long time to dissolve the flakes, it takes days and requires a lot of shaking to prevent the shellac from congealing to the sides/bottom of the container.
The upside - it sprays really nice and hardens fast, faster evaporation than DNA, IMO.
I've used both a reasonable amount and I prefer ISO for best spraying results(lower viscosity, I believe) and best overall finish, but lean toward DNA for speed of dissolving the flakes.
Contributor
If you powder the flakes in a coffee grinder they will dissolve much more quickly in any solvent.
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