Isopropyl Alcohol Questions

I've used 99% pure and I haven't had any problems with it,I often just use a really good amount of dish soap and work the action of the knife a bunch then rinse it under warm water let it dry or blow it off with air then lube it.

 

I have used paint stripper on Becker’s with micarta. It makes the scales look lighter and clean. It’s pretty tough material.

 

99% Isopropyl works fine as a cleaner .. Just don’t drink it!

 

The only material I've noticed real troubles with, using isopropyl alcohol (either of 71% or 90+%), is the 'cellidor' plastic handles on the classic-pattern SAK knives from Victorinox. Have to be careful with those, as the alcohol will soften and distort that material. I learned this the hard way, after wiping down the handles on a couple of mine with it. On one of them, the material softened enough that it actually left a perfect embossed thumbprint of mine on the handle. On another, I noticed the handle covers warped after using alcohol, to the extent the recess for the SAK's toothpick wouldn't hold it anymore - it kept falling out.

I'd also be careful with it on some untreated or unstabilized woods, as alcohol can strip the natural oils out of them pretty fast.

 

DEET is mean stuff. I made the mistake of spraying some of that on my socks a couple summers ago, to keep the nasty ankle-biting chiggers or whatever away. The DEET wrecked the elastic in them in nothing flat. I'm afraid to use it for anything anymore, for fear of what it'll ruin next, even if touching something with a little bit of it on my hands. I'm using Picaridin-based products these days for biting bugs. None of the same issues with that, and I haven't looked back.

 

Something to think about:
Using the soap/water/alcohol or just alcohol cleaning method leaves the knife stripped of any corrosion inhibitors. If the knife has carbon steel components, you might want to give it a WD 40 flush afterward.

 

Blues and Obsessed with Edges, do you remember what concentration of DEET damaged your SAK and socks? I'm not surprised if that happened at around 100% concentration but I think most DEET products these days are around 30% or less concentration. Thanks...

 

Alcohol is fine for blades, but I find that G10 and micarta around here have never really needed anything beyond soap, water and a toothbrush. Probably not the same one that will go in my mouth, though.

 

Why 70 Percent Alcohol Disinfects Better Than 91 Percent, According to a Microbiologist

"If you’re cutting raw chicken on the counter and want to effectively disinfect the surface to prevent cross-contamination of E. coli and salmonella bacteria, you’d want to opt for 70 percent alcohol. But if you’re trying to disinfect a surface that might have viruses lingering on it—for example, if someone in your house has the flu—any dilution of alcohol will work as long as it’s above the recommended 60 percent."

https://www.apartmenttherapy.com/isopropyl-alcohol-percent-disinfecting-36723904

 

The pure stuff will do the same job as the 70% stuff, but better and obviously more expensive.

Industrially and from working in a clean room in my past the 99% is preferred particularly for microelectronics as there is minimal water content. It’s main used is obviously as a degreaser and to dewater components due to its fast evaporation and water displacement properties. I’d avoid applying it to wood as stated in some posts above. There is no need and doing so will strip the surface oils.

There are multiple other industrial applications from the food industry to molecular biology. All use the purest grade.

 

The DEET I used was one of the very strong formulations, like 98% or so. I'd tried it because I was getting really tired of the ankle-biting bugs that show up every summer here. Had new bites after every foray into the yard outside. For a time, it was a little difficult to find Picaridin products, which I'd used in the past (10-15 years ago) and liked pretty well. After having seen and read how aggressive DEET is on plastics, I put it aside and went shopping again for some of the Picaridin-based stuff, some of which seems to be returning to stores nowadays. That has worked well enough for me to tolerate the bugs.

I'd personally still worry about using the lower concentration DEET stuff. I wear prescription eyeglasses with coated polycarbonate lenses, AND also hearing aids (plastic-cased). Can't afford to damage that stuff with a bug repellent. So, I don't chance it.

 

Obsessed with Edges and Blues, thanks very much for the good info!

Good point about polycarbonate lenses. Never thought about that. I always seem to get fingerprints on my glasses no matter how careful I am. I also use Picaridin but with COVID-19 I like to have a Plan B for items I may not be able to buy.

 

I use ethanol, methanol and Dawn dish soap all with pretty much satifactory results.

 

I'd try one of those white sponge looking "magic erasers". Works wonders on G10 and micarta, better than alcohol in my experience.

 

99% is good to go