White spirit
The petroleum solvent the leather and carpet trades name for oil marks. One substance under three names, and it attacks plastic, rubber and coatings.
What not to do
White spirit is unsafe on Household plastics
Unsafe
Do not do this. The risk is established, and it is described below.
Precautions
- Ventilate the area
- Test on an inconspicuous area first
Why we say this
Strongly supported
A regulator naming three material classes in one sentence. It is the reason a solvent used on an oil mark must be kept off trim, seals and finishes.
Sources
Right to Know Hazardous Substance Fact Sheet: Stoddard Solvent (RTK 1736)
New Jersey Department of Health, 2008 · Government or regulator
Relied on for: That Stoddard solvent attacks plastic, rubber and coatings. (states this directly)
Verification: a person has read the passage relied on.
Read on — The 'Description and Use' paragraph and the 'Handling and Storage' reactivity list. Supports the claim as stated. Gives the solvent branch of the stain records a named agent with a regulator behind it, and resolves the British/American naming collision that had kept 'white spirit' out of the catalogue.
Last reviewed by a person on .
White spirit is unsafe on Natural rubber
Unsafe
Do not do this. The risk is established, and it is described below.
Why we say this
Strongly supported
The same sentence, applied to the material appliance seals and washers are made from.
Sources
Right to Know Hazardous Substance Fact Sheet: Stoddard Solvent (RTK 1736)
New Jersey Department of Health, 2008 · Government or regulator
Relied on for: That Stoddard solvent attacks plastic, rubber and coatings. (states this directly)
Verification: a person has read the passage relied on.
Read on — The 'Description and Use' paragraph and the 'Handling and Storage' reactivity list. Supports the claim as stated. Gives the solvent branch of the stain records a named agent with a regulator behind it, and resolves the British/American naming collision that had kept 'white spirit' out of the catalogue.
Last reviewed by a person on .
White spirit is unsafe on Door liner
Unsafe
Do not do this. The risk is established, and it is described below.
Why we say this
Supported
Named within the maker's prohibition list for plastic parts, interior and door liners. Scoped to those parts and not read as a general position.
Sources
Cleaning the Interior of the Refrigerator
Whirlpool Corporation · Manufacturer documentation
Relied on for: That warm water with mild dish soap and a microfibre cloth is used, that gaskets are cleaned with a damp cloth and mild soap lifting the folds, that all parts must be completely dry before reinstalling, and that abrasives, window sprays, scouring cleansers, waxes, concentrated detergents, bleaches and petroleum-based cleansers must not be used on plastic parts, liners or gaskets. (states this directly)
Verification: a person has read the passage relied on.
Read on — The cleaning solutions, the walls and removable parts sections, the gasket procedure, the prohibited-cleaner list and the frequency. Supports the claim as stated. Supplies a part-scoped prohibition list including bleach on gaskets, which directly contradicts the same maker's washer-seal guidance and is the sprint's clearest evidence that appliance advice cannot be generalised.
Last reviewed by a person on .
Precautions
- Ventilate the area
- Wear gloves
- Test on an inconspicuous area first
- Keep away from children and pets
- Dispose of responsibly
In detail
White spirit, mineral spirits and Stoddard solvent are one substance under a British name, an American name and a regulatory one, which is why guidance that recommends it can look like three different recommendations. The regulator's description is a clear colourless liquid with a kerosene-like odour, used to thin paints, in coatings, waxes and ink, for dry cleaning and for degreasing. It is the solvent behind two of the treatments this catalogue already carries: the leather institute's instruction for an oil mark on suede reaches for odourless mineral spirits after a powder has been tried, and the carpet institute's solvent branch names a dry-cleaning type solvent for every greasy and resinous spill. Its usefulness is that it dissolves oils and waxes while being far less aggressive than acetone. Its limit is on the same sheet in one line: it attacks plastic, rubber and coatings. A solvent applied to an oil mark on a sofa that runs onto the plastic trim, or that reaches a carpet backing, is doing exactly what the sheet says it does. It is combustible, and ignition sources are prohibited where it is used or stored.
Properties
- Chemical name
- Stoddard solvent
- pH
- Not applicable
What works
White spirit is effective against Oil and grease on textile Supported
White spirit is effective against Oil-based paint Supported
Effective on wet paint. A fully cured film is cross-linked and no longer soluble in it.
White spirit is safe on, in specific conditions, Finished wood flooring
Safe only in specific conditions
This is only appropriate within specific limits. Outside those limits, CleaningHQ makes no claim.
Only within these limits:
- Test on a small inconspicuous area first; if the finish softens, stop and do not clean the piece
- Only on a sound, stable, clear finish — not on cracked, raised, flaking, embrittled or painted finishes
- Not on wax applied over bare wood, which these methods damage
- Rewax once the wood has dried completely
The solubility test is a gate rather than a precaution: the source's instruction where the finish softens is to stop altogether, not to proceed more gently.
Precautions
- Test on an inconspicuous area first
- Ventilate the area
- Wear gloves
Why we say this
Supported
Federal conservation guidance giving a fully specified positive procedure with its gate, its conditions and its aftercare. Mineral spirits is the same product sold in the United Kingdom as white spirit.
Sources
Conserve O Gram 7/1: Cleaning Wood Furniture
National Park Service, US Department of the Interior, 1993 · Government or regulator
Relied on for: That mineral spirits applied with a cotton swab to a small inconspicuous area is the solubility test, that the piece must not be cleaned if the finish softens, that the surface is then wiped with a cloth dampened with mineral spirits and left several hours to dry, and that the wax coating must be replaced afterwards. (states this directly)
Verification: a person has read the passage relied on.
Read on — The whole leaflet: the clear-finished, painted, unfinished and wax-over-bare-wood sections, and the caution. Supports the claim as stated. Supplies the first fully-specified positive cleaning system in the catalogue for finished wood: gate, test, agent, escalation, rinse, dry and required aftercare. It also forces a distinction the catalogue models as two agents and had never used — soap is permitted here and detergent is prohibited.
Last reviewed by a person on .
Why
- White spirit is explained by Solubility and polarity
- White spirit is explained by Solvents and polymers
- White spirit is explained by Skin is not a surface
- White spirit is explained by Why the recommendation is usually the mild one
Sources for this page
Sources
Right to Know Hazardous Substance Fact Sheet: Stoddard Solvent (RTK 1736)
New Jersey Department of Health, 2008 · Government or regulator
Relied on for: That Stoddard solvent, white spirits and mineral spirits are one substance, that it is used for dry cleaning and degreasing, that it is combustible, and that it attacks plastic, rubber and coatings. (states this directly)
Verification: a person has read the passage relied on.
Read on — The 'Description and Use' paragraph and the 'Handling and Storage' reactivity list. Supports the claim as stated. Gives the solvent branch of the stain records a named agent with a regulator behind it, and resolves the British/American naming collision that had kept 'white spirit' out of the catalogue.
Last reviewed by a person on .