painters!!! rubbing alcohol as prep cleaner??

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I wouldnt take the chance, just use some good wax and grease remover. if you don't get all the alcohol off , you will be pissed. alcohol wipes are the worst , I know this first hand. I tried them ONCE and it came through the paint
 
I've been told you can used rubbing alcohol as prep cleaners for wax and grease remover?????

? Possibly meaning "denatured" alcohol?
I'm no painter but I have seen this used when painting machinery. Not sure acceptable for auto.
 
denatured alcohol. just wondering..... for the car not parts.. what is in the " wax and grease remover" you buy at the auto paint store ????????
 
Alcohol really lacks strength to be an oil and wax remover, IMHO. It is supposed to be good for getting ink stains out of clothes.

Personally I use paint solvent, the main component of which is naptha. Naptha is highly flammable and some components of the fumes are known to be carcinogenic. The naptha I have used from the big box stores has been disappointing, not cleaning well and not dissipating well. The stuff I use is called "Virgin Paint Solvent" and I get it at my automotive paint supply store.

Naptha is also found in Fels Naptha Soap. It's fine for cleaning hands from ground-in grease.

Suggestions:

  1. Use in well ventilated area.
  2. Have a working fire plan. (If this thing catches fire, what do I plan to do?)
  3. No smoking until job is finished and all rags are properly disposed.
  4. No open flames.
  5. When not in use, cap the container to reduce flame hazard and evaporation loss.
  6. Wear nitrile gloves when using naptha.
  7. Do not use on plastic. At the worst naptha will dissolve plastic, at best it will destroy the finish.
  8. Naptha is used in dry cleaning fabrics. Test an inconspicuous spot first to determine if fabric is colorfast.
 
I guess it depends on the finish. Any enamel paint would need to be fully cured before any cleaner is used.
If you've ever purchased the smoked plastic vent visors, bug shields, etc.. that go on with adhesive trim tape, that package contained wipes saturated with basic rubbing alcohol for wax removal. That was effective on Carnauba and other natural waxes. Nothing less than Coca-Cola removes the modern micro polymers.
 
I use Auto body wax+grease remover. Ask for it at a local parts store/auto paint supplier.

The only time I have used alcohol wipes is when cleaning after body filler before applying polyester primer or priming over polyester primer. Before I work on any panel I use an auto body intended wax+grease remover.

One wipe I have used for this is DeVilbiss DeWipe-Outs Pre-Saturated Prep Wipes, and they work to pick up filler/primer dust and minor contaminants.
 
I would take my chances with aerosol glass cleaner before I would use rubbing alcohol or any really harsh chemicals that is likely to leave behind residue.

purpose made wax+ grease remover is the best bet
 
I,m a chicken.Paints too expensive to skimp on prep. A gallon of wax and grease removers only 25 or so at napa.
 
I use RM 900 wax and grease remover (made by BASF) I find it works the best on all solvent based paints and is not harsh at all. I find the cheap wax and grease remover (pro form for example) is a to harsh of a solvent and will eat most plastics and take some base coats away. I use the pro form stuff almost as brake cleaner to clean bare metal parts that have been dipped because it's cheap. I ruined a plastic headlight door on my dart using the pro form stuff, so be careful. The RM 900 is the best IMO and I haven't had it harm a single thing. It's $50 a gallon up here, so it's not exactly cheap but you get what you pay for.
 
I used it before epoxy primer on bare metal, used 90/10 isopropyl from walfart; worked really well. Did this 6 months ago, still stickin'. It came down to the fact there was no wax or grease to remove. I wiped down every panel twice, using a shop towel folded in quarters for one swipe, the other side for the next, then folding it inside out.
 
Naptha aka lighter fluid is great for removing sticky or gummy adhesive residue or tar from paint without harm to paint. Fairly mild solvent. Works well to clean a car before you start sanding so you don't grind the wax into the paint.
Mineral spirits is a bit stronger but safe for modern paints. Can soften old style enamels if not allowed to dry or evaporate.
Both will remove wax and grease safely and is not as light of a solvent as the alcohol.
This means it is slower to evaperate and will leave more of a oily film. This oily film is why it is slow to evaporate to begin with.
Alcohol or acetone are both very dry solvents that are better for cleaning bare metal where there is no plastic or paint to soften and create a reaction to newly applied paint or primer.
The trick is to not apply any new finish primer or paint over a unevaporated solvent. This is where you have to be careful. If you have wiped down a surface that has paint, primer or filler on it the old body coatings can be softened by the solvent and is holding onto it like a sponge and not allowing it to dry as fast as it needs to. This is what causes bad reactions.
So to keep this simple it is safer to wipe down the surface with a very dry rag of solvent and not soak the surface so it can evaporate very fast before the solvent can absorb and melt surface plastics. (paint)
I no I didn't do a very good job of explaining this but maybe its enough to help some.
 
Acetone, I use either that or MEK. Yeah, I know MEK is bad for you, but I just use it for that with gloves on. Latex, (I'm not allergic) gloves don't last long with any solvent, but it's not like I'm soaking my hand in it for any amount of time, plus both acetone and MEK flash off with no residue.
 
Yes MEK is the lightest solvent and will dissolve nearly any kind of paint. I didn't bring this solvent up because it should only be used on bare metal and it can be absorbed through your skin.
Not good for you at all. One of the worst infact.
I use it when painting plastic. It will melt the wiped surface and the new paint will weld itself to the softened plastic which is great for things like steering wheel grips arm rest & dash pads.
Flexible soft trim items that have a tough time hanging on to paint because they are flexible and
get a lot of wear.
I would consider this solvent much to strong for wiping primer before paint unless done very carefully. very dry towel and very fast or it can easily dissolve your primer.
Nothing worse than being able to see your wipe down footprints in the new paint.
 
I don't use MEK for wiping auto primers either. Usually that or acetone on the urethane paint after sanding to make sure I get all of the dust off. Also, I got the impression the OP was talking about bare metal. If not, then it was misunderstood.
 
Louie I like the MEK a lot also for the reason you mentioned, no residue.
Everything I have pointed out here I have learned from trial and error no real formal training
or anything like that. I have found if you know what the base solvent of the materials you are working with it can prevent a lot of problems. Some brands are not good at labeling their cans
and doesn't make this easy for us. I have had some real chemical clashes over the years that were just plain surprising and weird.lol.
I pretty much follow the recipe on the cans for the modern epoxies and urethanes that are used today. Paint cost to much now days for me to take the chance of mixing in something old I have in the cabinet and something going south.
 
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