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Blue screen wash as acrylic thinner
Spiderfrommars
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Posted: Tuesday, March 01, 2011 - 11:35 PM UTC
Hi all

I've read here on Armorama and on other modeller forums that the automotive blue screen wash can be used as thinner for acrylic paints.
Someone who are very reliable, told that it works very well, even better than the original thinners (such as Lifecolor, Tamiya and so on). Morover it is, of course, a lot cheaper than them.

Following this tip, I bought this screen wash:



(...actually i bought just a 500 ml bottle, but i didn't find any picture big enough of it on the net...)

Is "Bluecol sub zero scrren wash High power concetrate"
In his composition probably there's also a de ice agent, but I've read that it won't be a problem for the paint job

What I'd like to know is:
Have all the blue screen washes more or less the same composition?
Has anyone of you already tried the Bluecol screen wash as thinner?
If yes, did you have any problem?
Using it as paint thinner, should I add it some water or should I use it pure?

Thanks a lot in advance for any advices and replies, they would be greatly appreciated

Regards




jon_a_its
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Posted: Wednesday, March 02, 2011 - 12:19 AM UTC
Don't use it with Valllejo paints, turns it to sticky goop.

I have used Halfords (UK) screen wash with Tamiya acrylic with mixed results, anything from fine to pebbledashed!

Test it on a non-critical model first though.

I use it only as a cleaner & in the car now, as my weapon of choice is VAllejo & Media airbrush cleaner
Spiderfrommars
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Posted: Wednesday, March 02, 2011 - 04:48 AM UTC
Thanks a lot Jon for your kind reply

I've already known Valleyo paints turn in to a jam when you mix them with alcohol. I use just demineralized water to dilute them

for sure I'll do some test witn Bluecol screen wash, but before doing I'd like to know if someone has already tried this specific product

Cheers
Plasticbattle
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Posted: Wednesday, March 02, 2011 - 11:16 AM UTC
Check the ingrediants. If its alcohol or ethanol based, it should be OK. I know a lot of modellers use similar here in Sweden. I use an ethanol based product called T-röd .... which is ethanol with a red colour, used to wash tiles, baths, etc. Works perfectly with tamiya paints.
Spiderfrommars
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Posted: Wednesday, March 02, 2011 - 06:36 PM UTC
Well, Frank

Reading the SAFETY DATA SHEET, It must be an ethanol based product

http://www.onlinebearings.co.uk/PDF_files/16490/sds04417897.pdf

So, it might work as acrilyc thinner

I haven't known yet if I should add water...

(rather than a modeller I'm feeling like a chemist... )

Thanks for the reply
allycat
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Posted: Wednesday, March 02, 2011 - 10:14 PM UTC
Mauro,
I've used the blue stuff before when airbrushing Tamiya acrylics with an approx. 50/50 mix (and also to slightly thin Tamiya acrylics for brush painting (you need to experiment with this but maybe around 10% thinner works best).
I don't dilute with water and have had very good results using it. Just test first because it can spray leaving a 'grainy' looking finish (although when this happened to me it was a warm summer day and could've been the paint starting to dry before it reached the model
TTFN
Tom
Spiderfrommars
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Posted: Wednesday, March 02, 2011 - 11:12 PM UTC
Maybe boiling hot had evaporated in a faster way the ethanol before the paint arrived on the surface and that could be the reason why you obtained a rough surface.

I've heard that someone adds to the mixture a drop of paint retarder to prevent this issue

That's maybe a silly question now, but did you use Blucol wash screen or another brand?

Anyway, thanks a lot for your exhaustive explanation Tom

Regards
allycat
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Posted: Thursday, March 03, 2011 - 09:28 PM UTC
I've only sprayed Tamiya acrylics since I changed over from using Humbrol enamels, so I can't comment on other brands.
I take it you too are using Tamiya?
It was just a generic supermarket brand of screenwash. The important thing is that it contains Ethanol (the more the merrier), can't remember which one off the top of my head.
I've heard that Isopropyl Alcohol this works as well (or better) if you can find it in for sale (but probably more expensive than screenwash)
I think your best bet is to try it and see what happens. A bit of 'Suck it and see'
Find an empty plastic blister pack (or similar, and then pretend it's your best ever made model, then:
--give it a wash with warm, soapy water
--Prime it
--base coat it
--do some basic camouflage patterns with your preferred colours
--and if you think it's rubbish...try again only use slightly differently ammounts.
Good Luck!
Tom


Spiderfrommars
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Posted: Thursday, March 03, 2011 - 10:20 PM UTC

Quoted Text

I've only sprayed Tamiya acrylics since I changed over from using Humbrol enamels, so I can't comment on other brands.
I take it you too are using Tamiya?
It was just a generic supermarket brand of screenwash. The important thing is that it contains Ethanol (the more the merrier), can't remember which one off the top of my head.
I've heard that Isopropyl Alcohol this works as well (or better) if you can find it in for sale (but probably more expensive than screenwash)
I think your best bet is to try it and see what happens. A bit of 'Suck it and see'
Find an empty plastic blister pack (or similar, and then pretend it's your best ever made model, then:
--give it a wash with warm, soapy water
--Prime it
--base coat it
--do some basic camouflage patterns with your preferred colours
--and if you think it's rubbish...try again only use slightly differently ammounts.
Good Luck!
Tom


Well Tom, here in Italy IPA isn't on free sale . If you want to buy it you have to sign some documents 'cause you could use it to make...bombs .
You can't buy less than 5 Lt of product. Is cheap, but to be honest I don't want keep in my flat a big tank of a very flammable stuff...Otherwise i could buy smaller amounts of it in cosmetic shops. Actually the product labeled as: "nail polish remover acetone free ", is perfumed Isopropyl Alcohol but, of course, it isn't cheaper than Tamiya thinner.
Well, I'll try it. I have already got a lot of PS boxes for this kind of experiments

If Bluecol blue screenwash won't work as well as I think, well, I'll buy a different one

Thanks a milion

Regards
Spiderfrommars
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Posted: Friday, March 04, 2011 - 06:59 PM UTC
Update

I bought another screen wash to test:



This one doesn't have the de ice agent in the mixture. Probably it'll be more effective

Furthermore I've found out Isopropyl alcohol is also named
2-propanol or propan-2-ol

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isopropyl_alcohol

So products which are defined this way, actually are Isopropyl alcohol (usually they are low grade IPA )
Yesterday I bought also a very cheap product with those features


Now is time to test them!
allycat
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Posted: Sunday, March 20, 2011 - 09:00 AM UTC
Mauro,
How the spraying going?
Tom
Spiderfrommars
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Posted: Sunday, March 20, 2011 - 09:24 AM UTC
Hi Tom, thanks a lot for asking me

Recently i've been busy just in costruction works, so haven't tried yet

When i'll have enough time to do some test I'll show the results on this tread

Thanks again

Cheers
bizzychicken
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Posted: Sunday, March 20, 2011 - 10:34 AM UTC
I Dont know about using De icer/ Screen wash But when thinning Tamiya paint with X-20 A thinners add a little X-22 Clear . Play with mixes close to 30% paint 60% x-20 10% X-22 Very good Primer/ Base cote I've never had a smoother finish, a slight satin finish, well worth a try. x-20 is not cheap, would like to find an alternative? But adding the little bit of clear, for me takes some beating, but I'm intriguedand always open to change! x-20A contains Buton-2-ol and Propan-1-ol
Paul-H
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Posted: Sunday, March 20, 2011 - 07:21 PM UTC
Hi

Re Vallejo and Alcohol.

I tried Astonish brand blue windscreen cleaner with Valejo Model air and it did a wonderfull job of thinning with none of the usual Jam effect that you normaly get when using alcohol with vallejo paints, which was realy odd as the screewash still smelt of Alcohol, not yet tried it with Model Color though, but will do soon.

Paul
Spiderfrommars
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Posted: Sunday, March 20, 2011 - 07:51 PM UTC
@ Thanks a lot Lewis. I've already known that some modellers (one of them is Adam Wilder ) add clear paint in theirs mixtures. I knew that can be useful to shorten drying times and to obtain a satin smooth base coat which is the best for washing. I've never tried, but I'll do soon. Otherwise I didn't know the x20 chemical composition so thanks a l lot for your info


@ Hi Paul. Is good to know that the bluewasher can work also with valleyo paints!
I'll try for sure, thanks a milion


cheers and thanks again to both of you
Paul-H
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Posted: Monday, March 21, 2011 - 10:27 AM UTC
Hi Guys

Just to check on something that was posted on a UK forum about Vallejo and IPA turning it to jam.

I tested both Model Air and Model Color with both Astonish Screen Wash and 70% IPA or Rubbing Alcohol and in all cases the paint thinned fine without any sign of the said thickening.

Perhapse Vallejo have changed their mix but from my tests IPA and IPA based liquids are now fine to use as a thinner and cleaner for Vallejo paints.

Paul
Spiderfrommars
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Posted: Monday, March 21, 2011 - 11:09 AM UTC

Quoted Text

Hi Guys

Just to check on something that was posted on a UK forum about Vallejo and IPA turning it to jam.

I tested both Model Air and Model Color with both Astonish Screen Wash and 70% IPA or Rubbing Alcohol and in all cases the paint thinned fine without any sign of the said thickening.

Perhapse Vallejo have changed their mix but from my tests IPA and IPA based liquids are now fine to use as a thinner and cleaner for Vallejo paints.

Paul


Very important to know, thanks a lot Paul. if I were you I opened a tread here on the site to tell it to all the forumers
I've had my valleyo colors in my stash for months, so i don't know if they actually have the "new" chemical composition. I'll make some trial

Thanks again

regards
reccymech
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Posted: Wednesday, April 06, 2011 - 11:28 AM UTC
Just purchased a Vallejo paint and reading back through this topic am I correct to disregard the blue windscreen wash and use distilled/demineralised water for the thinning for use in a AB?

I also purchased Vallejo thinner medium just in case.
Spiderfrommars
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Posted: Wednesday, April 06, 2011 - 11:46 AM UTC

Quoted Text

Just purchased a Vallejo paint and reading back through this topic am I correct to disregard the blue windscreen wash and use distilled/demineralised water for the thinning for use in a AB?

I also purchased Vallejo thinner medium just in case.



Yes, of course. You can use distilled water or Valleyo thinner
reccymech
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Posted: Wednesday, April 06, 2011 - 12:13 PM UTC
Cheers for that Spiderfrommars.
Spiderfrommars
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Posted: Wednesday, April 06, 2011 - 07:33 PM UTC
You're welcome

You can look also on internet

Put in the google bar something like

"thinning Vallejo paints"

There is a LOT of treads about this matter with many advices and tips

Also here on Armorama (painting forum) you can find many topics about that


cheers
Phil_H
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Posted: Thursday, April 07, 2011 - 02:31 AM UTC

Quoted Text

Update

I bought another screen wash to test:

This one doesn't have the de ice agent in the mixture. Probably it'll be more effective



Mauro, you may wish to know that Propylene Glycol is one of the more common de-icing additives. Propylene Glycol also happens to be the primary component of many acrylic retarding agents (and is a component in Tamiya's proprietary acrylic thinner).
Spiderfrommars
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Posted: Thursday, April 07, 2011 - 06:16 AM UTC
[quote

Mauro, you may wish to know that Propylene Glycol is one of the more common de-icing additives. Propylene Glycol also happens to be the primary component of many acrylic retarding agents (and is a component in Tamiya's proprietary acrylic thinner). [/quote]

...REALLY?!!!

I used to study chemistry at the high school. Maybe I should revise


Thanks a lot for the info Phil. Now I need just a little bit time to make a trial



Regards
GALILEO1
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Posted: Saturday, April 09, 2011 - 09:10 AM UTC
Interesting thread...

Well, just to continue with the experimentation of windshield washer fluid and acrylic paints (in my case Tamiya and MM Acryl), I bought and tested this one:



And the results after painting (left is Tamiya paint dark brown and right is MM Acryl grey):



Now, interestingly, MM Acryl sprayed really well with the windshield washing fluid. However, with Tamiya, I ended up with strange darker areas. The paint itself flowed nice out of the airbrush but I have no idea why it left these darker patches on the part.





What do you all think?

Rob
Plasticbattle
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Posted: Saturday, April 09, 2011 - 09:50 AM UTC

Quoted Text

What do you all think?

I think it might be to do with that area getting a proper covering and the rest only getting a thinner coat? I usually go over a model a few times with tamiya to get good coverage as I thin it quite heavily ... at least 50% thinner!
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