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what do i do with used thinner?

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  • Member since
    October 2005
  • From: texas
what do i do with used thinner?
Posted by looper on Sunday, October 16, 2005 10:31 AM
after cleaning the airbrush with mineral spirits and lacquer thinner, how do i dispose of them properly. i haven't started airbrushing yet, i just want to be prepared Big Smile [:D] .
Andy
  • Member since
    June 2005
  • From: Dundee, Scotland.
Posted by Sasarchiver on Sunday, October 16, 2005 5:04 PM
thats a good question actually. What i do is i save it up in a container, and when its full i burn it out side, beats putting in the sink. I dont know if u can take stuff like that to the local disposal sites?? id ont know what to do with mysef, apart from burn it.

sasarchiver
  • Member since
    July 2003
  • From: Pensacola, FL
Posted by Foster7155 on Sunday, October 16, 2005 5:36 PM
Just put it in an old glass jar (mayo, pickles, etc) without a lid and set it on a shelf in the garage or shed. In a few days - depending on the quantity - it will have evaporated. Then just throw the jar away (or use it again).

Robert Foster

Pensacola Modeleers

  • Member since
    April 2005
  • From: Valley Spings, CA
Posted by Tigertankman on Sunday, October 16, 2005 10:30 PM
Well if you build armor, you can use dirty thinner for washes, it works great if your careful about not scraping your paint job off.
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Monday, October 17, 2005 1:15 AM
i throw it in a polybag with all my used paper towels and rags that i used for the project, the paper and rags absorb the thinner so i wont have to worry about drips. then it's off to the garbage bin..
  • Member since
    February 2003
  • From: Southern California, USA
Posted by ABARNE on Monday, October 17, 2005 3:38 PM
What I do is recycle it. I first put my dirty thinner in a large jar which will function much like a settling pond on a water filtration plant. After a day or two the pigments and other particulates settle out into a sediment on the bottom of the jar with the thinner above being quite clear. After this jar has collected enough clear thinner, I carefully decant the clear thinner off the top into another jar, taking care to not disturb the gunk at the bottom.

From this second jar, I now have recycled thinner that I can use use for any cleaning needs that I have. After a while the recycled thinner typically takes on a greenish hue, but this color tinge doesn't get passed onto any brushes and equipment cleaned with it, so I don't worry about it. I typically do use fresh thinner for thinning paint.

Since I use a Testor's cleaning station for cleaning my airbrush, so the only real thinner loss is whatever elevaporates or is picked up by a paper towel after cleaning. Using this system, I have been been recycling the same quart of thinner for now about six or seven years.
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