2+2 Windshield Washer Concentrate may be dangerous!

[Number_35]

Methanol ingestion is far from harmless. Methanol metabolizes into formic acid, formate an formaldehyde.
The formic acid attacks your eyes, the formaldehyde attacks pretty much everything else central nervous system and liver mainly. The formate shuts down cells ability to consume oxygen, causing hypoxia at the cellular level.
The main cause of methanol poisoning is people drinking windshield washer fluid.

Correct - which is why I said that a WW fluid WITHOUT methanol would be relatively harmless.

I agree, ingesting methanol is deadly.

 

[oil pan 4]

Correct - which is why I said that a WW fluid WITHOUT methanol would be relatively harmless.

I agree, ingesting methanol is deadly.

If freezing isn't a problem then watered down vintage would work fine.

 

[Bailey28]

This is the first time I have purchased a WW concentrate and it seems some people here are being a little critical of me being surprised over the warnings. Having always purchased the gallon jugs that are creeping up in price I decided to give these a shot.

I did recently check the SuperTech brand gallon RTU jugs at the store and they don't contain any warnings like these do. I am in Florida and I usually go with the 32*F flavor as My area freezes only a few times a year for only a few hours at at time.

 

[Number_35]

This is the first time I have purchased a WW concentrate and it seems some people here are being a little critical of me being surprised over the warnings. Having always purchased the gallon jugs that are creeping up in price I decided to give these a shot.

I did recently check the SuperTech brand gallon RTU jugs at the store and they don't contain any warnings like these do. I am in Florida and I usually go with the 32*F flavor as My area freezes only a few times a year for only a few hours at at time.

The price of a 4 litre (1 US gallon = 3.78 litres) jug of WW fluid has gotten crazy here. It's rare to see the cheap stuff on sale for less than $4.99. (Canadian $, but still ...)

I would be willing to mix my own if I could find methanol cheaply enough.

 

[Sumboodie]

You haven’t heard the stories of the dumb mechanics using their lighter flame to light up inside the 50 gallon drum of washer fluid to see how low it is? …and boom?

In a shop I was at, we heated with a big wood stove. Section of Alaska pipeline, so 1/2" wall, ~42" around, and it was about 6.5 deep. Pretty much if it made heat, in it went.
I was filling the truck brake "sniffers" with antifreeze (methanol) and used up the gallon. Threw it in the stove, not thinking it was some potent stuff. Didn't even have time to close the door and POOOFFFFFFFFF, the jug shot out like a rocket and flew like 30ft across the shop into the wall!

 

[Sumboodie]

Yeah windshield washer fluid has contained methanol since forever.
They've had warnings on them since forever also.
Normally it's up to 20% methanol in the gallon jugs so it definitely poisonous but non flammable.
When you get above 50% alcohol it start to be flammable.
Methanol ingestion will wreck you eyes and kidneys, probably more.

The several places I've worked that followed "the books" made us keep WWF in a flame locker, including the current place I'm at.

I got written up for it during a safety inspection this summer. Had a case of WWF on a table for "shop use". The inspector mandated it be in a flame locker, but the whole pallet sitting in the warehouse, plus several hundred gallons of 100% methanol in drums and totes, as well as brake clean, stoddard, etc in pails and drums is fine.
I didn't bother to argue. haha

 

[Fabulous50s]

I always make it a plan to not drink WWF, and just realized that in my vernacular WWF is wrestling as in World Wide Fighting. Back in the days of bean bags and floor model TVs.