The Ingredients in QDs? What I've noticed...

S

shaf

New member
Recently there have been some posts that have me wondering what's in the QDs (detailing sprays) we use. It occurred to me that whenever any product contains certain ingredients, the manufacturer is required to label the product with appropriate health warnings for that ingredient. Some ingredients like petroleum distillates must even be specifically mentioned.



So I started picking up some of my QDs and looking in stores to see what kind of health and safety warnings they had on the bottles. Here's what I saw:



(ALL say to keep out of reach of children)



Mothers Showtime - Keep from freezing. It doesn't say anything else. Forrest has mentioned that it does not contain any alcohol at all. Is there anything else (liquids) in Showtime other than just water? :confused:



3M Perfect-It Gloss Enhancer - Flush eyes, do not induce vomiting, avoid prolonged skin contact. I didn't actually see what was on this bottle myself, this is off their MSDS which also states it contains small amounts of isopropyl alcohol.



Black Magic Wet Shine - Keep from freezing (I think). I'm going from memory on this one. This is part of their new line of products.



Meguiar's Quik Detailer - Flush eyes, do not induce vomiting.



Meguiar's #34 Final Inspection - Flush eyes. Going from memory again, I don't own this either. Curiously, this product did not say anything about ingestion, unlike their Quik Detailer. Can someone verify this?



Auto Magic #96 Magic Mist - Flush eyes, do not induce vomiting. AM stuff is also geared towards the pro-detailing market and has most of a full MSDS on the back. It contains water, isopropyl alcohol, silicone emulsion, surfactant, and carnauba emulsion. Except for the carnauba emulsion these sound like most of the types of ingredients that should be in a QD doesn't it?



Eagle One WET Wipe 'n Shine - Vapor harmful - use in ventilated conditions, call physician or poison control center if swallowed, contains petroleum distillates. Skull and crossbones WHMIS symbol. Wow. :eek: I sure wasn't expecting this when I grabbed this QD....



Anyway, the point of all this is to try and figure out what kind of chemicals are in QDs. More specifically I'm wondering what kind of solvents are in them. It seems that products with petroleum distillates as an ingredient always have to say so, so this isn't in dispute. It also seems that products that contain alcohol all tell you to flush with water if it gets in your eyes and to not induce vomiting if you swallow it (since that won't remove the alcohol in your blood). Can anyone familiar with chemical health warnings on package labels comment on this and tell us if alcohol must be a declared (like PDs)?



I'm not trying to turn anyone off from any QD brand they like to use, or say that the content of any of the above chemicals is high enough to cause problems, but somehow I personally feel better about using a QD that doesn't contain a chemical that we tend to associate with being harsh on waxes and sealants.... I'll keep using them until they run out of course, but will I replace some of these? We'll see. :nixweiss



I encourage everyone to post the saftey or health warnings (or better yet, ingredients) on the backs of their bottles of any QDs that I haven't listed. This could be interesting.



Also tell me if this idea is totally irrelevant, needlessly obsessive, or simply makes too many negative waves - it wouldn't be the first time. :p



Thanks. :xyxthumbs
 
Hmmmm. Interesting in that some of them contain isopropyl alcohol. I thought QDs are supposed to enhance the wax/sealant layer and help prolong the durability as well as to enhance shine/gloss. Wouldn't the isopropyl alcohol strip off the wax/sealant?
 
I figure that a waxed surface loses some of its luster because the surface isn't as smooth as when it was first applied. Maybe if isopropanol or some other solvent is present in small amounts, the wax would dissolve just enough so that it could be smoothed out a bit without having too much of it removed.. ??
 
final detail: msds 1:health & 0 other 3.



warning: eyes: flush w/ water for at least 15 min. get medical attention at once. Skin: wash thoroughly. Inhalation: remove to fresh air. If breathing is difficult oxygen may be given. get medical attention. Indigestion: large quantities of water AND induce vomiting, get medical attention at once.
 
One might keep in mind that an MSDS like you have for 3M Perfect It and Meg's Final Detail will sound a lot worse than a label on a consumer product. They will say to flush eyes, avoid prolonged contact, and what to do if consumed. But it's mainly because this is an MSDS. Since the other products are just labels, I don't think you can use them to compare the severity of the chemicals.



Also, I don't think "no vomiting" implies alcohol as ammonias and bleaches tend to advise not to vomit either. Usually it relates to the damage they will do to your esophogus (sp?) and whatnot. I imagine they expect it to be pumped out once you get to the hospital, not that they expect you to just digest it, nor would I guess it is because the alcohol is already in your blood (this happens fairly slowly).



I just got the Final Detail MSDS as well, and it actually makes no mention of what chemicals are in it, so I'd guess nothing significantly harmful. It also mentions a pH of 7, but I'd sort of expect that.



I think this could be an interesting thread, and nothing wrong with posting some facts. Just be careful how you interpret and compare these facts.
 
From what I know, the #1 ingredient in most QD's is water. Surfactants (soap) are used as a cleaner, silicone is there to give that slick feel, alcohol is a carrier agent for silicone and is also a cleaner (think glass cleaner), the small amount of carnauba is there for protection. Many QDs include some sort of fragrance.



Remember that Rain X is basically silicone and alcohol. I think these two ingredients are in most QDs along with water.
 
The warning about vomiting is for the avoidance of aspiration induced pneumonia. A more serious problem in terms of just ingestion and proper medical care. This can be caused by erosion and the secondary seeding of bacteria ( in food, QD and GI system). Also many of these chemicals are quite volatile and will be absorbed in the lungs very rapidly because of the narrow (one-cell layer) separation between air sacs and pulmonary circulation. Isoproyl alcohol is extremely toxic to the liver.

Remember that a MSDS is similiar to a PDR (Physician Desk Reference) and many enclosed medication warnings. These documents must list all side-effects even if very low in incidence.





Did you know that Mineral oil ( Baby Oil ) is listed in the MSDS as a potential carcinogen?

:wavey
 
Most are water, alcohal (usually butanol), and some type of oil for shine and slickness. I don't buy that any contain carnuba wax........not with out any solvents to keep it flowable...........
 
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