9.21.2010

bp's science: why does hairspray get ink out of clothes so well? (v.1)

A comment/question on a recent bp's science post led me to my topic for today.

Why is hairspray an excellent ink remover? Easy answer, it has a lot of alcohol in it, like ethanol. Alcohol acts as a solvent and works to get ink out. Solvents are liquids that dissolve other solids or liquids, in our case ink. Rubbing alcohol would work just as well too. If you are going to use a hairspray, make sure the hairspray you are using has a lot of alcohol in it.

Have you ever tried to get ink out with hairspray? I have and it works!

3 comments:

jo said...

Aha! So we don't need the hairspray, just the alcohol in the hairspray. Excellent, because I don't have hairspray, but I've got some isopropyl handy for cleaning small scrapes and the like. Thanks BP!

Natalie said...

This reminded me of that SNL skit with Chris Farley about hairspray and alcohol. :) You should watch it on youtube. Heehee

kel said...

thank you, sister. it's good to know that i don't need to have a can of Aqua Net on hand.