Nail polish remover vs acetone?

[Moozillion]

Can I use nail polish remover made of acetone as a solvent for PVA to stabilize a fossil?

If not, what is the safest way to dispose of a can of partially used acetone?

thanks!

[jpc]

I would avoid the nail polish remover as it has god-knows-what else in it to make it smell nice.  Pure acetone is much better.  

 

Out here, our local dump (landfill, balefill, whatever the term) has a nasty chemicals section that we can put things like dirty acetone in.  

[Bobby Rico]

Hi Bea I agree with Ynot better to use the proper tools for the job, even if it takes more time and effort to procure them . You don’t want to make mistakes and damage yours specimen. 

[Moozillion]

Thanks, jpc and Bobby! 

[Walt]

1 hour ago, Moozillion said:

dispose of a can of partially used acetone

If you can hang on to it for a couple of months, there will be a hazardous waste collection day at Memorial Stadium on Dec 15th..... (I think you live in B.R....)

flyer attached.

18 HHMD materials accepted.pdf

[Herb]

you can get nail polish that is just acetone. Always try a sample piece before you try it on something you want to keep.

[Moozillion]

4 hours ago, Walt said:

If you can hang on to it for a couple of months, there will be a hazardous waste collection day at Memorial Stadium on Dec 15th..... (I think you live in B.R....)

flyer attached.

18 HHMD materials accepted.pdf

We're in Covington, about an hour away, but it may be worth a try...

Thanks!

[Moozillion]

3 hours ago, Herb said:

you can get nail polish that is just acetone. Always try a sample piece before you try it on something you want to keep.

When you say "try it on a sample piece," what exactly do you mean?

Do you mean just rub some of the acetone on an object and see what happens? or dissolve a little PVA in it and see how it works on a non-important object?

I was thinking of trying it out on a modern sea shell...

[Moozillion]

Actually, I looked online and saw "Pure Acetone" advertised for manicurists.

There's at least 1 beauty supply store in my town so I may check them out. 

[Kane]

8 minutes ago, Moozillion said:

When you say "try it on a sample piece," what exactly do you mean?

Do you mean just rub some of the acetone on an object and see what happens? or dissolve a little PVA in it and see how it works on a non-important object?

I was thinking of trying it out on a modern sea shell...

It's never a bad idea to "over-collect" a bit by throwing some expendables in your bucket. You can experiment on those to get a better idea of how it may react on a more important specimen that shares the same stratigraphy!

 

Pure acetone is easily found at a local hardware store as it is used by painters (and will not smell so flowery!).

[Moozillion]

1 hour ago, Kane said:

It's never a bad idea to "over-collect" a bit by throwing some expendables in your bucket. You can experiment on those to get a better idea of how it may react on a more important specimen that shares the same stratigraphy!

 

Pure acetone is easily found at a local hardware store as it is used by painters (and will not smell so flowery!).

I bought this fossil ( Anosteira maomingensis ) at a rock and mineral show over 20 years ago when I was working in New Zealand. I don't have anything else that is from the same stratigraphy- and have no clue which it was from anyway, other than it was in China. 

 

[caldigger]

You will want to use pure acetone. Many of the polish removers that are found not only have fragrance additives, but also water in the mix. This you do not want in your PVA!

[Moozillion]

1 hour ago, caldigger said:

You will want to use pure acetone. Many of the polish removers that are found not only have fragrance additives, but also water in the mix. This you do not want in your PVA!

Thanks. 

Is the PVA dissolved in acetone the safest way to stabilize my fossil?

The acetone won't harm it? The can says "cleans project residue." And it's "highly flammable."   

Never having stabilized a fossil in my life, I'm very uncertain of how to do it right. I am NOT a paleontologist by profession- or even close. So I'm pretty anxious about this.

I really do think it needs stabilizing: I often find fine black crumbs of it lying on the floor around it, and when I took photos to post here for identification, the scutes creaked when I turned it on its back.

[caldigger]

Lots of threads on the "right" way to apply PVA in the preparation topic.

I personally haven't used it so others would be more in the know for techniques. 

I wish you luck.

[Kane]

You may wish to post a picture of the fossil as that may generate some helpful and useful replies, as it pertains to the specimen. If I were a medical doctor, I wouldn't feel comfortable on prescribing a treatment regime without seeing the patient!  

[Bobby Rico]

Hi Bea have got the little PVA beads? I think because your fossil is quite large and sounds like it is getting very fragile and crumbly. Your best to make a thin solution up and brush it on repeating a lot of time.

I think we need to call   @Ptychodus04 he had done this proses many time and definitely will help put your mind at rest. 

 

Please add some photos of the damaged area but try not to moving your fossil unnecessary .   

All the best Bobby 

[Ptychodus04]

Yes, we definitely need photos to give the most useful advice. The very best method is to soak the fossil butmif it is too large or has glue joints, that isn’t an option. If you don’t already have your PVA, then I would opt for Paraloid B72 as PVA (McGean B15) is no longer manufactured. Plus, B72 is harder.

 

Definitely buy your acetone from a hardware store. You can buy it by the quart or gallon. The other stuff can/will have all kinds of additives as has been previously stated. One thing I don’t understand is why you want to dispose of the excess acetone. It will last indefinitely and the liklihood of needing a general solvent in the future is high.

[Moozillion]

Here are photos of the fossil I need to stabilize: Anosteira maomingensis

 

 

[Moozillion]

The program won't let me upload any more photos for some reason...

[Moozillion]

Dang it, I know I've uploaded multiple photos before, but for whatever reason it won't let me upload any more than just that one...

[Moozillion]

Well, if I log OUT and then back IN again, I can do another ONE, it appears...

[Moozillion]

[Moozillion]

2 hours ago, Ptychodus04 said:

Yes, we definitely need photos to give the most useful advice. The very best method is to soak the fossil butmif it is too large or has glue joints, that isn’t an option. If you don’t already have your PVA, then I would opt for Paraloid B72 as PVA (McGean B15) is no longer manufactured. Plus, B72 is harder.

 

Definitely buy your acetone from a hardware store. You can buy it by the quart or gallon. The other stuff can/will have all kinds of additives as has been previously stated. One thing I don’t understand is why you want to dispose of the excess acetone. It will last indefinitely and the liklihood of needing a general solvent in the future is high.

I don't think it has any sort of glue joins or anything done to it at all beyond some cleaning. 

A very kind forum member sent me a packet of PVA out of his larger stash, but if the Paraloid B72 is BETTER, then i can get that. 

I got a quart of acetone from HD yesterday.

I guess I'm worried about long term storage of something as flammable as acetone because I don't expect to be doing a lot of collecting anymore, due to health (both me and hubby) and downsizing, etc etc etc. 

[Ptychodus04]

5 minutes ago, Moozillion said:

I don't think it has any sort of glue joins or anything done to it at all beyond some cleaning. 

A very kind forum member sent me a packet of PVA out of his larger stash, but if the Paraloid B72 is BETTER, then i can get that. 

I got a quart of acetone from HD yesterday.

I guess I'm worried about long term storage of something as flammable as acetone because I don't expect to be doing a lot of collecting anymore, due to health (both me and hubby) and downsizing, etc etc etc. 

Use the PVA you have. That is what I and many other preparators use. As soon as I deplete my supply, I’ll be switching over to B72.

 

I would keep the acetone if it was me, even if you don’t have plans for it. A quart isn’t going to make a difference in the event of a fire and it isn’t unstable on its own.

 

For your solution, add 1 part PVA to 50 parts acetone by volume. Shake or stir until dissolved. Then, in a well ventilated area, brush it evenly onto the specimen. It will soak in and the acetone will evaporate fairly fast. Repeat until the fossil is stable.

 

The plastic will impart a slightly wet/shiny appearance to the specimen. If this is undesirable, you can wipe the whole thing with an acetone soaked white rag to remove surface plastic.

[Moozillion]

3 hours ago, Ptychodus04 said:

Use the PVA you have. That is what I and many other preparators use. As soon as I deplete my supply, I’ll be switching over to B72.

 

I would keep the acetone if it was me, even if you don’t have plans for it. A quart isn’t going to make a difference in the event of a fire and it isn’t unstable on its own.

 

For your solution, add 1 part PVA to 50 parts acetone by volume. Shake or stir until dissolved. Then, in a well ventilated area, brush it evenly onto the specimen. It will soak in and the acetone will evaporate fairly fast. Repeat until the fossil is stable.

 

The plastic will impart a slightly wet/shiny appearance to the specimen. If this is undesirable, you can wipe the whole thing with an acetone soaked white rag to remove surface plastic.

Thank you SO MUCH!