A better parts cleaning solvent than Brake Parts Cleaner?

I've been using brake parts cleaner (BPC - usually non-clorinated) for many years now. Excellent performance and great for knocking down wasps, hornets and other insects as a bonus. I grew up as an auto mechanic, not a heavy equipment mechanic, so somewhere along the line I must have missed the memo about using something cheaper and better than BPC on heavy repairs. I recently threw in a gallon of parts cleaning solvent that I had purchased at Rural King into the service truck for "as needed" during repairs, along with a 1/2 pint spray bottle for it. I think that the 5 gallon container was around $60 or so. I tried it when I had to pull the head off of the Barko for repairs back at the shop. Caked on grease or spilled hydraulic oil, did not matter, this stuff cut through it faster than the brake parts cleaner and had a lot less smell. Almost no residue when dried. Super fast cutting through that grease and did not require as much solvent as the BPC. Rags stay soaked with this stuff unlike BPC that flashes off too quickly. For what a case of BPC runs these days, this stuff is my new go-to. It also seems a lot less aggressive on plastics, painted surfaces and my skin. I now keep a reusable compressed air sprayer of this stuff on the truck as well as a 1/2 pint pump sprayer and gallon jug. Maybe everyone else on the forum already knows this and I am way behind the learning curve. Maybe I can help someone else out with alternative ideas. Either way, that's what most forums are for - learning and sharing info. If this stuff is more dangerous/unhealthy that BPC, please let me know, but with a health warning on the label of 1, I doubt that it is too deadly. Looks like I need to go to HF for a couple more of these sprayers as they are currently on sale for ITC members. My sprayer like this one works excellent for this solvent.

Have used that for years.

Thanks for the info. Unless using a parts washer, with diesel, my go to, has always been Chlorinated Brake Clean as the green stuff doesn’t work as well for me. I did try Berry,s a few times and it was a little too volatile. Have always had those sprayers. Diesel fuel in the winter on tracks, works on ice and mud pretty good.

Dozen yrs ago a lot of formulas changed to low "voc" & raise the flashpoint to make it safe. Go to burn hornets & stuff will not lite no propane propellent/sauce different.Jay Leno has brand of parts cleaner he use to push in magazines how safe & friendly it was never tried almost sound like hd dish soup wouldn't hurt your finger nails type crap. Past would use the old diesel out the filters in pan to clean bolts etc & hit it with brake klen. Find soup like STP & chemical cleaners have become a search find something good. Need a mini sink on the truck & be set.

Many years ago, a product called "Varsol", was the go to parts cleaner everyone used. I have not seen it in years. I suppose it was outlawed, due to environmental concerns??

Looks like xylene is an ingredient. Maybe try a mix of pump gas and diesel or kero 50/50 ?

mowingman said: Many years ago, a product called "Varsol", was the go to parts cleaner everyone used. I have not seen it in years. I suppose it was outlawed, due to environmental concerns?? Click to expand... Still exists. Stoddard solvent, aka low odor mineral spirits.

IDK. The safety guy took my pneumatic solvent sprayer away from me 20 years ago and I haven’t cleaned anything since.

Mostly like this:

Coaldust said: The safety guy took my pneumatic solvent sprayer Click to expand... Got one of those. * The stuff that cleaned was the original engine/carburetor dip/cold tank. Which contained Cresylic acid, Dichloromethane and Sodium dichromate. Toxic. Was used extensively in shops dealing with aluminum parts. The old Oakite hot tank solution was band years ago and now sold as Oakite 33, tame. If you dumped any aluminum parts in the old Oakite it would froth and you would be left with nothing but the wire tied to it.

The good ole’ days. I’ve told this story before. I attended Centralia College. During the engine class, the students would hot tank and pressure wash their assigned engine block. The hot tank and wash pad were next to China Creek where the storm water drained into. Can you imagine kids using boiling hot Oakite in 2026 and rinsing it off in a creek? Lol. It’s a riparian nature area now.

Two shops in Kennewick got caught, ran a detector through the sewer line.

Thank government/enviro regulations for where we are, they don't trust us to handle strong chemicals properly. Yes, grease and oil just laughs at "green" brake parts cleaner. It takes chlorinated (tetrachloroethene) to really dissolve grease/oil, same chemical used (perchloroethylene) in the dry cleaning process, but it's getting harder to get, and unless it changes, IIRC, there's an EPA regulation coming up that will kill tet/perc completely, which really sucks. But when I was in a service truck I kept a 5 gal bucket with lid with 6 to 8 inches of Stoddard solvent, aka, Varsol, Mineral Spirits, and a parts cleaning brush. That bucket was very handy for a quick clean of removed parts. For smaller jobs, like cleaning a hydraulic cartridge valve, chlorinated brake cleaner, or, another fav of mine, starting fluid, Thrust starting fluid by Radiator Specialties is my favorite. Starting fluid cleans oil very well and it evaporates quickly. But it is highly flammable, just keep that in mind.

At the day job we use to get triclor by the drum till the shipping and paper work to have it got unrealistic now we got other stuff that sure doesnt seem to clean rubber as good and it evaporates really fast. Its mostly heptaine if i remember right

Most of the shops I dealt with in the last ten years have gone to the big dish washers and some really hot detergent. When I worked for the Komatsu dealer we had a company that took used oil that also supplied mobile wash sinks for the field trucks for years. They used Stoddard solvents which worked good until some kind of dirt got into the tank. The stuff would turn to slime in the tank and then it stuck to parts, cloth and skin. Now days I buy Thrust by the case and send the big jobs to the dealers.

We had one of these. Works like a dream. It is a high pressure hot water with soap/antirust inhibitor. Company was leasing it, decided it was too expensive, and went back to a solvent tank from one of the big names.

Auto machine shop I worked at in the 80's had a Mart, been around awhile. Could stand two blocks at once. *

I got pretty spoiled with that mart--but--I still think any major shop that doesn't have one isn't much of a shop.

Komatsu shop had that one. I wasn't there at that point but my friends that were loved the thing. The Link-Belt dealer I worked at had one similar to that one. They got the soap from Zep and didn't like the price of the soap so they didn't put enough in and then said the machine was crap. It sat there and the shop guys used to solvent tanks. Go figure?

John C. said: Komatsu shop had that one. I wasn't there at that point but my friends that were loved the thing. The Link-Belt dealer I worked at had one similar to that one. They got the soap from Zep and didn't like the price of the soap so they didn't put enough in and then said the machine was crap. It sat there and the shop guys used to solvent tanks. Go figure? Click to expand... Zep--we used it. The amount of time saved cleaning parts far outweighs the expense of machine & soap.