David Peters wrote:
Why is isopropyl alcohol (propanol) reckoned by many people to be a
better general cleaner around the house than the ethyl alcohol
(ethanol) which is found in methylated spirits?

Thanks for any info.

David

You can get ethyl alcohol at the liquor store under the brand name
"Everclear" (190 proof = 95%+ ethanol).

Or you can steal it from the Biology Department of your local university
(they pay about 90 cents a gallon). I've got a gallon left over from my
school days - about 40 years ago. I'm letting it "age."

I have seen 55 gallons of pure grain alcohol shipped to a
university engineering department by mistake. The sellers
often just assume that any shipment of ethanol to a university
is for legitimate medical use and doesn't need to be denatured
by law. I'm starting my own university tomorrow.

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HeyBub wrote
Or you can steal it from the Biology Department of your local university
(they pay about 90 cents a gallon). I've got a gallon left over from my
school days - about 40 years ago. I'm letting it "age."

In addition to toxicity of denatured alcohol and its higher volatility,
from a biological disinfection argument, ethanol has to be more
concentrated to be effective against bacteria. Optimal percentage
against bacteria is 70%.

Isopropanol is a little more toxic toward bacteria, and it is also a
better general cleaner because it has a larger nonpolar part, thus it
has a lower surface tension. Optimal against bacteria is only ~50%.
It's also supposedly cheaper for non-laboratory use because of taxation
of ethanol.