the folks at simple green are funny

[sneek]

"Simple Green All-Purpose Cleaner/Degreaser has a mild pH of 9.3 to 9.5"
umm the last time i check 9.5 was not mild
mild from encarta 2006
1. gentle and amiable: gentle, easy-going, and slow to get angry
2. lightly flavored: describes food that is lightly flavored and not strong, hot, spicy, or bitter in taste
a mild sauce

3. pleasant and temperate: pleasant and temperate in climate and not excessively hot or cold
one of the mildest winters on record

4. not harsh: not severe or strong
a mild sedative
mild disagreement

5. not dangerous: not serious enough to endanger life
a mild earthquake
mild to moderate hypertension

6. not containing harmful chemicals: feeling soft and gentle and not containing any chemicals that might harm the skin or clothes
mild soap

7. slightly indecent language: describes slightly indecent language that might offend some people

Microsoft® Encarta® 2006. © 1993-2005 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

[WaspHunter]

Maybe they mean mild compared to, say, Sulphuric Acid?

LoL.

[Setec Astronomy]

Actually, that IS considered mild. Neutral pH is 7; most gentle detergents are 7-9, and many "mild" are in the 9-10 range. Harsh are in the neighborhood of 12. Almost all of the Meguiar's car washes are at 8.5, except the DC which appears to be slightly acidic at 6.5.

[sneek]

...it isn't mild enough to wash a car with and its not mild when it stains your engine

[Setec Astronomy]

Have you ever used Simple Green? You can obviously think and do what you want, and I of course would encourage you to use a Meguiars product like Detailer Line APC (pH 11.4), APC+ (pH 13.5) or the Detailer D21 Car Wash (pH 9.5), but I'll stick with my opinion that 9.3-9.5 pH is mild.

[jfelbab]

Mild or not, I know from experience that it will permanently stain aluminum so be advised.

[Murr1525]

Yup, I have stained aluminum and plastic from Simple Green.. dont use it.

At least Meguiars dressings cover the damage.

[Setec Astronomy]

Just out of curiosity, when you guys talk about staining of metal and plastic, are those two different mechanisms? The metal is being corroded, while the plastic is being stained green by the dye in the product?

[Murr1525]

The metal gets pitted and stained.

The black plastic turns chalky/flaky white.

[Setec Astronomy]

I've always thought it's unfortunate that Simple Green comes in a spray bottle, which begs you to use it undiluted, when in fact, they recommend you significantly dilute it for most applications. Their minimum dilution, for heavy cleaning, is 1:1, while for light cleaning it's 30:1. This is of course similar to the Meguiar's APC that recommends a 4:1 to 10:1 dilution. It's always best to follow the manufacturer's directions and start with the least aggressive method (dilution) first.

[bene vita]

"The metal gets pitted and stained.

The black plastic turns chalky/flaky white."


Hi Guys,

Does this happen at all dilutions, One to one up to thirty to one?

This product has been on the shelves so long (my guess - about twice "sneek's" age 17 x 2) that you would think they would be out of business a long time ago if it pitted metal and turned black plastic chalky white.

Just read the Simple Green label at my local Home Depot and it does say NOT to use on plastic instrument panels, unfinished wood, leather, suede, opals and pearls but makes no mention about metal or plastic other than instrument panels.

Any one out there have more info on this.

sneek - since you started this maybe you can round up some additional facts so we all can decide if we should or should not buy this product. (hate to say this but I getting so old that I have neckties older than you)

[Murr1525]

Well, I mixed as on the bottle, at whatever the low dilutions is... I didnt keep diluting futher and further...

I mean, if you dilute too far, any product will lose its effectiveness.

[sneek]

i used it full strength to wash my garage floor, it did an okay job but i would never call it safe for a car

[Setec Astronomy]

Originally posted by bene vita


...so we all can decide if we should or should not buy this product.

Well, since we are here on MOL, I think we should be buying Meguiar's products, some of which are less mild and some milder than Simple Green per the pH's I noted earlier in the thread. pH is not the sole determinant if something is going to pit or stain, however, so perhaps we should all stick with the Meguiar's APC's and washes that are known to be safe for automotive surfaces.

[sneek]

I <3 meguiar's lol