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READ!! Important Exposure Limit Information about Gamsol!!!! READ!!
The info below was shared by a lady on the Technique Junkie group. If you were worried about Gamsol and/or wanting to know the difference between it and regular paint thinner than please read on. I was very glad to hear it!! I hope you are too.
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I love the look of Prismacolor pencils blended with Gamsol/Odorless Mineral Spirits (OMS) and haven't quite known how to get started. I have been struggling with what to purchase for a while now, and finally found some convincing information in favor of Gamsol or products like it (admittedly on the Gamsol website http://www.gamblincolors.com/newslet...letter10.html). I found it useful for my artwork purposes. I am not affiliated with the company in any way. I do, however, try to eat and garden organically. I recycle. I work for the International Research Institute for Climate Prediction. I want to conduct my hobbies in an environmentally safe way as well. That being said, here is an excerpt from the information that some might find useful.
...Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) is the maximum amount (or concentration) of a chemical to which a worker may be exposed under OSHA regulations. For the studio artist, the PEL of a solvent is a guide to its relative safety. Because artists cannot easily measure how many parts per million of solvent (PPM) are in their studios at a particular time, this information should be used as a guide to choosing solvents.
....Turpentine has a PEL of 100. It is a strong solvent that evaporates quickly. MS generally has a PEL of 100-200. It is strong, but not as strong as turpentine, and evaporates more slowly than turpentine. Hardware store brands of "odorless" mineral sprits have a PEL of 200... OMS, commonly found in art supply stores, will have a slight odor from trace amounts of aromatics and a PEL of 200.... Gamsol Odorless mineral spirit has a PEL of 300. ..
Because artists' grade oil colors do not contain solvents, artists can maintain healthy studio environments by carefully selecting mediums and solvents. As manufacturers and as artists, we maintain healthy environments in our factory and studios by using Gamsol. If we do not send any toxic materials from our factory into your studios then we also do not send any toxic materials into the landfills. If artists' colors do not carry health warning labels, dispose of them as normal household trash. We recycle our waste solvent from clean up into fuel for the aluminum industry. You can easily recycle OMS and MS with motor oil at local recycling centers.
Hope this helps some of you and wasn't too boring/technical!
All my best,
Nancy Kurul
New City, NY
__________________ Ann Here is my oily blog! CLICK HERE Certified Copic Instructor - Local ClassesI love cars, stamping and essential oils!
Even though I am an avid Prismacolor fan, I have not yet used gamsol with them. I have a distinct aversion to chemicals...and it could be because my asthma is triggered by chemical exposure. (that includes perfumes and aftershaves!) Even though it appears that gamsol is *safer* than other substances, that is no guarantee that it is SAFE for extended exposure. The above does not tell us what the safe exposures may be. It could be PEL 100 is a 30 second exposure and PEL 300 is 90 seconds. Or it might not be a linear relationship, but an exponential one. It also doesn't tell us WHAT damage is caused by extended exposure. What risks do we want to take with our health?
When I try the solvent blending technique with Prismacolors, I intend to use baby oil. It appears that there is very little difference in the way the technique works with the baby oil vs the gamsol. Right now I use WCC and PCs with a blending pencil.
Not trying to be a wet blanket but this is something worth thinking about.
Wishing for the edit button!...
It should tell us something when it says that odorless mineral spirits (gamsol) and mineral spirits need to be handled like waste motor oil in a landfill situation. Waste motor oil is a toxic chemical, according to landfills.
Even though I am an avid Prismacolor fan, I have not yet used gamsol with them. I have a distinct aversion to chemicals...and it could be because my asthma is triggered by chemical exposure. (that includes perfumes and aftershaves!) Even though it appears that gamsol is *safer* than other substances, that is no guarantee that it is SAFE for extended exposure. The above does not tell us what the safe exposures may be. It could be PEL 100 is a 30 second exposure and PEL 300 is 90 seconds. Or it might not be a linear relationship, but an exponential one. It also doesn't tell us WHAT damage is caused by extended exposure. What risks do we want to take with our health?
When I try the solvent blending technique with Prismacolors, I intend to use baby oil. It appears that there is very little difference in the way the technique works with the baby oil vs the gamsol. Right now I use WCC and PCs with a blending pencil.
Not trying to be a wet blanket but this is something worth thinking about.
fionna51, I'd like to hear more about the baby oil and blending pencil. So are you saying you use baby oil just like you would with Gamsol and apply with a blending stump for Prismas and WWC? Do the Prisma blending pencils work with WCC?
fionna51, I'd like to hear more about the baby oil and blending pencil. So are you saying you use baby oil just like you would with Gamsol and apply with a blending stump for Prismas and WWC? Do the Prisma blending pencils work with WCC?
I too would like to hear more about this. Any info you could share with me would be great. TIA
__________________ Julie Paper Thoughts One of Kota's Kids
All I'm going on is the wonderful cards I see in the gallery done with baby oil. I figure on searching the gallery for baby oil and pm'ing someone who has done it for some tips. I did search the forums for baby oil and found that someone said it works fine on white paper, but shows a bit on colors. Sorry I can't help more.
Wishing for the edit button!...
It should tell us something when it says that odorless mineral spirits (gamsol) and mineral spirits need to be handled like waste motor oil in a landfill situation. Waste motor oil is a toxic chemical, according to landfills.
Two things.........I could probably wipe motor oil on my hands and not have too much problem.......mechanics have that problem all the time. It would be that it doesn't break down well.
Second.......I have a hard time understanding how the baby oil doesn't leave a residue. I would also be interested in hearing from the people who have tried it on what their card looks like a month after it is done. Does the oil disperse to the rest of the CS
__________________ Ann Here is my oily blog! CLICK HERE Certified Copic Instructor - Local ClassesI love cars, stamping and essential oils!
Nancy,thank you very much for the information that you posted. I have been on the fence about using Gamsol. I have asthma and I'm very sensetive to certain chemicals etc... I guess the only way I am going to find out if I can use gamsol is to just go buy some and try it. I would think having a window opened while using it would be helpful too.
I am chemically sensitive and I only notice a very small odor with it and it is not offensive. Don't know if it would bother an asmatic or not. With perfumes and such, I get headaches, lips burn, etc. and I've had none of that with this stuff.
__________________ Ann Here is my oily blog! CLICK HERE Certified Copic Instructor - Local ClassesI love cars, stamping and essential oils!
For those of you who are interested.....I will be putting in another order for stumps from Jerry's. It is open until the 20th. See my post in the Buy/Sell forum.
__________________ Ann Here is my oily blog! CLICK HERE Certified Copic Instructor - Local ClassesI love cars, stamping and essential oils!
I've been told by other oil painters that many of them changed to using acrylics because of health hazards with turpentine use and over exposure. When companies came out with odorless turp, many resumed using oils. The concern then became the hazard is still present but now undetectable without the odor. I think the exposure remains the same whether or not an odor is present and time inhaling these products should be limited. The odor present may be a reminder to limiting use and inhalation of the product.
READ!! Important Exposure Limit Information about Gamsol!!!! READ!!
