Why does Dettol turn cloudy?

[P38]

Take One Know All, Add One Chemist = Mystery Solved.

All is good in the world again.

[caseye]

Paddy, take it from me, this guy doesn't know what he's talking about... Some people are only in it for the image!

LOL, nice work there wbks:

[Pussy]

So it's an emulsifiable concentrate just like butyl ester 2,4-D ?

[Skyryder]

So it's an emulsifiable concentrate just like butyl ester 2,4-D ?

And here's me thinking all these years it's the water that turns cloudy.


Skyryder

[MisterD]

Chloro-dimethyl phenol specifically. AKA chloroxylenol. Also called Lysol in the USA.

The active ingredient has a low solubility in water.

In the bottle it is kept dissolved in pine oil and isopropanol. When added to excess of water the insoluble DMP drops out of solution , causing the white appearance.

I is (was, anyway) a chemist

So...does this mean I should be drinking Dettol or cleaning the floors with Ouzo?

[Crisis management]

So...does this mean I should be drinking Dettol or cleaning the floors with Ouzo?

Just stop mixing them with water and you'll be fine.

[LBD]

Sounds like it's off to me mate, don't drink it get a fresh bottle eh.

A good scotch can go cloudy with a wee bit o water added....as does engine oil...

[Ixion]

So it's an emulsifiable concentrate just like butyl ester 2,4-D ?

Not quite. It has no oxygen atom. Esters have a O=R linkage. Dettol has Cl-R. (and a couple of methyl groups )

Very similar though, a substituted aromatic. Esters usually smell sweet and nice (many perfumes and fragramnces are based on esters). Dettol doesn't exactly smell nice.

Definaetly emulsified, certainly. There must be a bit of natural soap of similar in the formula.

[Tone165]

The active ingredient of "Dettol" is alkyl dimethyl benzylammonium chloride, which is a miscible compound, or in laymans terms, a water soluble oil.

It is VERY poisonous to many animals, and should never be used on cats, or anything that a dog might chew.

On a good note...here in Qld we use it to kill Cane toads...it stops them in their tracks! and not as messy as the traditional "golf" method.

[P38]

A good scotch can go cloudy with a wee bit o water added....as does engine oil...

You shouldn't be polluting the whisky with water.

[LBD]

You shouldn't be polluting the whisky with water.

Wrong...a wee drop releases flavours and odors...

Actually the world is pretty evenly split on the subject...

[ManDownUnder]

Oh God do I have to explain everything to you clowns?

The water reacts with Dettol to form "wafty stuff" which doesn't let the light through so well. Wafty stuff is really agressive stuff too which is why it kills bugs. That also explains why it wafts out to the sides of the bowl, because it's looking for new things to conquor or have a perv out of the side of the bowl.

It's like Sodium Hydroxide mixing with Lithium to form "boomy stuff". Similar except it's airborn and a tad more agressive.

I loved 3rd form chemistry. I took notes so I'm told.

[LBD]

agressive stuff too which is why it kills bugs. I loved 3rd form chemistry. I took notes so I'm told.

Scotch kills bugs too.....

[Brian d marge]

Whats this water shyte u fellas keep referring to?

Stephen

[Juzz976]

I don't know if we have any chemists here, but I do know we have a lot of know-it-alls. So here is my question: Why does Detol turn cloudy when you add it to water?

For the same reason water turns cloudy when when you add it to detol, duhh!