Paint thinner

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A paint thinner is a solvent that is used to dilute or thin oil-based paints — and similar things, such as varnish, which in essence are a colloidal suspension of a solid in a liquid, — and so making them 'more liquid'. Typically, this happens after the paint has lost some of the solvent while in storage, so have become too thick and dried-out for use.

These solvents can also be used as in a paint-brush cleaner to remove or clean items that have become caked in paint.

Solvents labelled 'paint thinner' are often known as VOCs (volatile organic compounds),^[1] with the one most usually used white or mineral spirits having a very low flash point at about 40 °C (104 °F),^[2] the same as some popular brands of charcoal starter.^[3] All such solvents with low flash points are hazardous and must be labelled as flammable.^[4][5]

Common solvents historically used as paint thinners include:^[6]

• Mineral spirits (North America) / white spirit (United Kingdom and Ireland)
• Acetone often called nail-varnish remover
• Turpentine
• Naphtha
• Toluene
• Lacquer thinner
• Methyl ethyl ketone (MEK)
• Dimethylformamide (DMF)
• Glycol ethers, such as 2-Butoxyethanol

Less common solvents used as paint thinner include:^{[7][failed verification]}

• Ethylbenzene
• Xylene
• n-Butyl acetate
• Butanol

Due to their hazardous nature, in recent decades, the usage of these solvents has been extensively reduced in favour of water-based paints — that is, paints that are formulated to be made with water as the solvent and 'thinner' — which also are much less polluting, so have a much lower environmental impact.