Canreef Aquatics Bulletin Board - Questions about the use of muriatic acid (HCL)

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- - Questions about the use of muriatic acid (HCL) (http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=45308)

Tony, I've bought it at Canadian Tire

Canadian tire carries muriatic acid in the paint department. It is in a sealed bag.

Oh, boooooo! The pun police are after you now. :lol: Thanks for the tip though.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Snaz (Post 348275)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrochloric_acid

When you say 10:1 dilution ration it really is not descriptive if you do not know the original strength of the HCl. Industrial HCl would rot your sinus and lungs just by pouring from the bottle. This stuff is really bad for you and the environment.

Take the advice of others here, use vinegar and lots of elbow grease.

Muriatic acid, is, I recall, 37% HCL. Diluted 10:1 gives 3.7%. Not sure the Molar value of that off-hand, but not terribly dangerous. And once diluted, it produces NaCl and H2O. Again, not terrible for the environment.
I used Acetic Acid (full strength Vinegar) once to try and clean my hydrometer. It melted it in about 10 seconds. Any acid is corrosive and dangerous in the right concentration, but diluted, they're all manageable. HCL is no different.

I think so long as you are responsible, using muriatic acid is just fine and safe.

Rona sells it too; most of the good home improvement shops and paint stores will - it's the only way to properly etch a floor to accept paint... Not sure what home despots are thinking but...