Global Scale Modeller

When I do an oil wash I put a dab of oil in the bottom of the pallete and add white spirits to thin (might be called mineral spirits in the States). My sister is an artist and we were talking about this the other day and she said that all of the stuff artists use like white spirits, turps, odourless turps etc is dodgy stuff and shouldn't be used unless painting outdoors or wearing a face mask.

I'm talking about a few drops of the stuff here to thin a tiny bit of oil paint, is it that dodgy?

Pretty much all paint thinners are toxic to some degree. The odourless ones are the least toxic of the hot thinners, and most acrylic thinners are very low toxicity.
It all depends on how much you are willing to risk. If you're worried then wear a mask and paint away.
I've been using Weber's Turpenoid for years without a mask and I'm not worried at all about adverse effects.
Straight up mineral spirits I would probably open a window. The cellulose lacquer thinners I would use my paint booth... Those are nasty.

Don't worry.........you would need to put a wash on a life sized aircraft carrier with no windows on a 100+ day before it would affect you....
Have a wee bit of ventilation or change to water based washes if you are really worried......but I still use them...! And I am a painter and decorator by trade so believe me when I say that I have been exposed to these fumes and you will know when you have had too much as you will get a bursting headache and start puking !!
Cheers
Mark

burnie43 wrote:Don't worry.........you would need to put a wash on a life sized aircraft carrier with no windows on a 100+ day before it would affect you....
Have a wee bit of ventilation or change to water based washes if you are really worried......but I still use them...! And I am a painter and decorator by trade so believe me when I say that I have been exposed to these fumes and you will know when you have had too much as you will get a bursting headache and start puking !!
Cheers
Mark

Been there refinishing a wood floor in a bathroom with clearly not enough ventilation
Had a wonky head for days and am really sensitive to those fumes now

Just ordered a bottle of what Coen said to give it a try.

very good information. is this why a lot of manufacturers gave up enamel based or spirit based paints? due to the environmental impact of used storage or toxicity?

I know that car paints, the stuff that they put on in the factories is now water based for environmental purposes. That's why if you get any bird crap on a newer car you should wash it off ASAP as it eats into the paint.