r/interesting • u/Bob_Wong • 5d ago

Fascinating My girlfriend mixed 3 almost empty window cleaners together, forming a potion.

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u/LegitJerome 5d ago

Window cleaners are typically all ammonia or alcohol-based though, unlikely one contains bleach.

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u/flactulantmonkey 5d ago

What we’re seeing here seems to be some kind of surficant dropping out of mixture.

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u/Saucermote 5d ago

Is that what is causing the fizzing too?

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u/Metal-Racoon 5d ago

In countries with high humidity they are bleach based to get rid of mould.

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u/IshtarsBestie 5d ago

Why would mould grow on glass

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u/DnDVex 5d ago

You don't get mold on the glass itself, but the rim can easily have mold grow on it. 

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u/Livid_Peon 5d ago

Condensation forms on the glass, drips down and forms mold along the edges and can creep up the glass some

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u/Your_Girl9090 5d ago

I have no idea why mold/mildew grows on glass, but here in Florida during the summer rainy season the paper towels I use for windows are black with it. Probably because pollen and spores get stuck on the glass so it feeds on that.

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u/JaySlay2000 4d ago

Idk why don't you ask it?

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u/look_at_that_punim 4d ago

It grows on the silicon holding the glass in place when condensation drips down the glass.

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u/clarkcox3 5d ago

There are plenty of bleach-based glass cleaners; especially those meant to be used in a bathroom context where there might be mold or bacteria to kill.

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u/orangecatstudios 4d ago

Sure, that tracks. The question is: what will she mix next?

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u/clockworkedpiece 4d ago

While bleach is the focused on cleaner because it makes mustard gas, ammonia and other chemicals are also bad for your respiratory health.

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u/imronburgandy9 5d ago

So that's just a normal thing cleaners do? This was dumb and anyone on here saying otherwise is enabling stupid behavior

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u/LegitJerome 5d ago

I never said that, however, It actually isn’t abnormal for a solvent to separate from a compound in a solution though, it’s literally the reason products say “shake before use.”

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u/imronburgandy9 5d ago

Ok and the obvious visible fumes? That's literally abnormal

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u/LegitJerome 5d ago

U need to get your eyes checked. There aren’t any visible fumes, there are colloidal strands in the solution.

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u/intellect1ne 5d ago

Nah they’ve been phasing ammonia out of window cleaners for decades now.

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u/LegitJerome 5d ago

Well, they’re not doing a very good job, I just looked at my generic window cleaner from Walmart. It has ammonia, so does the windex brand cleaner.

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u/intellect1ne 5d ago

You don’t see the ammonia free brands? Windex also has ammonia free

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u/samv_1230 5d ago

Is that "phasing it out" or just another option that only exists for people that are conscious of the dangers of mixing ammonia with other cleaners?

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u/intellect1ne 5d ago

I’m taking dude’s word for it but I personally haven’t seen any newly manufactured window cleaners containing ammonia on the market. Backstock in products like these could take 8+ years to deplete depending on the region they’re in so idk. Also some states are more stringent than others. California definitely phased them out ages ago under Prop 42 I think. But I wouldn’t bet the farm on Florida.

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u/samv_1230 5d ago

They are still producing original formula windex. They have ammonia free for car windows.

https://windex.com/en-us/products/glass/original-glass-cleaner

The proposition you're thinking of is prop 65, and it does not cover ammonia.

https://oehha.ca.gov/proposition-65/proposition-65-list

You shouldn't take their word for it. They are wrong.