If you paint in oils, you will need solvents to thin your paints and mediums. You will also need oil painting solvents to clean your brushes and palette. However if you’ve browsed through the Solvents department at Jacksonsart.com you will have realised there are a lot to choose from! So which should you use? In this post I will explain what you need to know about White Spirit, Turpentine and Citrus-based solvents.
What is the Difference Between Oil Painting Solvents: White Spirit and Turpentine?
Turpentine is made of the natural resin extracted from trees, and white spirit is made of petroleum distillate. White Spirit tends to be less flammable and less toxic than turpentine. But what does this mean for you and your oil painting?
L – R: Shellsol T, Winsor & Newton Artist White Spirit, Low Odour Solvent, Gamsol and Sansodor – all petroleum distillate based solvents
A Guide to White Spirit
White Spirit is known by a number of names. In the US/Canada it is most commonly known as Mineral Spirits. In Australia and New Zealand it is known as Mineral Turpentine. Turpentine Substitute, Petroleum Spirits and Paint Thinner are some other names for White Spirit. If you come across a solvent that has the word ‘mineral’ in its name, it is most likely to be a form of white spirit.
If you’re sensitive to fumes, use Low Odour Solvent. Perfect for thinning paints mixed with Alkyd paint mediums such as Liquin.
The Down-sides of Using White Spirit
White Spirit can have a strong smell and cause dizziness or nausea. Always use white spirit in a well ventilated room. If you use it for a long time or regularly it can cause contact dermatitis. Nitrile gloves or barrier cream can help with avoiding skin irritation, otherwise simply avoid direct contact where possible.
Latex Gloves – at my last painting session I tried these latex gloves and they were surprisingly breathable and comfortable to wear! Wearing these gloves certainly beats the dry skin that I would otherwise get handling paints (click the image to view the gloves at jacksonsart.com). NB. Latex gloves only protect with light use and Nitrile gloves are more resistant to solvents.
Can I Use White Spirit From the DIY Store for My Oil Painting Needs?
In a word, no. Household white spirit (from a DIY store) has more impurities than Artist’s White Spirit, and should be kept away from your oil paintings. It will contain more impurities such as residual sulfur, and this makes it much less artist-friendly. Use Artist’s White Spirit – it is free from residual sulfur, and won’t contribute to any deterioration in your work over time.
What is Low Odour Solvent?
Low Odour solvent (a.k.a. Odourless Mineral Spirits) white spirit that has been refined further to remove toxic aromatic compounds. You should use low odour solvent over regular white spirit if you regularly come into close contact with your solvent. While Artist’s White Spirit can be used to clean oil painting brushes, we would advise using low odour White Spirits such as Gamsol, Low Odour Solvent, Shellsol T and Sansodor in painting mediums.
Petroleum distillates will not dissolve natural resins such as dammar, copal or mastic, but it will dissolve alkyd resins. Therefore use low odour solvent to thin Oil, Alkyd paints and alkyd mediums, but not varnishes or any mediums (such as glaze mediums) that contain natural resins.
If you’ve browsed the solvents on Jacksonsart.com and want to know what MSA Solvent is for. Golden MSA Solvent is a specialist White Spirit formulated to thin Golden’s MSA Varnish; I’ve not tried it to thin oil paint but if you have we’d love to hear how it performed.
Gamsol has so little odour for a white spirit. It’s definitely worth the extra investment if you are sensitive to fumes. And it will thin Alkyd better than turpentine and turpentine alternatives.
Summary
- Avoid using household White Spirit in your studio
- Artist’s White Spirit is great for cleaning palette and brushes after an oil painting session
- Use the most refined/lowest odour White Spirits, i.e. Gamsol (often identified as the best), Shellsol, Low Odour Solvent and Sansodor to thin oil paint, linseed oil and oil paint mediums that already contain petroleum distillates (e.g. Alkyd mediums such as Liquin and Galkyd). Drying time aprroximately 6-8 hours
- Petroleum Distillates will not dilute natural resins such as Copal, Dammar or Mastic
Applying oil paint to a gesso panel, thinned down with English Distilled Turpentine.
L – R: Roberson Studio Safe Orange Solvent, Zest-It Solvent, Jackson’s Pure Turpentine, Jackson’s English Distilled Turpentine, Wallace Seymour Seville Citrus Turpentine, Roberson Rectified Spirit of Turpentine.
A Guide to Turpentine as an Oil Painting Solvent
You might hear turpentine being called Spirit of Turpentine or Oil of Turpentine, but it’s all the same stuff. It is slightly more viscous than white spirit. Good quality turpentine will smell of the pine trees used to make it. To make turpentine, turpentiners remove the bark of the tree which causes it to secrete oleoresin on to the surface of its wound. The raw oleoresin is then purified using a distillation process, carried out in a copper still.
Turpentine is flammable and emits vapours that can irritate the skin and eyes and damage the lungs. Don’t use Household turps for art – it is likely to leave a gum residue that may prevent your painting from fully drying or cause yellowing to occur over time. Use Artist’s Turpentine instead. It has far fewer impurities and as a result will perform better, dry faster and will not yellow.
Use Rectified Spirit of Turpentine for an Effective Turpentine With a Pleasant Scent
The highest quality turpentine (e.g. Rectified Spirit of Turpentine) is made solely from the resin of Pine trees which gives it a clean, pleasant scent. Conversely, the forest waste used to make lower quality turpentine gives it a bad smell! Although it is possible to purify low grade turpentine enough to make it suitable for oil painting, it will always have a less than pleasant smell.
Larch Venice Turpentine – an Oil Painting Medium, Not a Brush Cleaner
Larch Venice Turpentine is a professional grade painting medium which is not suited to thinning paints and cleaning brushes. Collected from the heart of the larch tree, it is a highly viscous balsam. It is free from abietic acid crystals which can cause discolouration. Larch Venice Turpentine will not cause yellowing and dries with an enamel-like gloss. It is slow drying, thixotropic, and is a wonderful ingredient for glaze mediums and varnishes. Place Larch Venice Turpentine in a Bain Marie or dilute it with high quality distilled turpentine to make it more fluid.
There are now a number of Citrus-scented turpentines available. These include Chelsea Classical Studio: Citrus Essence Brush Cleaner and Roberson: Studio Safe Orange Solvent. Citrus turpentines are non flammable and non aromatic. They are more closer to turpentine than Petroleum Distillate as they will dilute natural resins such as Copal, Mastic and Dammar. They will not leave any residue and are a great solvent to use both in cleaning up and thinning oil paints and mediums.
Summary
- Turpentine is flammable and is stronger than most Petroleum Distillates
- Do not use Household Turpentine in your art studio as it is likely to leave a residue in painting mediums and cause yellowing over time.
- The highest grade turpentine has a pleasant pine fragrance (see Rectified Spirit of Turpentine)
- Triple Distilled turpentine will dry more quickly, evenly, and will not leave a residue. Pure Turpentine is usually only singularly distilled and so is best left for cleaning brushes and palettes only.
- Use turpentine with and in Glaze Mediums and Varnish, as it will dilute natural resins such as Copal, Dammar and Mastic
- Do not use turpentine to thin Alkyd paints and mediums such as Liquin or Galkyd
- Turpentine will thicken when exposed to air – do not use thickened turps and always keep in an air-tight container
- Citrus based Solvents such as Roberson: Studio Safe Orange Solvent and Chelsea Classical Studio: Citrus Essence Brush Cleaner are non flammable and non aromatic. As a result they emit hardly any heady fumes and tend to be kinder to skin too. They are also suitable for use in painting mediums.
Further Reading
Sally Hirst Compares Cold Wax Mediums
How to Care for a Wooden Oil Painting Palette
How to Varnish a Painting in Oil, Water-mixable Oil or Acrylic
Shop Solvents on jacksonsart.com
Can I use turpentine for painting and zest it for cleaning
brushes; can they be mixed?
James Cartwright
Hi James
I’m not sure what would happen if the turpentine and Zest It are physically mixed together, although I can’t imagine anything too untoward would happen – worth a try with small quantities of both in a little jar just to see if any clouding occurs. But if you wish to use turps for painting and Zest It for the clean up operation that would be fine. Next time I’m in my studio I’ll try mixing turps and Zest It – if you get to give it a go before me let me know if you notice anything!
Many thanks
Lisa
I use Pebeo Fantasy Paints which can dry out rather
quickly. The company recommended using Sansodor
low odor spirits. I can’t seem to locate that product in
my area, and I’m not even sure it’s available in Canada.
If I purchase another name brand that is “low odor
mineral spirits”, is it all the same? I have a gallon of
another name brand and have tried using it but it only
works for a short period of time (even without
exposure to oxygen). The pebeo bottle I added spirits
to ended up being like a blob of puffy thick paint that
could not be stirred. It was basically converted to a
useless mass.
So what separates Sansodor from the rest of the same
products by that name?? I need to find SOMETHING
that will add that oily suppleness back into the paint.
When you open a new bottle of Pebeo Fantasy Paints
(it has a micca mineral addictive to give it the
irredecense), the top portion is very thin oil like on the
surface. Then you stir the bottle and get the micca up
from the bottom and together, that oil and the micca
become a delicious medium to look at and to work
with. IT’S THAT OILY SUBSTANCE I THINK NEEDS
REPLENISHING TO GET THE ORIGIBAL SUPPLENESS.
The company said it needs thinner (they specifically
recommended Sansodor). Thx in advance. Chris in
Canada
Hi Chris
Sansodor is a Winsor & Newton product. Most low-odour solvents are a type of white spirit (mineral spirits).
I have done tests with different solvents to dilute a varnish that comes concentrated and must be diluted – and I got some very different results. The turpentine and white spirit worked as needed leaving a usable thin fluid varnish. The low-odour solvents including the citrus solvents made the varnish cloudy and instantly thickened, sometimes to a near solid.
So you might need to do some tests if you can’t find the solvent recommended by Pebeo. All the low-odour solvents worked the same for my test, so they are similar enough that you might be able to use another brand.
I use Gamsol to dilute my alkyd oil mediums as they start to lose their suppleness.
Unfortunately we cannot ship solvents by air so are unable to send to Canada. But you should be able to find the same ones in your country.
I hope that helps.
Hi,
Thanks for the very informative article. Could you tell me
whether Zest-it can be used with alkyd mediums?
Hi, thanks for the very informative article.
I’ve just started using Zest-It and was wondering if you have
any comment on whether Zest-It is any good to use with
alkyd mediums such as Galkyd or Liquin? Thanks.
Hi Rudi,
Thanks for reading and your comment. I have used Zest It with Liquin and oil paint and not found any issues, works OK for me.
Lisa
You suggest that “You can avoid skin
reactions by wearing latex gloves “, but this
is incorrect! Latex gloves can cause
dermatitis. Also, latex gloves are not very
chemical resistant, especially for solvents….
Hi Martin,
Thanks for your observations. I should have made clear that the gloves help one to avoid skin reactions to the solvent..but of course there may be those who are allergic to the latex itself. In my experience I found the gloves resistant to solvent…but then again I wasn’t completely immersing the gloves in the solvent; it just gave enough protection from the solvent contact that one might expect in regular oil painting practice. I shall make changes to the post now though to make this all clearer, thank you!
Lisa
1)My neighbour works in signwriting, he
said not to use white spirit or substitute
turps if one wants to slightly thin Dulux oil
paint as it will spoil its quality, use proper
turps instead 2) Does long storage of
turps lose their qualities? Would you have
views on these, please?
Hi Jason
That’s really interesting, and yes, turpentine will always be purer and less harsh, and have less impurities, the higher quality it is. Artist quality turpentine is designed to stand the test of time – so you can thin your paint with it knowing that it won’t have adverse reaction to the appearance of your colours over time, as is likely with less pure, cheap turpentines.
Turpentine is a natural product and does have a lifespan. It should be kept in an airtight, opaque container away from sunlight and extreme variations in temperature in order to prolong this.
Hi Lisa,
Where can I purchase triple rectified turpentine?
Hi Henry, do you mean triple distilled turpentine? If so the Winsor and Newton turpentine is triple distilled – https://www.jacksonsart.com/search/?q=winsor+and+newton+triple+distilled
Hello, I am brand new to oil paints, and I
find it challenging to select a good set.
Can you tell me what I need to buy to start
painting?
I would love to get high-quality paints. Any
recommendations for sets?
Thank you!
Hi Elena
The highest quality paints are referred to as ‘professional’ grade. They can be more challenging to paint with as they have a greater concentration of pigment, and each of these has their own set of characteristics. The consequence of this is that you can do more with them, but there are more variables to get a handle of!
My advice would be to get a set of Artist quality paints – they are a grade below professional paints and will possess many of their qualities. The Jackson’s Artist Oil Sets on this link would be a great high quality starter set – https://www.jacksonsart.com/colour/oil/traditional-oil-paint/brand/jacksons
In addition to paints you will need brushes, solvent for thinning and cleaning the paints, a palette, a canvas and some rags. I would say that is the minimum amount of stuff you need to start painting. I wasn’t sure if you were asking for a full list of things to start oil painting with…if you are then I can go into further detail.
Many thanks
Lisa
And a palette knife for mixing…
Hi I have read through what you have
here but I am still confused as to what
medium/solvent to get. I’m not sure if I
need to get both. I figured a solvent to
help with cleaning brushes and a
medium to help the paint spread a little
easier. Thanks in advance.
Hi Taylor,
In a nutshell:
An oil painting medium is anything that you add to paint to extend the paint and alter its performance when painting. Most commonly a medium will increase transparency and gloss. Linseed oil, beeswax paste, and liquin are all examples of oil painting mediums.
‘Solvent’ is a term to define liquids that break oil down. White spirit and turpentine are two examples of solvent. Solvents can be added to paint and painting mediums to make them more fluid (but you need to make sure you don’t have more solvent then oil as otherwise the paint will dry brittle). Solvents on their own can be used in the brush and palette cleaning process.
Hope this helps.
Best wishes
Lisa
Dear Lisa
I am looking for a product that will safely
remove old varnish from an oil painting.
Do Zest-it have anything in their range ?
Grateful for advice, many thanks
Dear Jan,
My suggestion would be Oil paint dilutant and brush cleaner, in small quantities, on a cotton bud, rubbed very gently on the surface of your painting. However I would strongly recommend asking Zest It directly for their thoughts and also consulting a picture restorer to check they agree, as I have never actually done this myself.
Many thanks
Lisa
Hi Lisa
I remember a tutor on an oil painting
course recommending using as a
thinner, a mix of liquin and stand oil,
with the proportions of these changing
to more stand oil as you progress
through a painting with successive
layers of paint . I think that’s what he
said. Could you please comment on this
– would you recommend it yourself?
Have I maybe misunderstood him?
Thanks!
Dear Cailzie
That sounds like a good approach, as you will be increasing your ‘fat’ content as you add stand oil. I would suggest using turpentine as your thinner rather than artist’s white spirit, as the oil content will be greater than synethetic resin, which although is present in the liquin, will be in smaller proportions than the oil. Ensure you give the mixture a really good mix before using – always stirring rather than shaking where possible.
Many thanks
Lisa
Please is clean spirit the same as
mineral spirit
Hi Solomon,
No – I believe Clean spirit is a non toxic, more environmentally friendly alternative to mineral spirit. It is a household/DIY product and is not recommended for use in fine art painting mediums. I cannot state its suitability for cleaning fine art brushes as it is not manufactured for that purpose.
Many thanks
Lisa
Hello, Lisa
Please, you have provided many
technicals informations.
Would you please give me references
that you employed here to write this
post?
Thanks
Hi Catarina
Thanks for your message; I contacted the manufacturer’s of the products mentioned, and collected info from product labels. I also consulted Ralph Meyer’s Artist’s Handbook of Materials and Techniques.
Many thanks
Lisa
If you wipe your brushes in paper towel and
turpentine can you throw it in the bin or do
you have to dry it out or do something
special? How do you dispose of turpentine
and linseed oil?
Hello,
To be safe, it is advised to dispose rags and paper towels that are soaked in turps or oil in an airtight container, or leave laid out to dry (not in a pile) in the sun before disposing. Dirty turpentine should be disposed of at your local recycling centre.
Many thanks
We have had instances of self
combustion when rags get disposed
like that. be careful with that.
Linseed oil on rags is at risk of combustion if it is exposed to oxygen, but not so much oxygen that it is free flowing around the rags and therefore keeping the rag cool. In order to avoid combustion it is advised that the rags are either kept in an airtight container or left on a hanging line to cure, or separated out and laid in the sun.
Gamblin’s odorless mineral spirits are much
more expensive than Lowes Odorless
Mineral Spirits. What is the difference? Can
Use Lowes brand in my painting?
Hello, Gamsol has undergone more refinement in order to remove the aromatic solvents – the most harmful component of solvents. The less expensive low odour solvents are made of a Kerosene that has had the scent removed, but is not as refined, and as a result can be harsher to skin. However either is suitable for use in thinning paints.
Many thanks
About Zest it and other brands that add
citrus oil to hide the smell: I have read about
research in the dutch kM magazine (Artists
Materials magazine), that the citrus part
might turn toxic under influence of the UV
part in ordinary light. Can you say anything
about this?
Hello,
It is not advised to assume all citrus-fragrance or citrus based solvents are made of the same ingredients and in the same way – some, including Zest It, are made with a citrus oil as the primary ingredient, not as an additive to hide the smell. I have not heard of citrus components within solvents ‘turning toxic’ under daylight, however, it is true that some essential oils such as bergamot, cold-pressed lime, bitter orange, cold-pressed lemon and grapefruit all have a degree of phototoxicity and can become more toxic with exposure to the sun. However in the scheme of things, orange oils are less phototoxic than other oils (such as bergamot). That said, regardless of whether these oils are present in the solvent in question or not, it is always recommended that all solvents and drying oils are kept in an airtight container away from daylight in order to preserve their condition and efficacy.
Many thanks
Lisa
Hi Lisa, I can’t purchase turpentine in my
state (!). I am beginning my first Urushi
project — razor scales. What would you
recommend as an alternate?
Hi Henry,
Thank you for your comment. I am afraid I cannot advise as I don’t know enough about the art of Urushi. However if you can use a regular turpentine substitute I can recommend Turpenoid – https://www.jacksonsart.com/search/?q=turpenoid
Many thanks
Lisa
What solvent or receipe could I use for cold
weather outdoor oil painting? Like -9C.
hi Daniel,
Thanks for your question. Do you mean which solvent to use in sub zero tempratures for rinsing oil painting brushes, or what oil painting medium to use with your paints?
Many thanks
Lisa
Hi there. Please can you help me out. I
paint outdoors in oils. Recently I viewed
someone painting outdoors using a
medium made of 90 per cent turpentine
and 20 per cent varnish. I have been
painting quite successfully with thus
recently using Windsor and Newton
varnish. This medium can be a little
sticky. It dries quickly andcInfind it
makes layering easy and it dries without
cracking paint. However, when it dries
the paint can have be dull in patches or
all over the painting. I have found that
when the paintings dry a coat of varnish
restores the colour well. However, I do
not get such a rich lustre as I would had
I used linseed oil in my turps. Has any
one else tried psinting with a mix of
turpentine and varnish as I have. Can I
successfully oil out my paintings before
varnishing painted in this medium.
Please note that the varnish I am using
is not the damar varnish that I have read
about. Any and all information and
comments would be gratefully received.
Dear Euan,
I would be cautious when using a medium only comprising varnish and turpentine – without any oil the medium is very brittle and inflexible. Varnish is made of a solvent (turpentine) with resin, which is very hard and inflexible when dry. Solvents dilute paint and thin out the oil content of paint. You have not said how much of this medium you are adding to paint but I would advise only adding very small quantities, or adding some linseed or safflower oil to it, as this will ensure than your paint + medium mix has enough fat to hold the pigment content. Not only this but the oil content will help to retain a degree of natural sheen (slightly glossy). If you dilute paint with too much turpentine the risk is that there is not enough oil to hold the pigment, and once dry, it may be possible for the pigment to flake away from the surface. If you ‘oil out’ after using the turpentine and varnish medium then I would suspect that the surface will absorb some of the oil in the oiling out process, but it may be such a dry paint film that it may not be as receptive to oiling out than if you had added some oil to the medium itself. In short, I would add oil to your medium if you can bear to, as it will make your painting infinitely more long-lasting.
Many thanks
Lisa
I understand I should not use White Spirit
(non artist) in my oil painting but can I use it
to clean my brushes? Will it affect the
longevity of my brushes?
Hi Shayna,
White Spirit from a DIY store could dry the hairs out of natural hair brushes if used heavily to clean brushes, and certainly will if brushes are left in a jar of white spirit overnight. It is better to use a solvent with less impurities that is less abrasive. However if it’s just a quick rinse followed by using a brush soap (which contains natural oils that help to condition brush hairs) then household white spirit can be used without additional damage to the brush.
Many thanks
Lisa