What chemical compounds appearing in traditional press washes are hazardous to our health?

Because most press washes are made of distilled fractions of crude petroleum (commonly called “naphtha”), they contain dozens of chemicals that are normally found in crude oil. Some of these are toxins and carcinogens, but are usually too expensive and/or difficult to remove from the distilled hydrocarbon product.. Naphthalene, a substance commonly found in naphtha-based press washes, is carcinogenic, and has been shown to destroy red blood cells in humans. Xylene, another chemical very common in petroleum based press washes, is known to adversely affect the brain, and has been linked to increased occurance of birth defects. There are other chemicals such as cumene and trimethylbenzene that have similar effects.

What is the advantage if I use a biodegradable press wash like Tersus Clean ?

All Tersus Chemical products are biodegradable, and therefore the washes themselves may be disposed into normal sewage systems if your local publicly-owned wastewater treatment authority approves it. However, since every such local authority has its own regulations regarding chemical disposal, we cannot assure you that it will be permissible. Also, most printing inks contain heavy metal pigments that are toxic to humans and to the environment, and therefore ink waste cannot be washed down the drain.
For more detailed information on this subject, please see our special section “Why use an environmentally friendly press wash?”

There are a few reasons. The first and most important is the health and safety of your pressroom employees. Tersus Chemical products lack the hazardous components found in many petroleum distillates, but do so without sacrificing effectiveness. Also, Tersus Clean products are similarly priced with petroleum-based press washes, so switching to a healthier, safer alternative to petrochemicals does not require you to losing profitability.

Why doesn't Tersus Clean smell like a press wash?

Many printers who first try our Tersus Clean washes immediately note that its scent is not the scent of a typical press wash. The reason most printers have a certain concept of what a press wash smells like is that almost every press wash on the market has the same few ingredients: petroleum distillates, glycol esthers, and occasionally halogenated solvents. Thus, the kerosene-like smell of petrol naphtha (which is indeed very similar to kerosene), which dominates most press wash formulations has come to be recognized as the standard odor of a press wash. However, because Tersus Chemical uses no such compounds in our products, they have a completely different odor. The naturally-derived solvents we employ retain some of the scents of their sources, giving all Tersus Clean washes a clean, natural smell.