California has banned the sale of Alcohol

[Joel779]

Went to pick up a gallon of Klean Strip Denatured Alcohol at Lowes, no dice. Went over to Home Depot and same deal. Gal behind the counter said that this recently has become banned here in California and we will no longer be able to obtain it over the counter.

Other than bootlegging this stuff from out of state, does anyone have a recommendation for a source where this can be purchased for roughly the same price point ( $15-$20 / gallon )? Are there CA legal substitutes which can be used in Asters?

Would hate to start converting my Duchess, Berkshire, 9F, and Pannier to butane!

[John 842]

Does the California ban include methylated spirit? I know it's maybe not the best fuel for our locomotives but I believe it can be made useable by passing through a molecular sieve material (activated charcoal?) to remove water and other impurities.

[Joel779]

There is little or no information from official government sources on this. Here is a writeup from a guy in Oregon who was investigating this. It explains how this is simply disappearing from stores and it is impossible to access direct information from the state.

http://www.berniedawg.com/da-in-ca-d...in-california/

[StackTalk]

This thread prompted me to do a little Web search on the subject.

I have not found a solution to the challenge of finding methanol in California though it does appear that Bill Allen is ahead of the State in switching to butane - at least for the time being.

However; in reading further it appears as though, Coleman fuel (naptha) is next to be banned in liberal-leaning venues . . . and after that?

The gas stove.

If well-meaning but wrong-headed people have their way, we may soon have to go all-electric in our homes, like it or not.

The day may come when matches and open flames of any kind are banned.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-u...-idUSKCN1VU18Q

https://www.kqed.org/science/1945656...ns-natural-gas


So far, it appears as though electric trains are safe.

[Ding Dong]

Joel,
Why don't you just cut to the chase and call Jasco. They will be able to tell you why their products were pulled fro CA stores.

[Homo Habilis]

For what it's worth, I was able to place a gallon of Klean Strip into my cart and checkout to the point of hitting "Place Your Order" and my shipping address is in California. It only had a Proposition 65 warning link but it appeared that it would allow me to purchase and ship. Obviously says nothing of the future.

[zephyra]

Originally Posted by Joel779

Went to pick up a gallon of Klean Strip Denatured Alcohol at Lowes, no dice. Went over to Home Depot and same deal. Gal behind the counter said that this recently has become banned here in California and we will no longer be able to obtain it over the counter.

Other than bootlegging this stuff from out of state, does anyone have a recommendation for a source where this can be purchased for roughly the same price point ( $15-$20 / gallon )? Are there CA legal substitutes which can be used in Asters?

Would hate to start converting my Duchess, Berkshire, 9F, and Pannier to butane!

Odd - I just ordered 5 pints through Amazon - no issue. We will see if it shows up.

In the meantime, it is probably worth experimenting with other fuels. I will start with this that sounds promising....

Regal Flame Ultra Pure Ventless Bio Ethanol Fireplace Fuel - 6 Quarts

But no way I am going to convert my Aster's to butane......

[zephyra]

I went down to my local hardware store in Los Altos and found they had plenty in stock. The owner knew nothing about a ban.......

[Steve Ciambrone]

I have friends who bootleg into utah (100% Tax), might have to bring some back across the border.


Steve

[Joel779]

Interesting mixed results with this subject. I am in San Jose, checked with Lowes and two Home Depot stores. Home Depot counter at Great Mall indicated she was no longer able to source gallon cans of the stuff. Checked with Ace Hardware in Redwood City and the gal there said that orders were being rejected for gallon cans. Went across the street to REI and was able to get a quart can.

Stay tuned, I can only imagine this is going to go down hill. Just be prepared to order this online. Stock at your local hardware store can change in a matter of days if some supplier algorithm gets modified.

Am definitely interested in others experience with this.

Joel