Is It Worth Using 35% H2o2 Full Strength?

Do not dilute. It will lose it's activity soon enough without dilution. I soak deer skulls for 24 hours, then rinse off due to foreign matter that may become dried to the skull. A heat lamp or sunlight will finish the process. You should be able to whiten 15-20 deer skulls per gallon before it loses it's strength. Keeping it in a dark, cool place enhances the longevity of peroxide.

 

I wouldn't dilute it because there are contaminants in the water itself that will start to degrade it. As above for storage. I use 5 gal buckets to store it. Keep it in the dark and a cool place preferably. Poke a pinhole in the lid to let off gas as it degrades. Do not seal it tight. I also keep the unused jugs of it sitting in plastic buckets. If stuff of this concentration leaks and gets onto organic material, like wood, it can start a fire.

If you have never used 35% before .. it is very dangerous if mishandled. It will burn and blind you permanently. Wear goggles or safety glasses when pouring it.

 

I slightly disagree with what the others said. Yes, it might be a good idea to dilute the H2O2 when whitening bones. Here's why:

• If the bones are already pretty clean, they probably don't need to be soaked in that strong of stuff.
• Will you be able to get this stuff again? If not, be a bit stingy so you have it for other bones!
• Are the bones really large, like big animal skulls? Even if you use methods like the "trash bag surrounded by water" trick, you will still use a lot of H202 to cover the bones completely. It might be better to do two or three rounds of whitening with a diluted solution of H202 than re-use the H202.

Remember that H202 will lose potency quickly once it is exposed to air. So you have a very limited period for reusing it. It will even lose potency when stored in sealed bottles. Make sure any H202 you have left over is sealed as tight as possible and keep it somewhere dark and cool!

 

If diluted, use distilled water.

 

It can be, but most folks reach for the faucet to get water to dilute stuff. With paints, glues and the like it's fine. For strong peroxide, only distilled water should be used as Joey noted above. With strong percentage peroxides, even adding water that has a high iron content will be enough to trigger a very dangerous reaction.

NEVER tightly seal a container of strong peroxide!! Even the bottles it comes in have air locks built into the caps. It will degrade and generate oxygen gas regardless. If you tightly seal any container you risk it exploding due to pressure buildup.