[Z-Malti]

I am currently going to synthesize the ester methyl salicylate but I don't know where I can buy methanol  locally.   Is there any chance that a hardware store,  pharmacy or any other store may have it?
Thx

[Bakegaku]

I think I saw it as a car window cleaner at a gas station, although I doubt it would be of a decent purity.  I doubt it would be at a pharmacy, but perhaps a hardware store. 

[pantone159]

The windshield washer fluid I use contains methanol, but I don't know how pure it is.  If I had to take a wild guess, I'd guess 50%. 
I wonder if it is possible to improve the purity by trying to freeze it and discard the solids (presumably mostly H2O) and keeping the liquid.  It might be worth a try.

[constant thinker]

Isn't/Wasn't methanol used as an environmentally friendly anti-freeze sometimes.

A helpful link
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methanol

[joeflsts]

I am currently going to synthesize the ester methyl salicylate but I don't know where I can buy methanol  locally.   Is there any chance that a hardware store,  pharmacy or any other store may have it?
Thx

I'm not sure where you're located but if you can find a product called "Heet" it is only methanol.  It is used as a drying agent for gasoline and you'll find it at automotive stores in a yellow bottle.

Joe

[lemonoman]

Everybody loves lists!  And I found a list of a bunch of household products that contain methanol!  The whole list is at http://householdproducts.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/household/brands?tbl=chem&id=281, and these are the 'highlights':

Product                                                         %Methanol
Snap Gas Line Antifreeze                                    99-100
Rain-X De-Icer (Aerosol)                                     50-90
CD2 Engine Tuneup                                          60-70

Depending on what you're using the methyl salicylate for...hopefully these are pure enough

Good luck!

[UnintentionalChaos]

Kleanstrip sells a product called S-L-X Denatured alcohol which is about 50/50 ethanol/methanol (and 1-4% methyl isobutyl ketone as if it wasn't denatured enough already...still better than the dyes, pyridine, and other denaturants used sometimes). Are you after the methyl salicylate for something else or just because it smells good? I don't know if you can still buy it but I have a bottle of Swan brand "Oil of Wintergreen" which is 99% methyl salicylate. If you're in it for the synthesis, but not a further use, using the mixed alcohols should not be an issue. Ethyl salicylate has roughly the same scent as the methyl ester.
"Sterno" cans are nothing but a gelling agent, coloring, and methanol. A crude still could recover the pure alcohol. It is sometimes sold as marine stove fuel as well, though I have never found it as such.

[billnotgatez]

 

50/50 ethanol/methanol (and 1-4% methyl isobutyl ketone

All of these sound like good solvents, but as reagents they seem diverse.

[C6H8O7]

I am currently going to synthesize the ester methyl salicylate but I don't know where I can buy methanol  locally.   Is there any chance that a hardware store,  pharmacy or any other store may have it?
Thx

I'm not sure where you're located but if you can find a product called "Heet" it is only methanol.  It is used as a drying agent for gasoline and you'll find it at automotive stores in a yellow bottle.

Joe

Sorry matey but thats not true.Its 1% proprietary blend which is all sorts of lubricants.

There are two sources for methanol locally.Go to a racetrack for cars.Ask for methanol.Its used for making a carbureted  engine run more powerful.Methanol has an octane above 100.

If you are going super local then you better pull out the distilation kit.Best source I have found thus far has been the pyroil gas line antifreeze.99.8 percent pure methanol.Whats left is something called bitrex which is the nastiest tasting stuff in the world supposedly that they add to make children not chug your chemichals.Bitrex is 100% safe for humans minus what they put it into (methanol in this case) so if your final product is not critical to purity then its safe to put in undistilled. You could for example make dyes or foodstuffs and the most you would end up with is a nasty taste in your mouth so long as the methanol was removed thoroughly. Pyroil can be found at schucks

[hmx9123]

Go to home depot.  Buy a can of 'methyl alcohol'.  They sell it in 100% form.

[hvymetalalchmst]

a little copy and paste from another thread:

it is best to try to google homebrew nitro fuel rc.. or something along the lines of that. i have read methanol is able to be obtained from topfuel/speed even go karting/motorcycle shops in the US, or you might like to try and look up some nearby chemical suppliers.

but i doubt you need gallons of it.. if your after only quarts, which i assume you are, try out home depot like the guy above me said

good luck.