What’s In Your Liquid Chalk?
Let’s talk alcohol! Not the drinking type, save the beers, get a coffee, we’re getting serious now.
This blog focuses on the type of alcohol which we make our liquid chalk with and why it’s so important. It’s the major ingredient and the net positive effect of the type of alcohol we use alone is enough to justify encouraging all of your friends to swap their liquid chalk to Gekco.
Gekco uses ethanol. Most brands use isopropanol (isopropyl alcohol, commonly known as IPA).
Put simply, ethanol is an organic derived alcohol produced from the fermentation of sugars in plants, no different to beer, spirits or wine.
Isopropanol (IPA) is derived from petroleum.
As our planet attempts to make a swift u-turn from a dependence on fossil fuels and oil, this decision was as important as any other in our product development process and we’re proud to be the only chalk company taking this route.
Our ethanol is derived from crops grown in England before being processed right here in Yorkshire. The environmental footprint of our ethanol is the lowest it can be and we’re very proud of that.
As important as the environmental benefits are, there's also another big point to discuss.
Ethanol is better tolerated by the skin, particularly in high use settings. Whereas IPA causes significant damage to the skin condition and function. For a product which we believe to be better than loose chalk, making it as skin friendly and safe as possible is key. This was not only the conclusion of a 2017 study but also of our own testing. Since launching we’ve had countless comments from climbers who previously struggled with skin issues from other liquid chalk’s. Cracking, extremely dry skin, itching and rashes; IPA can be pretty harsh. These climbers have been psyched that due to Gekco being resin free and ethanol based, they can use liquid chalk problem free.
When it comes to usability ethanol also wins out. IPA has a downright pungent odour, so strong it makes your eyes water if you get a good enough wiff. Ethanol’s odour is much milder being more medicinal than paint stripper-esc.
This leaves us with one very easy question to cover before we conclude… Can you drink Gekco Liquid Chalk? Certainly not. Although the ethanol is the same as that in drinks, when it’s used in other products, sports products for instance it is denatured making it unfit for human consumption. If you’ve ever had the unpleasant experience of getting a spot in your mouth you’ll know it’s the most bitter taste on earth!
For us, ethanol was the only way forward. It’s the more environmentally conscious and skin friendly alcohol option.
Let us know your experiences with liquid chalk! Have you noticed the difference in smells between Gekco and other liquid chalks?
