Chapter 9: Solvents and hydrocarbons · Part 1: Glycol ethers
Butyl diglycol (DEGBE)
- Poison schedule (Australia)
- Made from a hazardous chemical
The worst fact: since 2010 the EU has banned it at 3% or more in spray paints and spray cleaners in aerosol cans sold to the public. Rats breathing the vapour at 100 mg/m³ had changes in their lungs, though these appeared to reverse.
Why brands use it: it's a "mutual solvent" that keeps soap, oil and water in one liquid.
Take care if: you spray it, or for your eyes. Australia classes it as "Causes serious eye irritation", and it's Schedule 5 (Caution) above 10%. Household cleaning products have been reported at up to 30% (typically 10%) in US and EU data. Australia's regulator found no unreasonable risk to the public except when paint is spray-applied, and suggested label directions on ventilation and not breathing the spray for products above 10% or that are sprayed.
Comes from: ethylene oxide reacted with butanol. Australia classes ethylene oxide as "May cause genetic defects; May cause cancer". That doesn't mean it's in the product, but it's not a great starting point for something you clean with.
Myth check: "Diethylene glycol butyl ether is diethylene glycol": no. Diethylene glycol is the poison in Glycerin below; this is a different chemical, and it isn't a Schedule 6 poison.
Contaminants: nil.
Fair to say: it tested negative for genetic damage in several lab and animal tests, and the concern is breathing the spray, not using a liquid.
Correct as of November 2026. What the badges mean
Sources
- Australian Government. Poisons Standard October 2026 (SUSMP), F2026L01327: 2-butoxyethanol; diethylene glycol monobutyl ether; hydrocarbons, liquid; toluene; xylene; tetrachloroethylene; trichloroethylene; Appendix B.
- Safe Work Australia. Hazardous Chemical Information System (HCIS): classifications for each chemical, and for ethylene oxide, propylene oxide, epichlorohydrin, benzene, 1,3-butadiene-containing butane and 1,2-dichloroethane. Workplace exposure standards (amended November 2025) and workplace exposure limits (July 2025). Labelling of workplace hazardous chemicals code of practice (2015). Trichloroethylene health monitoring guide.
- NICNAS. Priority Existing Chemical Reports No. 6: 2-butoxyethanol in cleaning products (1996); No. 8: trichloroethylene (2000); No. 15: tetrachloroethylene (2001). IMAP Tier II assessments: diethylene glycol monobutyl ether (2013); toluene (2017); xylenes (2019).
- HSDB (US National Library of Medicine), via PubChem: manufacturing, use and impurity data.
The full source list is at the end of Chapter 9.