What Is Muriatic Acid And Is It Safe For Home Cleaning?

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The name muriatic acid is derived from the Latin word muriaticus, which means "pickled in brine" because it's used as a pickling agent to remove oxides from the surface of metals. It's a type of acid, as the name implies — hydrochloric acid (HCl) to be specific.

Hydrochloric acid is a purer and more toxic form of muriatic acid. Hydrochloric acid has a normal pH of 1.5 to 3.5, while muriatic acid has a pH of about 1 to 2. Muriatic acid is also less potent because it's diluted with water (usually around 31.5 percent HCl) and contains impurities like iron. The impurities give muriatic acid a yellowish color and distinct smell, compared to clear and odorless hydrochloric acid.

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Arab scholar Jabir ibn Hayyan — considered a "father of alchemy" — is credited with discovering hydrochloric acid via experimental alchemy in the eighth century by distilling sulfuric acid with hydrochloric acid and nitric acid. Scholars also credit him with the invention of several early chemical processes including crystallization, calcinations, sublimation and evaporation.

Today you can pick up muriatic acid at most home improvement stores for less than $20 a gallon. It's not as hazardous as pure HCl, and you can use it safely if you take precautions.

hydrochloric acid
Muriatic acid is just a diluted version of hydrochloric acid. mewaji/Shutterstock

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