From Newsgroup: alt.home.repair

On Sat, 7 Mar 2026 20:39:57 -0800, Maria Sophia
<mariasophia@comprehension.com> wrote:

blank verse wrote:

When comparing different glyphosate percentages, only the AE matters.

Top tip - add some Dawn dish liquid, helps wit adhesion to weeds.

Hi blank verse,

Thanks for that pro tip about adding a common household surfactant.
I looked that up, and you're right. But not too much. Just enough.
And, apparently, it matters which concentration we started with.

Apparently, the Dawn helps the cheaper products better but not for the
reason we might think. The reason is they use different surfactants.

Ranger Pro Concentrate $66.50/2.5gal, made by Monsanto (now Bayer)
41% glyphosate IPA salt (EPA Reg. 524-517) <https://www.domyown.com/glyphosate-a-422.html>

Roundup Pro Concentrate $72.98/2.5gal, made by Monsanto (now Bayer)
50.2% glyphosate IPA salt (EPA Reg. 524-529) <https://www.domyown.com/roundup-pro-concentrate-p-12831.html>

Roundup Pro Max $69.98/1.67gal, made by Monsanto (now Bayer)
48.7% glyphosate K+ salt (EPA Reg. 524-579) <https://www.domyown.com/roundup-pro-max-p-1346.html>

Apparently 1 teaspoon (but never more than 1 tablespoon) per gallon of
"Dawn" dish detergent can make up for some of the surfactant issues.
1 teaspoon per gallon dish detergent (about 0.5% v/v)

Apparently it works better on the Ranger Pro Concentrate though.
Ranger Pro Concentrate + Dawn ==> works slightly better as a wetting agent Roundup Pro Concentrate + Dawn ==> apparently doesn't change much
Roundup Pro Max + Dawn ==> apparently makes the wetting a bit worse

Dawn is an anionic detergent while the surfactants in the various
glyphosate products typically use non-ionic ethoxylated surfactants.

Also note that none of the surfactants or salts matter for cut and spray
on brooms since that bypasses the waxy green leafy foliage altogether.

a tablespoon or so of diesel fuel works wonders too
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From Newsgroup: alt.home.repair

Clare Snyder wrote:

a tablespoon or so of diesel fuel works wonders too

I looked that up and while it's often mentioned, there's less information
about how diesel might help with glyphosate based herbicides.

Certainly Google found diesel used in oil-soluble herbicides, but
glyphosate is not oil soluble, and diesel apparently is not a surfactant so
it doesn't improve absorption (as far as I could find out from Google).

There was a bit of cut-stump lore of mixing diesel with triclopyr ester
(which is oil soluble) so diesel helps it penetrate the bark.
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From Newsgroup: alt.home.repair

On Tue, 17 Mar 2026 21:31:16 -0400, Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> wrote:

Clare Snyder wrote:

a tablespoon or so of diesel fuel works wonders too

I looked that up and while it's often mentioned, there's less information >about how diesel might help with glyphosate based herbicides.

Certainly Google found diesel used in oil-soluble herbicides, but
glyphosate is not oil soluble, and diesel apparently is not a surfactant so >it doesn't improve absorption (as far as I could find out from Google).

There was a bit of cut-stump lore of mixing diesel with triclopyr ester >(which is oil soluble) so diesel helps it penetrate the bark.

Diesel works as a penetrant and sticker, ensuring the herbicide stays
on the plant, often used in basal bark applications and for
controlling brush or vine stumps.
It also works on waxy leaf plants - like poison ivy.
It makes a "glue" that can foul pumps - which helps it stick to leaves
and also helps if it rains after it is sprayed. It emulsifies with the
water based spray.
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