Talk:Diethyl ether

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Summary sheet: Diethyl ether

Template:Diethyl Ether
Chemical Nomenclature
Common names	Diethyl Ether, Ether
Substitutive name	Diethyl ether
Systematic name	Ethoxyethane
Class Membership
Psychoactive class	Dissociative
Chemical class	Ether
Routes of Administration
WARNING: Always start with lower doses due to differences between individual body weight, tolerance, metabolism, and personal sensitivity. See responsible use section. ⇣ Inhaled Dosage Threshold 1 - 2 ml Light 2 - 5 ml Common 5 - 10 ml Strong 10 - 20 ml Heavy 20 ml + Duration Total 45 - 75 minutes Onset 0 - 1 seconds Peak 15 - 30 seconds Offset 10 - 15 minutes After effects 2 - 48 hours ⇣ Oral Dosage Bioavailability x% - y% Threshold 0 - 1 mL Light 1 - 4 mL Common 4 - 5 mL Strong 5 - 7.5 mL Heavy 7.5 mL + Duration DISCLAIMER: PW's dosage information is gathered from users and resources for educational purposes only. It is not a recommendation and should be verified with other sources for accuracy.
Interactions
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Diethyl ether ((C2H5)2O) is a highly flammable solvent with anaesthetic and dissociative effects when inhaled. It has a strong dry, sweet smell, said to be reminiscent of rum. It was synthesized first in the 16th century by Valerius Cordus and has been used recreationally beginning in the early 19th century.

More recently, it gained popularity in the movie 'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas' which depicted Hunter S. Thompson experiencing the strange fiendishness of ether's intoxicating properties, sometimes called "etheromania". The depiction of ether in 'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas' is heavily fictionalized and bears little resemblance to the actual nature of the drug. However, it's negative depiction has nonetheless resulted in the drug being stigmatised.

The smell of ether is often compared to gasoline, however, this is a misconception. Pure ether has a pleasant, sweet, piercing aroma. The petrolic odour commonly attributed to the substance is a result of the use of impure ether, often in the form of starting fluid. Starting fluid is not pure ether and contains a significant amount of alkanes (such as hexane and heptane, which may constitute more than half of its weight) which are metabolised into neurotoxic compounds. The only way to separate the ether from the alkanes is by distillation, as the alkanes are also not miscible with water.

Subjective effects

This subjective effects section is a stub. As such, it is still in progress and may contain incomplete or wrong information. You can help by expanding or correcting it.

Disclaimer: The effects listed below cite the Subjective Effect Index (SEI), an open research literature based on anecdotal user reports and the personal analyses of PsychonautWiki contributors. As a result, they should be viewed with a healthy degree of skepticism.

It is also worth noting that these effects will not necessarily occur in a predictable or reliable manner, although higher doses are more liable to induce the full spectrum of effects. Likewise, adverse effects become increasingly likely with higher doses and may include addiction, severe injury, or death ☠.

Physical effects

• • Euphoria
  • Pain relief - At moderate to heavy doses, the body becomes almost fully insensitive to pain.
  • Increased heart rate or Decreased heart rate
  • Increased perspiration
  • Dizziness -
  • Nausea
  • Respiratory depression
  • Ether smelling - Users reported that during 1-3 days after consumption, bodily fluids, and more notably the user's breath, smells of ether. This is a result of ether's immiscibility and low vapour pressure, meaning it is difficult to expel by urine and very apt to evaporate from membranes.

Visual effects

• Enhancements

  • Visual acuity effect1

  Distortions

  • Visual distortion - At heavy doses of ether, it becomes very difficult to focus one's eyes, leading to one's vision being blurred.
  • Tunnel vision - A common effect of a moderate dose of ether is the development of pronounced tunnel vision.

  Geometry

  If applicable, a brief paragraph summary describing the visual geometry produced by the substance may be included here.

  Hallucinatory states

  If applicable, a brief summary of the substance's visual effects profile may be written here.

  • Hallucinatory states1

Cognitive effects

• • Anxiety suppression
  • Disinhibition
  • Dissociation - One of the most pronounced effects of ether is the dissociation one feels at higher doses.
  • Confusion
  • Depersonalization
  • Derealization
  • Thought acceleration
  • Thought disorganization
  • Time dilation
  • Compulsive redosing - Users will often develop an intense desire to binge once started.

Auditory effects

• • Auditory distortion - Tinnitus is very common with ether and noises may also sound muffled or dampened.

Experience reports

There are currently 0 experience reports which describe the effects of this substance in our experience index.

Additional experience reports can be found here:

• Erowid Experience Vaults: Ether

Toxicity and harm potential

This toxicity and harm potential section is a stub. As a result, it may contain incomplete or even dangerously wrong information! You can help by expanding upon or correcting it. Note: Always conduct independent research and use harm reduction practices if using this substance.

The negative effects commonly attributed to ether result from consuming an impure formulation, such as starting fluid. All forms of starting fluid commonly sold contain neurotoxic alkanes, which, unlike ether, will cause permanent brain damage. Users should avoid these harmful effects by obtaining pure reagent grade, pure diethyl ether, or distilling the ether from the starting fluid.

Ether is highly flammable and, as such, should not be used near an open flame or near a lit cigarette. A mixture of ether and air may explode if it reaches a source of ignition.

Ether is very nontoxic and has a very wide therapeutic index. Ether inhalation leads to unconsciousness long before it leads to enough respiratory depression sufficient to cause death. Therefore, provided the ether is being inhaled from a cloth (not an inhalation apparatus) it is almost impossible to inhale a lethal dose. Ether has an oral LD50 of 3.56 ml/kg in rats when ingested as a bolus. More ether than this can be tolerated when inhaled and, as mentioned before, it is nearly impossible to inhale a lethal dose.

The ingestion of ether, however, is rather dangerous and requires extreme caution. Pure diethyl ether is incredibly difficult to drink, as it boils at 34.6 °C, well below the average human body temperature. Because of this issue, the traditional method to drink ether is to mix 3 parts high proof alcohol to 1 part ether, drink ice cold water to cool the esophagus, and the pour the mixture (called Hoffmann's drops or 'compound spirit of ether') down the throat. This should be done slowly and in small amounts as too much may cause the stomach to rupture from the pressure. The experience of drinking ether in this way bears little resemblance to that caused by inhalation and is closer to that of ethanol, with added potentiation from the inhibition of alcohol dehydrogenase by the ether.

The piercingly sweet odour of ether stays on the breath of the user for up to 48 hours after heavy use. This may cause slight discomfort to others, although most people are unable to identify the scent as ether.

It is strongly recommended that one use harm reduction practices when using this substance.

Tolerance and addiction potential

A tolerance to ether can be developed as the liver becomes better at metabolising the drug. Ether does have

Dangerous interactions

This dangerous interactions section is a stub. As such, it may contain incomplete or invalid information. You can help by expanding upon or correcting it.

Warning: Many psychoactive substances that are reasonably safe to use on their own can suddenly become dangerous and even life-threatening when combined with certain other substances. The following list provides some known dangerous interactions (although it is not guaranteed to include all of them).

Always conduct independent research (e.g. Google, DuckDuckGo, PubMed) to ensure that a combination of two or more substances is safe to consume. Some of the listed interactions have been sourced from TripSit.

Diethyl ether is metabolised into ethanol by the liver and, as such, should not be consumed with any substance that cannot be consumed with alcohol.

Legal status

This legality section is a stub. As such, it may contain incomplete or wrong information. You can help by expanding it.

Possession and use of diethyl ether holds no penalty in most countries, excepting Poland.

External links

• Diethyl ether (Wikipedia)
• Ether (Erowid Vault)
• (Ether: a forgotten addiction)
• (NEG and NIOSH basis for an occupational health standard; ethyl ether)