Gum Spirits Turpentine vs Petroleum Turpentine

Wait, isn’t turpentine turpentine? They can’t be that different, can they? How wrong you are. Of all the tricky marketing ploys I’ve seen in my life this is one of the most impressive dupes ever to be pulled.

Welcome to the showdown: Gum Spirits Turpentine vs. Petroleum Turpentine, a.k.a. Mineral Spirits. And for anyone who owns, restores, or lives in an old house, the answer to “Which one should I use?” matters—a lot.

Turpentine’s Origin Story

Let’s rewind to the 1700s.

Colonial America was practically built on old-growth pine. Longleaf pine, specifically. Its resin was tapped by enslaved laborers and tradesmen, boiled, and distilled into a golden solvent that would become the lifeblood of painters, woodworkers, and even doctors.

They called it turpentine.

But not just any turpentine—gum spirits (sometimes called balsam) turpentine. Made by collecting the sticky resin (“gum”) directly from living pine trees, especially in the southeastern U.S. (hello, Georgia and the Carolinas), gum spirits became the original solvent for oil-based paints, varnishes, and cleaning. Artists like Winslow Homer and old-school tradesmen alike swore by it.

One house painter I met in Savannah swears he can smell the difference between 1880s trim painted with gum spirits turps vs the petroleum stuff. He told me, “The old stuff has a sweetness. The new stuff smells like a gas leak.” My nostrils are not refined enough to smell the difference on 140-year paint jobs so, I guess I’ll have to trust him.

By the early 1800s, turpentine distilleries were big business—especially for naval stores used in shipbuilding. It was so essential, the British Navy stockpiled it like it was gold.

Enter the Oil Barons (and Their Smelly Impostor)

Fast forward to the post-WWII era.

Oil refineries were booming. Paint companies wanted cheaper, more stable solvents. Enter: petroleum-based turpentine, also called mineral spirits or white spirits. It’s not technically “turpentine” at all—but it got marketed that way. Kinda like at the sushi bar when you order “white tuna.” You know that’s not actually tuna of any kind, right? Sorry to burst your bubble.

This fake stuff was made by distilling petroleum into a clear, oily liquid, this version lacks everything the original had: no pine aroma, no antiseptic qualities, no historical soul. But it was cheap. Stable. Scalable. And it cleaned brushes pretty well, even if it burned your nostril hairs off.

What’s the Difference?

Let’s break it down.

Gum Spirits Turpentine:

• Source: Resin tapped from live pine trees (especially longleaf)
• Smell: Clean, sharp, piney—like an old-growth forest or a bottle of Pine-Sol
• Chemical makeup: 60–65% alpha-pinene, with other monoterpenes (broad solvent power)
• Boiling point: ~150–170°C
• Natural disinfectant: Historically used to clean wounds and treat parasites (yep)

Petroleum Turpentine:

• Source: Fractional distillation of crude oil
• Smell: Like gas station bathroom cleaner, but not as aromatic
• Chemical makeup: Mostly aliphatic hydrocarbons (hexane, heptane)
• Boiling point: 130–230°C
• Function: Solvent for modern oil-based paints and industrial uses

Why Does it Matter?

Your 1923 bungalow doesn’t want mineral spirits. It wants what it was born with. Gum spirits turpentine.

Gum spirits dissolves traditional linseed oil paints, softens historic glazing putty without over-drying, and cleans boar-bristle brushes without melting them. More importantly, it reacts naturally with traditional materials, whereas petroleum-based solvents can be too aggressive or leave behind residues.

Health Implications

Gum Spirits (with caution):

• Naturally antimicrobial
• Can cause irritation or neurotoxicity in high doses
• Historically ingested in tiny amounts (don’t try this at home)

Petroleum-Based:

• Not natural, not breathable, and definitely not edible
• Prolonged exposure linked to neurological effects
• Contains VOCs and potential carcinogens (CDC source)

A restoration painter friend of mine in New York insists he has fewer headaches and skin reactions after switching back to gum spirits. “It’s not just about being ‘natural.’ It’s that my body recognizes it as a real substance—not lab goo.”

How to Spot the Real Stuff

• Labeling: Look for “100% Pure Gum Spirits of Turpentine.” If it says “odorless,” “mineral,” or “petroleum-derived,” it’s not the real thing.
• Price: Gum spirits cost more—often $15–30 per quart. If you find it for five bucks, it’s not pine.
• Scent Test: Real gum spirits will smell like a Christmas tree farm. Synthetic stuff smells like a garage.
• Brands to Trust: Check out The Craftsman Store or Brouns & Co. Avoid generic hardware store turpentine unless labeled specifically as gum spirits.

Once you try the real stuff I promise you you’ll never go back. The smell and performance is unrivaled. Personally, I feel bad I spoke so poorly about turpentine for so many years. It was just ignorance that there was a whole world beyond my local hardware store where quality ingredients were hiding.

Now that I’ve seen how brilliant the original stuff is I would never use the petroleum based products again despite the higher cost. What do you think? Have you tried both and given a true comparison?