Dilution ratios: product/H2O or other way around?

Just picked up some Optimum Instant Detailer & Gloss Enhancer concentrate and read that it dilutes 3:1

If my unit of measure is liquid ounces, then I'm doing this mix as 3 oz distilled water with 1 oz of concentrate, right?

Or is it 3oz of concentrate added to 1 ounce of distilled water? (this doesn't seem right)



I read somewhere that the formula for dilution ratios is stated as: volume of serum/volume of solution

 

Water:Concentrate

 

In biology lab, the "dilution" method is different.
1:3, 1 part concentrate to 2 parts water = 3 final volume.

Never could understand which one is correct but i use Darkstar's method.

 

The common method around here seems to be 3:1, 4:1, 1:1, all being waterroduct

 

I know what you mean when I first looked at dilutions people were posting I was doing it the way I do them in school. But to "normal" people it is not like that...

 

OK, so my suspicions were correct: 1 oz of H2O + 3 oz concentrate to yield 4 oz of QD solution.

Thanks guys.

 

No You got it wrong its Water:Concentrate

in your first post you mentioned the product says to use 3:1

What you want it to be 3 Parts H20: 1 Part Concentrate

 

Whoops. Please ignore my previous post: pure typo. I meant to put: 1 part concentrate mixed into 3 parts H2O. Dunno what distracted me at the time that I keyed in that switcheroo but I sure sounded like one dumb f***. Thanks.

 

I was a detailer long before I became a Chemical Engineer so I was totally confused (dilution method 1:3, 1 part concentrate to 2 parts water = 3 final volume)

Ratios (Detailer's dilution)

Dilution rates are shown as a ratio i.e. a solution of distilled water / Woolite® 5:1, this means that the product is diluted five parts distilled water to one part Woolite®. If you have a container with dilution markings fill the bottle with water to the dilution level required and then add product to the fill line.

Ratios- convert the ratio into fractions. Add the two numbers of the ratio together then use that number as a denominator for the individual parts. Multiply total amount of solution you want by the fractions.

Example- distilled water to product with a dilution ratio of 5:1 in a 16oz spray bottle >
(5:1 ratio) 5 + 1 = 6, Water =16 x 5 / 6(0.833) = 13.33 = 13.25 oz. Product = 16 x 1/6 (0.166) = 2.66

Use 13.25 oz of water / 2.75oz of product.

 

The important point to remember is the LARGER number is water no matter how people write it. In biology, it is as agpatel says but it is not used that way in most places (photography, etc).

All the sprayer bottles you buy use the non-biology method since 1:1 really makes no sense.