Is all air duster (canned air) the same?

No, there are a variety of different types of dusters, some more for consumer use, and others more common in commercial applications. Many retail dusters have bitterant added to prevent huffing. When duster is used in the home, there is concern that the material will be purposely inhaled (called “huffing” or “dusting”) by minors, which can sometimes lead to tragic consequences. To avoid this, bitterant is added to make the duster taste bad. This same bitterant can lead to unwanted and potentially harmful residues on sensitive surfaces like electronic circuit boards. There are also different options for the propellant: HFC-134a – Nonflammable, most common for industrial applications when spraying energized circuits because of the risk of a spark lighting a flammable material. It is under close scrutiny because it has a Global Warming Potential (GWP) of 1400, so 1400 times the impact of CO2. HFC-152a – Most commonly available duster in consumer retail because it is less expensive than HFC-134a. It is flammable, and will ignite when concentrated (i.e. in liquid form) and exposed to a spark or flame. HFO-1234ze – This is a newer, nonflammable material introduced in the last 10-years as a very low GWP alternative (<1) to HFC-134a. It is non-flammable and is almost indistinguishable from HFC-134a when sprayed, but unfortunately at a much higher price.