# Bacteriostatic Water > Research use only. Not for human or veterinary use. Supplied by Veracue Labs. - Page: https://veracuelabs.com/product/bacteriostatic-water - Sizes and prices in USD: 3 ml at $9.90; 10 ml at $16.50 - Certificate of analysis: none posted on the page. Request one for a specific lot at https://veracuelabs.com/contact-us. - Prices are a snapshot from 2026-10-17. The product page shows the current price. ## Overview Bacteriostatic Water, often shortened to BAC water, is water with benzyl alcohol added as an antimicrobial preservative that helps limit bacterial growth once a container has been opened. The label shown on both sizes names benzyl alcohol as the only added ingredient and gives it as 0.9%, with no sodium chloride or active compound listed, which separates it from saline and from preservative-free sterile water. ## Product Details ### What Is Bacteriostatic Water? Bacteriostatic Water, usually shortened to BAC water, is water that has an antimicrobial preservative added. On the labels of Veracue’s containers the preservative is benzyl alcohol, printed as 0.9% benzyl alcohol added. Its job is to help limit bacterial growth in the container after it has been opened. It does not sterilize the liquid, and it does not make an open container contamination-proof. In the laboratory it serves as a plain aqueous diluent, the liquid in which a research material is taken up or thinned at the bench. That describes what a diluent is in general terms and is not a method, and the listing gives no volumes, ratios or procedures. Veracue supplies it for research use only. ### Bacteriostatic Water at a Glance Product name: Bacteriostatic Water (also written BAC water) Product type: Aqueous laboratory diluent; not a peptide, not an active compound and not a blend Composition: Water with benzyl alcohol added as an antimicrobial preservative Preservative as labeled: Benzyl alcohol, printed as 0.9% on the label shown in the product photographs Benzyl alcohol reference identifiers: Formula C7H8O, CAS 100-51-6 Sizes offered: 3 mL and 10 mL Container as photographed: Clear vial with a silver-colored cap and a white label Label text shown: BAC WATER, the volume (3mL or 10mL) and 0.9% benzyl alcohol added Research designation: Research Use Only Composition on this page is read from the label shown in the product photographs. The container you receive carries its own label, lot number and dates, and those, not this listing, are the record for that container. Questions about a specific lot can go through the contact page. ### What Bacteriostatic Water Is Not - Not sterile water. Sterile water carries no added preservative, while this product carries benzyl alcohol. - Not saline. No sodium chloride appears on its label. - Not a statement of sterility. Limiting growth and being sterile are separate properties. - Not a peptide, an active compound or a blend. - Not intended for human or veterinary use. ## Research Focus & Mechanism Overview ### What Bacteriostatic Actually Means ### Does bacteriostatic mean the water kills bacteria? No. Bacteriostatic describes an agent that inhibits bacterial growth, while bactericidal describes one that kills bacteria. Microbiologists separate the two with methods such as the MBC to MIC ratio and time-kill curves, and the result depends on the organism, the medium and the conditions of the test. The word is a useful description of intended role, not a guarantee of protection against every organism. ### Why is a preservative not the same as sterility? Sterility describes a liquid that is free of viable microorganisms as supplied, and it needs its own testing and documentation. A preservative only acts against growth after contamination has occurred. The two claims rest on separate evidence, so neither one proves the other. ### Bacteriostatic Water Compared With Related Liquids Four liquids are often confused because their names overlap. The table compares composition only. Liquid: What it contains: Preservative: Read on the label Bacteriostatic water: Water with an added antimicrobial preservative: Yes, named on the label (benzyl alcohol on this product): Preservative name and proportion Sterile water (also sold as sterile water for injection): Water only: None added: A sterility statement and the container type Saline: Water with dissolved sodium chloride, commonly 0.9%: None unless stated: Sodium chloride in the ingredient line Bacteriostatic saline: Sodium chloride and benzyl alcohol in water: Yes: Both ingredients on the label Research-grade products can differ from pharmaceutical products that share a name, so a comparison like this holds only after the label of each item has been read. ### Why the Preservative Needs to Be Named BAC water is a market name, not a specification. Labeled bacteriostatic waters exist with benzyl alcohol at 0.9% and at 1.1%, so the name alone cannot tell a researcher the proportion. The Veracue labels shown in the photographs state 0.9% benzyl alcohol added, and the label on the container in hand is the figure to record. Benzyl alcohol, C7H8O under CAS 100-51-6, is an added component of the liquid. A methods record should therefore name the diluent and its preservative together, because a preservative can interact with other materials in an experiment. ### Where a Diluent Fits in Laboratory Work A diluent is the liquid in which a research material is taken up or thinned at the bench so that it can be handled in a method. Choosing one is a decision for the researcher: whether a preserved or a preservative-free liquid suits the assay, what the liquid contains and which lot was used. This listing supplies identity and labeling information only, and Veracue provides no dosing, administration or usage guidance of any kind, and no volumes, ratios or procedures. ## Quality & Purity Standards ### What This Listing States and Does Not State This listing states the product name, the two sizes and the composition printed on the label shown in the photographs. It does not state a sterility result, a pharmacopeial grade, a third-party test result, a storage temperature or a shelf life, and it does not present a certificate of analysis for this product. Where documentation exists for a lot, it is tied to that lot’s number, and questions about it can go through the contact page. ### Label and Container Checks A diluent has no purity peak or mass to read, so verification rests on what is printed on the container and what can be seen in it. These checks involve no test results, only a comparison of the container against the order and the record. Check: What to look for: What it tells you Product name: Bacteriostatic water or BAC water, matching the order: The container is the product that was ordered Preservative: The preservative named, with its proportion: The composition, which the product name alone does not give Volume: 3 mL or 10 mL as stated on the label: The size received matches the size ordered Lot number: A lot number printed on the container: The link between this container and any batch records Expiration date: A date printed on the label, if the label gives one: The limit the label sets for that container Storage statement: Any storage wording printed on the label: The only storage guidance that applies to that container Appearance: A clear liquid with no visible particles, cloudiness or discoloration, and an intact cap: Visible signs that a container should be set aside and reported ### Reading Lot Documentation Any document offered for a lot should name the product, show the same lot number that is printed on your container, and identify the laboratory, the date and the tests that were run. A document for a different lot, or one with no lot number, does not describe the container in hand. Check the certificate page for a report that matches your lot number. ### Common Questions About Verification ### Does a clear appearance show the water is sterile? No. Appearance shows only that nothing is visible. Sterility is a separate property that needs its own statement and documentation, and a visual check cannot confirm it. ### Does a lot number prove anything on its own? No. A lot number is a pointer. It becomes useful when the supplier can connect it to batch records, so record it for every container and keep any matching document alongside it. ### What belongs in a procurement record? For each container, keep a snapshot of the listing, the volume, the preservative and proportion read from the label, the lot number, the expiration date if one is printed, the date received and the experiments that used it. Consistent records make container-to-container differences visible and let an unexpected result be traced back. ### Questions about a specific lot? Ask the Veracue team what documentation exists for a lot, or review the certificate library. - Ask about a lot - View certificates - Browse the research catalog ## Compliance Notice ### Research Use Only Notice Bacteriostatic Water is supplied for laboratory research use only, as a diluent for bench work. It is not intended for human or veterinary use, or for ingestion, injection or any form of administration, and it is not a drug, dietary supplement, cosmetic or food. This page contains no dosing, administration or usage guidance of any kind. Purchasers must be qualified researchers or institutions and must use the material in line with all applicable laws. See the Medical Disclaimer and the Terms and Conditions for sitewide policies. The product photographs show each container as labeled. Any intended-use or grade wording printed on a pictured label does not change the research-use-only status of this listing, and Veracue makes no sterility, pharmacopeial or testing claim for it. ## Questions and answers ### What is bacteriostatic water? Bacteriostatic water is water with an antimicrobial preservative added to help limit bacterial growth once a container is opened. On Veracue’s labels the preservative is benzyl alcohol, printed as 0.9%. ### What does BAC stand for in BAC water? BAC is shorthand for bacteriostatic, so BAC water and bacteriostatic water are the same name. It is a market term rather than a specification, which is why the label, not the name, defines the preservative and its proportion. ### What does bacteriostatic mean? It means an agent inhibits bacterial growth rather than killing bacteria, which is what bactericidal means. The classification depends on the organism, the medium and the test conditions, so it describes an intended role and not a guarantee. ### Does bacteriostatic mean sterile? No. A preservative limits growth after contamination, while sterile means free of viable microorganisms as supplied. They are separate properties, and each needs its own statement and documentation before it can be relied on. ### What preservative is in Veracue Bacteriostatic Water? The labels shown in the product photographs name benzyl alcohol, printed as 0.9% benzyl alcohol added. Labeled bacteriostatic waters also exist at 1.1%, so read the label on the container you receive. ### How is bacteriostatic water different from sterile water for injection? Sterile water has no added antimicrobial preservative, while bacteriostatic water has one. Compare the preservative line and any sterility statement on each label before treating the two as interchangeable. ### Is bacteriostatic water the same as saline? No. Saline is water with dissolved sodium chloride, commonly 0.9%, and bacteriostatic water carries no sodium chloride on its label. A separate product, bacteriostatic saline, contains both sodium chloride and benzyl alcohol. ### What sizes does Veracue offer? Bacteriostatic Water comes in 3 mL and 10 mL clear vials with a silver-colored cap. The volume is printed on each label. ### What should I check on the label? Check the product name, the preservative and its proportion, the volume, the lot number, any expiration date and any storage wording. If one of these is missing or unclear, ask before relying on the container. ### Why does the lot number matter? It links the container in hand to the batch it came from and to any records for that batch. Note it for every container, and match it against the number on any document before treating the document as relevant. ### Where do I find storage and expiration information? On the label of the container you receive and in any documentation for its lot. This listing states no storage temperature or shelf life, and figures from another product should not be assumed. ### Does Veracue say how many times a container can be opened? This listing makes no single-use or repeated-opening claim of its own. The container label is the authority on that point, and questions can go through the contact page. ### Is Veracue Bacteriostatic Water sterile or tested? This listing makes no sterility, pharmacopeial-grade or third-party-testing claim and presents no certificate of analysis for the product. Ask what documentation exists for a given lot through the contact page. ### What does Research Use Only mean? It means the material is supplied only for laboratory research, not for human or veterinary use, ingestion, injection or any form of administration. It is a supplier designation and does not override applicable law. ### Does Veracue provide usage instructions for Bacteriostatic Water? No. Bacteriostatic Water is offered for laboratory research use only, and Veracue provides no dosing, administration or usage guidance of any kind. More from Veracue Labs: https://veracuelabs.com/llms.txt