Proportions are not very critical. Reagent alcohol, or waste alcohol from staining, may be used. Davidson's fixative is clear and has no color other than that imparted by eosin. Color should be sufficient to render identification easy. Tissues placed in Davidson's fixative rapidly turn white and opaque, while blood turns brown.
Acetic acid is quite corrosive.
Davidson's fixative may be stored at room temperature in plastic or glass containers for an indefinite time. Davidson's fixative is not mentioned in most standard reference works on histology. It is named after William McKay Davidson, a British hematologist, and was publicized by Moore and Barr in their well-known studies of sex chromatin. The detection of chromosomal sex in hermaphrodites from a skin biopsy. Nuclear morphology, according to sex, in human tissues.