Parts Washer Question

[Doug Braun <doug@dougbraun.com>]

 Hello,
 
 I was thinking of buying one of those small cheap
 parts washers from Harbor Freight.  I was looking
 at the instrucion manual on-line, and it should
 that you should only use a water-based solvent with
 it.
 Is this totally bogus, perhaps invented by their 
lawyers?
 If I had to use water, I could just do it in the
 laundry
 room sink.
 
 What sort of solvent works well in these washers?
 
 Thanks,
 
 Doug Braun
 '72 Spit