Aqua Pro Cleaning Solutions believes in customer education. On this page you will find  various articles and information that have been compiled by other certified PWNA contractors  as well as general information on different aspects of our profession. Please reference the 5 separate links to the extreme left of this paragraph to get information on your specific cleaning needs.

       Introduction to Detergents

by John L. Thomas
The Hotsy Coporation - detergent division
San Antonio, Texas
(excerpts)

The use of chemicals in combination with your pressure washer will speed up the
cleaning process while maximizing the cleaning results.

There are literally hundreds of detergents on the market, many of which are
similar and many are good. The secret to selecting the proper detergent for a
specific cleaning job is through an understanding of the different components and
what purpose each serves.

Parts of Most Detergents:
The following is a list of many of the components commonly found within most
detergents.

Surfactants:

(See Also click drop down arrow -> Complex Phosphates Alkaline Builders Solvents Acids Fillers Thickening Agents Rust Inhibitors    )

Surfactants, also known as wetting agents, have the following functions:

• Wetting - Acts to make water "wetter" giving it greater penetrating power and greater ability to help loosen and remove soil. Reduces surface tension.
• Emulsifying - Helps to solubilize and suspend oil, grease or other normally water insoluble compounds.
• Deflocculation Peptization - Dispersing - Acts to break up and suspend water insoluble materials such as clay and metal oxides so they may be more easily removed.
• Detergency - This is cleaning ability. It is a combination of all surfactant functions. There is a large variation of cleaning ability of detergency. The surfactants in good detergents are picked because of their superior detergency. This is very important.
• Foaming - Surfactants will range from non-foaming to extremely high foaming. Foam has nothing to do with cleaning ability but many people believe a cleaner has to foam to be effective.
• Biodegradable - All surfactants used in good detergents are biodegradable. They break down into simpler compounds in sewage plants, septic tanks or rivers and lakes.

Copyright (c) 2005 Aqua Pro Cleaning Solutions. All rights reserved.

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Tom1@aquaprocs.com

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