Whether you’re cleaning rust from porcelain, removing mineral deposits from a spa or bathtub, or even deep cleaning a toilet, there are times when your typical cleaning product just doesn’t cut it. You need something much stronger. In these cases, the professionals turn to acid cleaning products.
Acid products are to be handled with extreme care and caution: using them requires personal protective equipment (PPE), and some acid products emit a gas so they must be used under certain limitations. In this article, we’ll explain what an acid cleaning product is, common uses, and how to use it safely and effectively.
What is an Acid Cleaning Product?
Acid cleaning products contain a pH level between 0 and 6 and are mainly used for the removal of lime deposits, scales, rust, heavy soap scum, and other difficult-to-clean inorganic deposits. Common acid ingredients in cleaning products include hydrochloric acid, hydrofluoric acid, and phosphoric acid.
Uses for Acid Cleaning Products
Adid cleaning products have many different uses. Here are some of the most common.
- Removing rust and hard water stains. One of the main purposes for using an acid cleaning product is for the removal of rust and hard water stains that build up over time. One common deposit, lime, often develops on metal surfaces that have been heated, such as hot water heaters and commercial dishwashing machines.
- Cleaning or preventing the formation of deposits on your pool or spa. Pools and spas are known to develop deposits because of the chemicals used to purify the water for public use. Those chemicals build up on the surface and acid products are often required for their removal.
- Cleaning metals like aluminium. Metals require heavy duty acid cleaners in order to remove stains and restore them to their natural shine. Many of the deposits commonly found on metals, such as rust, require a high level of strength in order to be removed. Rust responds well to acid products.
- Restorative cleaning. Examples of restorative cleaning might be the cleaning of a metal surface before painting.
- Toilet bowl cleaner. On a routine basis, toilet bowls do not require acidic cleaning products. However buildup accumulates over time and sometimes requires the use of heavy duty cleaners in order to remove. Acid products like hydrochloric acid work well on the porcelain surface of toilet bowls and keep them looking like new.
Popular Acid Products on Worldwide Janitor
At Worldwide Janitor, we sell several quality acid cleaning products that are also available for purchase in bulk. Here are some of our best sellers.
Muriatic acid prevents the formation of deposits that can damage pools and spas. It contains 32% hydrochloric acid.
Delimer and scale remover works to remove lime deposits, hard water stains, soap scum, scale, and mineral deposits from many different kinds of surfaces. Surfaces that are safe for use with this product include stainless steel, glass, porcelain, and nickel.
This product is ideal for removing hard water stains on hot water heaters, spas, pools, and ice machines. It can also be used on steam tables, dish machines, glassware, utensils, animal cages or pens, and laboratory glassware.
When you have serious rust deposits, use a product like rust dissolve to get rid of it once and for all. Rust dissolve consists of a blend of phosphoric acids and is safe and effective for use on metals of all kinds. Later, you can use D/C 550 Rust Inhibitor to ensure that the rust does not return.
Rust Dissolve is also commonly used to prepare metal surfaces for painting or in industrial settings on items such as engine components, metal sheds, industrial equipment, metal tools, or fan blades. Smaller items can even be submerged for optimal cleaning and stripping.
Stain Away is a versatile acid product that can be used to remove toilet bowl stains, rust, and hard water. Stain Away is not concentrated so it does not need to be pre-mixed in order to be effective.
Concrete Remover is a heavy-duty restorative acid that contains hydrogen chloride, so proper PPE should be used to prevent inhalation. It is used in settings such as shipyards, warehouses, and manufacturing plants. It contains a metal inhibitor so it is safe to use on metal surfaces.
How to Safely Use an Acid Product
Regardless of what chemical composition it contains, each acid product must be handled with personal protective equipment and the proper chemical handling training. All staff using an acid product should be protected using PPE including gloves, goggles, and in some cases, masks to prevent inhalation of the product.
In addition to PPE, all staff using acid products should be trained in proper wear of PPE and safe handling for acid products.
Acid products are not your most common janitorial cleaning supply, but there are times when they are necessary to keep your facilities looking as good as new. Worldwide Janitor offers quality products for all your commercial acid cleaning needs.
