Four Basic Chemical Categories for Cleaning Ingredients

 One of the most well recognized cleaning & disinfecting agents that is sold under a variety of marketing names is sodium hypochlorite (household bleach).  Yes, it contains chlorine, and yes, it is the only one of the four chlorine compounds listed in Table 3 that is routinely used as a cleaner in residential, commercial and industrial settings.  Chlorine may be effective for many purposes, but it is not the most environmentally friendly compound depending on its ‘final form’.  There are immediate effects you are probably familiar with and longer-term effects you might not be aware of…  
  

Do you want to destroy your grass, flowers, shrubs, and permanently add unfavorable chlorine compounds to the Earth?  Have you ruined any clothes or other fabrics with bleach?  Ever gasp for air as the wind blows bleach vapor into your lungs?  At 5-6% active content, bleach does clean some surfaces, but at what cost?  Also, products containing bleach that are packaged in ‘hose end’ spraying devices dilute the activity of chlorine bleach far below any effective level and waste a precious resource...water!  Try it yourself, and tell me you don't see a huge difference?  Why not consider a safer alternative to chlorine bleach?
 

 ACTIVOX does NOT contain chlorine bleach, amines, acid or toxic chemicals.  In municipal wastewater and industrial applications, the oxygen chemistry in ACTIVOX is seen as an environmentally benign alternative to chlorine-based bleaches as companies have begun to shift toward more sustainable chemistry.  Over the past decade, chlorine compounds have attracted global attention for their less than favorable contribution to air and soil.  Many have accepted the long-understood power of oxygen in a friendlier form that spontaneously breaks down into water & oxygen.  By combing the ACTIVOX liquid and REACTOR, you are liberating oxygen and energy to simultaneously clean and biodegrade.
 

All of the oxygen chemistry cited in Table 4 is not the same.  While they may be related in the general category of the ‘peroxide’ family, they have very distinct differences.  Peroxyacetic acid is in a subgroup of its own based on volatility and combinatorial chemistry.  Sodium percarbonate is used effectively as a mild bleach in laundry detergents (Oxi-Clean), because it doesn’t ruin clothing.  Hydrogen peroxide is an excellent oxidizer, will not clean weathered wood at all, and it is not as detrimentally aggressive as chlorine. 

The one shared trait about these oxygen chemistries?  The oxygen-oxygen bonds are easily split, they are found in nature in small quantities, in surface water, ground water, atmosphere, plants, animals, and humans.  BUT…no other single product claiming to use oxygen chemistry generates the same type of on-site immediate cleaning action as ACTIVOX outdoor cleaner and stain remover.  It’s not even close!
 

Of the quaternary amines in Table 5, ADBAC is the most common one that is mistakenly used as an outdoor cleaner.  Products containing ADBAC claim to require no effort…just apply and wait a few months for it to work.  The next frequently seen group of nitrogen compounds is what we call ‘mixed quats’ (cited more specifically on product labels) and are represented in the first row, but they are definitely not going to clean your outdoor surfaces like ACTIVOX.  Outdoor cleaning is not what this category should be utilized for; the potential consequences to eco-systems aren’t worth the risk. 

Ammonia has a great reputation for cleaning indoor surfaces and leaving a streak-free shine, but it is both caustic and hazardous and is not used to attack tough outdoor stains.  Conclusion?  Nitrogen compounds are a vital part of everyday life but if used incorrectly can also be a tremendous detriment to society. Do a quick search on ‘eutrophication’ of lakes and waterways.  

Table 6 is interesting because all of the compounds cited are truly different, and each one has valuable end uses, but multi-purpose outdoor cleaning is not one of them.  

Oxalic acid is a common aggressive acid cleaner but has very specific target sites.  It does not remove dirt, debris and stains from algae, mold & mildew, but it does get rid of rust and tannins in wood.  Read the HEALTH comments, check with EPA & FDA, and then decide if you want to use this acid around YOUR home.

Trisodium phosphate (TSP) was once a very common component of various consumer cleaning products due to its versatility and low cost.  But during the late 1960’s, government regulators determined that overuse led to significant negative ecological impact on lakes and rivers. Since then several TSP-substitutes have been utilized, including combinations of sodium carbonate with surfactants, but none have been as effective. 

Sodium carbonate is utilized successfully for so many processes that it is an essential global compound. It has also been associated with mold & mildew as an EPA registered pesticide but not as a cleaner. The alkaline surface pH associated with a dilute solution of sodium carbonate may create an unfavorable environment for microbiological growth, but that does not qualify it as a mold & mildew stain remover or protectant in an outdoor setting.  

Ortho-phenylphenol isn’t even worthy of inclusion here, except for the fact that it is currently being sold in retail locations for this inappropriate end use.  It does NOT clean outdoor surfaces, even if you mix it with bleach per the label instructions. 

The conclusion regarding the Nitrogen and Other categories?  They really should stick to what they do best and leave outdoor cleaning to the Oxygen and Chlorine compounds.