A clean bill of health for your surfaces

Although the LOCTITE name is synonymous with adhesives, our expertise in chemical engineering also delivers a range of degreasing and cleaning products to remove unwanted residue from various surfaces.
 

Meeting the challenges of industrial cleaning

A robust industrial maintenance regime is a must, keeping equipment and machinery in peak condition for as long as possible by extending their service life. Degreasing and cleaning solutions can make all the difference, down to the smallest part or the most heavy-duty application.

Unsurprisingly, many of the benefits that customers want from cleaning products are the same as those they require when selecting an adhesive – ease of use, speed, quality and safety. Whatever the industry, the key drivers remain optimal performance and minimal downtime.

Similarly, different customers require effective solutions for a variety of surfaces and work environments, which means that it’s important to understand the differences between the different chemical bases available.

What to use, when

General purpose cleaners are a staple of many industrial maintenance and repair operations due to their effectiveness across many different substrates. With the ability to remove several types of oils, residues, dirt, and other containments, general purpose cleaners are an ideal product solution for many surface preparation needs.

Solvent based degreasers and cleaners effectively remove a wide variety of oils, dirt, residues, and chemicals from the surface while offering fast dry times. These are a good choice for water sensitive parts that may be prone to flash rusting.

Conversely, for environments that are not suited for solvents, aqueous or water-based degreasers and cleaners are the ideal choice. These products remove contaminants by dissolving them, which allows residue to be rinsed off with water.

Sustainability first

Given the growing focus on sustainability for many customers, biodegradable options are also available for all-purpose and parts cleaners. These combine the strong surface degreaser and cleaning power with a more environmentally friendly chemistry.

ODC-free cleaners and degreasers provide further environmental advantages and can be applied both with immersion cleaning or through spray processes at room temperature or heated. ODC-free products are designed as a final pre-assembly cleaning treatment to remove most greases, oils, lubrication fluids, metal shavings, and residues.

Last but not least, it’s important not to forget industrial hand cleaners: an effective choice for removing dirt, oils, residues, and other chemicals at the end of the shift. Alongside the cleaners, industrial hand wipes are available that include an abrasive surface, which helps to remove particles and other residues from hands and forearms.

A cost-saving clean

The cost-saving potential of using industrial cleaners was made obvious by an application Daniel Aspey, Sales Engineer completed for a customer in the food sector.

This customer faced a situation where their oven doors were caked in burnt-on residue, which they had struggled to remove using conventional cleaners.

Alternative solutions were limited because of strict regulatory conditions for health & safety. As a food manufacturing facility, no hazardous materials could be used.

The process appeared to be very labour intensive and not cost-effective, leaving door replacement as the only viable option — estimated at approximately £10,000 and there were 74 doors.

Daniel recommended the use of LOCTITE SF 7840, which is readily available and contains no hazardous ingredients. It is also highly versatile in terms of application techniques.

For this particular situation, LOCTITE SF 7840 was sprayed onto the oven doors using a snow foam gun. After being left for 30 minutes, it was reapplied as a spray, agitating the contamination with a hard brush. This made the contamination easily removable via jet-washing, removing all of the unwanted residue.

This outcome highlighted how LOCTITE’s capabilities extend beyond adhesives, offering practical and compliant solutions to a range of industrial maintenance challenges.

With engineers all over the country to help solve your challenges – and a broad range of products available to get the job done –Loctite and ERIKS are always here to keep your operations clean.
 

LOCTITE SF 7840, and other cleaning and degreasing solutions under the LOCTITE name, are available from ERIKS.

Access all available Loctite products from the ERIKS Webshop.

For more information, contact your local ERIKS Service Centre, who will be happy to discuss your options.

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