Desludge
The heavy pre-wash that keeps your main bath clean
Fuel residues, sludge and gross carbon — taken out before they poison your fine-cleaning stage.
The heavy pre-wash that keeps your main bath clean
The fastest way to ruin a good ultrasonic bath is to feed it filthy parts. Sump sludge, fuel varnish and gross carbon exhaust the chemistry, blind the filtration and coat the tank — and suddenly your precision stage is a waste-handling stage.
Desludge is the interceptor. A pH 13 decarboniser formulated for ultrasonic use, it takes the brutal first pass — engine sludge, fuel residues, the black soup off gearbox internals — at 10–20% and 40–60 °C, so parts arrive at the main bath merely dirty instead of foul.
The economics compound: your premium chemistry lasts multiples longer, filtration loads drop, and the pre-wash bath — being cheap to make up — becomes the sacrificial stage you drain without wincing. Two-bath shops clean more, spend less, and never apologise for their finish.
Where it earns its keep
Engine decarbonising; fuel system components; sump and gearbox sludge.
Dose: 10–20% v/v (typ. 15%). The trial sets your exact process values; the TDS governs.
The working process
A freshly cleaned ferrous part is chemically active — protective films gone, surface warm and wet, rinse ions acting as electrolyte. Rust bloom can start within the hour. DI water rinsing slows it; protection stops it.
Inhibitor in the final rinse before hot-air drying, an Anti-Rust dip between processes, or a water-displacing film for storage — matched to the next process. Tell us what happens next and the protection specifies itself.
Right product, right job
Desludge — the pre-wash
Gross sludge and fuel residues, first pass.
MetalTek 100
The fine decarbonising stage after Desludge
View →Delivered within Australia. Outside Australia, request a delivered price.
Anti-RustStops flash rust on cleaned steelView & buy →
RegeniKThe ash stage after carbonView & buy →
| Mild & carbon steel | Safe in prescribed use |
| Stainless steel | Safe in prescribed use |
| Cast iron | Safe in prescribed use |
| Aluminium & titanium | Aluminium protected by the silicate inhibitor at working strength; titanium on the TDS list |
| Magnesium & soft alloys | Do not use |
| Zinc & galvanised | Do not use — attacked at pH 13 |
| Copper & brass | Copper and brass tarnish — test first |
| Plated finishes (Cd·Cr·Ni) | Chrome plating and nickel listed; cadmium attacked |
| Plastics & rubbers | HDPE · PP · PVC · EPDM · Viton safe; acrylic and polycarbonate craze; nitrile swells |
| Painted / coated surfaces | Paint may be lifted — that is the job |
| UN Number | UN 3082 |
| DG Class | Class 9 · Packing Group III |
This is not a single-use chemical
A common misconception treats industrial chemistry like dishwater — used once, tipped out. A defended bath of Desludge works for weeks of production: weir oil separation and filtration defend the bath, solids leave through the filter, and the chemistry keeps working until genuine depletion.
Change out on evidence, not anxiety: when cycle times stretch or results fade at correct concentration, the bath has earned its retirement. Top-ups at specification carry it between changes.
- Skim or weir oils continuously — oil load is bath killer #1
- Filter solids; drain settled sludge from the sump
- Verify concentration on schedule per the TDS check method
- Log it — the trend predicts top-ups before cleaning fades
Drum and bath, both looked after
- Handling: Avoid eye contact and skin contact.
- Avoid inhalation of vapour, mist or aerosols.
- Storage: Store in a cool, dry, well-ventilated place and out of direct sunlight.
- Store away from foodstuffs.
- Store away from incompatible materials described in Section 10.
- Store away from sources of heat and/or ignition.
- Product Name: Desludge Reference No: KT-CC-DSL Issued: 2023-07-01 Version: 1.3 Safety Data Sheet Store locked up.
- Keep container standing upright.
- Keep containers closed when not in use - check regularly for leaks.
- This material is classified as a Class 9 Miscellaneous Dangerous Good as per the criteria of the "Australian Code for the Transport of Dangerous Goods by Road & Rail" and/or the "New Zealand NZS5433:
Lid the tank between shifts — holds temperature, limits evaporation, keeps dust out.
Idle periods: a warm, stagnant aqueous bath can support biological growth over extended stagnation. Circulate periodically, keep concentration at specification, never leave an open tank standing for weeks.
Extended shutdown: drain to sealed, labelled containers — or schedule changeover for restart day.
The icons on the label, and what they mean
These are the manufacturer’s own label marks, not third-party certifications. Where a named approval exists it is listed in full on this page. The compatibility table above is what governs.
The paperwork, on the page
Hazard identification
| H314 | Causes severe skin burns and eye damage. |
| H317 | May cause an allergic skin reaction. |
| H411 | Toxic to aquatic life with long lasting effects. |
| P102 | Keep out of reach of children. |
| P103 | Read carefully and follow all instructions. |
| P260 | Do not breathe dust, fume, gas, mist, vapours or spray. |
| P264 | Wash hands, face and all exposed skin thoroughly after handling. |
| P272 | Contaminated work clothing should not be allowed out of the workplace. |
| P273 | Avoid release to the environment. |
PPE & exposure controls
- National occupational exposure limits: No value assigned for this specific material by Safe Work Australia.
- Biological Limit Values: As per the "National Model Regulations for the Control of Workplace Hazardous Substances (Safe Work Australia)" the ingredients in this material do not have a Biological Limit Allocated.
- Engineering Measures: Natural ventilation should be adequate under normal use conditions.
- Personal Protection Equipment: RUBBER BOOTS, OVERALLS, GLOVES, APRON, CHEMICAL GOGGLES.
- Personal protective equipment (PPE) must be suitable for the nature of the work and any hazard associated with the work as identified by the risk assessment conducted.
- Wear rubber boots, overalls, gloves, apron, chemical goggles.
- Available information suggests that gloves made from butyl rubber, nitrile rubber should be suitable for intermittent contact.
- However, due to variations in glove construction and local conditions, the user should make a final assessment.
- Always wash hands before smoking, eating, drinking or using the toilet.
- Wash contaminated clothing and other protective equipment before storing or re-using.
First aid
- If poisoning occurs, contact a doctor or Poisons Information Centre (Phone Australia 131 126, New Zealand 0800 764 766).
- Inhalation: Remove victim from exposure - avoid becoming a casualty.
- Remove contaminated clothing and loosen remaining clothing.
- Allow patient to assume most comfortable position and keep warm.
- Keep at rest until Product Name: Desludge Reference No:
- KT-CC-DSL Issued: 2023-07-01 Version: 1.3 Safety Data Sheet fully recovered.
- Seek medical advice if effects persist.
- Skin Contact: Effects may be delayed.
- If skin or hair contact occurs, remove contaminated clothing and flush skin and hair with running water.
- If swelling, redness, blistering or irritation occurs seek medical assistance.
Storage & handling
- Handling: Avoid eye contact and skin contact.
- Avoid inhalation of vapour, mist or aerosols.
- Storage: Store in a cool, dry, well-ventilated place and out of direct sunlight.
- Store away from foodstuffs.
- Store away from incompatible materials described in Section 10.
- Store away from sources of heat and/or ignition.
- Product Name: Desludge Reference No: KT-CC-DSL Issued: 2023-07-01 Version: 1.3 Safety Data Sheet Store locked up.
- Keep container standing upright.
- Keep containers closed when not in use - check regularly for leaks.
- This material is classified as a Class 9 Miscellaneous Dangerous Good as per the criteria of the "Australian Code for the Transport of Dangerous Goods by Road & Rail" and/or the "New Zealand NZS5433:
Disposal
- Persons conducting disposal, recycling or reclamation activities should ensure that appropriate personal protection equipment is used, see "Section 8.
- Exposure Controls and Personal Protection" of this SDS.
- If possible material and its container should be recycled.
- If material or container cannot be recycled, dispose in accordance with local, regional, national and international Regulations.
Transport & dangerous goods
- Classified as Dangerous Goods by the criteria of the “Australian Code for the Transport of Dangerous Goods by Road & Rail" and the "New Zealand NZS5433:
- Transport of Dangerous Goods on Land".
- Australian Special Provisions; AU01: Environmentally Hazardous Substances meeting the description of UN 3077 or UN 3082 are not subject to this Code (ADG 07) when transported by road or rail in; (c) packagings that do not incorporate a receptacle exceeding 500 Kg (L); or (d) IBCs.
- UN No: 3082 Dangerous Goods Class: 9 Packing Group:
- III Hazchem Code: •3Z Emergency Response Guide No: 47 Limited Quantities 5L Proper Shipping Name:
- ENVIRONMENTALLY HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCE, LIQUID, N.O.S. (CONTAINS ALCOHOLS, C12-15, ETHOXYLATED, 1- 2.5 EO)) Segregation Dangerous Goods:
- Not to be loaded with explosives (Class 1).
- Note 1: Materials that are fire risks Product Name:
- Desludge Reference No: KT-CC-DSL Issued: 2023-07-01 Version: 1.3 Safety Data Sheet are incompatible with oxidising agents (Class 5.1) or organic peroxides (Class 5.2).
- Exemptions may apply.
Asked at the tank
What dilution and temperature do I run?
Why do my parts flash rust after cleaning?
When do I change the bath?
Can algae grow in the bath if it sits unused?
Can I get the SDS before buying?
Not sure which chemical? See which chemical for which metal and soil.
Prove it on your parts
The trial pairs Desludge with your components — concentration, temperature and cycle documented before you order a drum. Wrong chemistry for your soil? The trial says so.
Filter bags for this bath
The bag is what keeps the bath working — it takes the soil out before it settles back onto the next load. This is a strong alkaline bath, and that rules the media in and out before micron rating comes into it.
Rated to pH 14. This is what it is for. Start at 25 µm unless something downstream needs finer.