Actichem Brownaway 5 ltr

Product Overview

Brownaway is a browning remover for carpets and upholstery.

Brownaway is an innovative, high-activity formula for neutralising and reversing alkaline browning (cellulosic browning) stains. This professionally researched formula includes a special blend of low pH compounds proven to permanently remove tough browning discolourations, watermarks, coffee stains, urine stains and many dye stains.

This product is a great replacement for Powerclean Debrown.

Benefits

• Innovative chemistry — Brownaway is not simply a blend of acids typical of many browning solutions but utilises innovative technology from the textile industry, where polymers are used to release discolouration and fine particle stains such as coffee.
• Dynamic penetration — super-wetting and penetrating agents ensure Brownaway quickly and effectively penetrates each discoloured fibre, so each fibre is treated not just on the outside but deep into the fibre for effective and permanent stain removal.
• Urine removal — a carefully selected blend of low pH salts neutralises the urine crystals and removes the stain from the fibre.
• Fibre safe — safe for use on all natural and synthetic fibres; however, fine fabrics must be pre-tested for colour stability before use.
• User friendly — specialty low odour formula ensures user comfort. Low odour is not the same as low hazard — see the Safety section below.

Application Areas and Surface Suitability

Browning remover for carpets and upholstery. Suitable for use on all carpet and fabric types.

How to Use

Always pre-test in an inconspicuous location for substrate sensitivity to chemicals and dye stability.

Dilution: ready to use, or 1:1 for lesser affected areas and upholstery.

1. Use Brownaway undiluted for severe contamination, or dilute 1:1 for lesser affected areas and for use on upholstery.
2. Spray apply this solution onto the fibre or fabric until it is wetted out.
3. Agitate the solution using a carpet rake or upholstery cleaning brush.
4. Allow 10 – 20 minutes of reaction time.
5. Rinse extract using Actichem Rinse Pro or an Actichem Emulsifier.
6. Allow to dry. Assist drying by increasing ventilation.

Safety

Please read this section. This listing previously described Brownaway as “Non-hazardous”. That was wrong. It has been corrected.

Actichem’s safety data sheet for AP494, version 2.3 issued 23 September 2025, classifies Brownaway as a HAZARDOUS CHEMICAL under the Model WHS Regulations. It is not classified as dangerous goods for transport.

• Signal word: DANGER
• H315 — causes skin irritation
• H318 — causes serious eye damage
• pH as supplied: 2.5 – 3.0 per the current SDS
• Poisons Schedule: 6

H318 means eye contact can cause irreversible damage. Goggles are not optional when decanting, mixing or spraying this product. Brownaway is an acid blend — citric, glycolic and phosphonic — and the eye hazard is the reason for the DANGER signal word, not the skin one.

⚠ Hydrogen gas on metals — a real risk on damp jobs

Actichem state that Brownaway “reacts with mild steel, galvanised steel / zinc producing hydrogen gas which may form an explosive mixture with air”.

That is not a theoretical laboratory note. Browning treatments happen on wet and drying jobs, and the places you find bare or galvanised metal on those jobs are exactly where the product ends up:

• Carpet tack strip and gripper nails
• Galvanised ducting, sub-floor vents and strapping
• Steel door frames, thresholds and stair nosings
• Galvanised buckets and pressure sprayers — never mix or store Brownaway in a galvanised container

Use plastic containers only, do not leave the product pooled against metal, and ventilate enclosed spaces such as sub-floors before and during use.

Do not mix

Brownaway is an acid. Never mix it, or allow it to pool with or share equipment with:

• Any hypochlorite or chlorine product — Chlorosan, Mould Exterminator, Hypo Enforcer or pool chlorine. Acid plus hypochlorite liberates chlorine gas.
• Alkaline spotters — Bust and Protein Spotter. Rinse thoroughly between an alkaline step and an acid step.
• Strong bases and alkalis, oxidising agents, and chemicals readily decomposed by acids such as cyanides, sulfides and carbonates.

Personal protective equipment

Actichem specify neoprene chemical protective gloves, and given H318, chemical goggles rather than safety glasses.

First aid

Eyes. Wash out immediately with fresh running water for 15 minutes, holding the eyelids open to ensure complete irrigation. Immediately call a Poisons Information Centre or doctor — H318 damage is not something to assess yourself.

Skin. Remove contaminated clothing and wash the area with soap and water.

Swallowed. Rinse the mouth with water. Do not induce vomiting. Call a Poisons Information Centre or doctor.

Specifications

Related Products

• Actichem Brownaway 500 ml spray — the same product in a spotting-kit size. Identical classification.
• Actichem Stain Fix — peroxide-based colour-stain removal. A different mechanism to acid browning treatment; use it for dye and beverage colour rather than cellulosic browning.
• Actichem Bust — the alkaline protein spotter. Never use it in the same bucket or immediately after Brownaway without a thorough rinse.

Safety Data Sheet

Actichem Brownaway Safety Data Sheet — version 2.3, issued 23 September 2025

If your risk assessment for this product was written on the basis that it was non-hazardous, it needs to be redone.

SKU: AP494.020

Not sure whether the browning is cellulosic, a dye stain or a wick-back from the substrate? Contact Carpet Cleaners Warehouse before you order — the three need different chemistry, and using the wrong one can set the stain.