Product Overview
Actichem Foamex Liquid is a professional defoamer that collapses foam in wands, hoses, vacuum pipes and waste tanks. It is a silicone complex, and it works on contact.
Why foam is a machine problem, not a cosmetic one
Worth being clear about, because defoamer is one of those products people buy after the damage rather than before.
- Foam carries over into the vacuum motor or blower. Vacuum motors are not designed to pass liquid, and foam is the mechanism that gets liquid past a waste tank that is nowhere near full. This is the expensive failure — a motor is a considerably larger bill than a drum of defoamer.
- Foam destroys suction. Foam build-up in the recovery path is one of the most common causes of a machine that has “lost power”. Operators chase seals and filters when the actual problem is a tank full of foam.
- Foam hides the tank level. A waste tank reading as full of foam is not full of water, and a tank reading as empty may not be.
The foam usually comes from residual detergent in the carpet from previous cleanings, not from the product you are using today — which is why it turns up unpredictably on other people’s previous work.
Benefits
- Instant foam collapse — poured into the hose of a running machine, it clears the wand, vacuum pipes and waste tank immediately.
- Will not affect pH or alter cleaning performance — it does not interfere with the chemistry you are actually using.
- Protects vacuum motors and blowers from foam ingress.
- Restores vacuum performance at the source rather than treating the symptom.
- Verified non-hazardous — see the safety section.
How to Use
Dilution
Dilute 1:4 to 1:10 with clean water.
Application
- Pour 1 to 2 cups of diluted Foamex solution into the hose of the running extraction machine.
- Repeat periodically if foam generation is high.
Keep a bottle of diluted solution made up on the truck. Foam is not something you predict — it appears when you are already working, and the point at which you need defoamer is not the point at which you want to be mixing it.
Add it at the first sign of foam, not when the tank is full of it. A small dose early does the job; a tank already foaming over takes considerably more.
Safety
Verified non-hazardous — and we checked.
Actichem’s safety data sheet for AP435, version 3.3, records Foamex Liquid as a non-hazardous chemical and non-dangerous goods. No signal word, no hazard statements, no poisons schedule. pH 8.5–9.
We are being explicit because we have been correcting a great many pages in this catalogue that claimed “non-hazardous” when the safety data sheet said otherwise. This one is correct. We read the sheet and confirmed it rather than assuming.
Non-hazardous does not mean careless — keep it out of your eyes and wash it off your skin. But it is one of the gentlest products in our range.
One practical caution that is not about hazard
Silicone defoamers and carpet protectors do not get along. Silicone residue left on equipment can interfere with the application of a fluorochemical protector. If you use the same machine for both, rinse the recovery path thoroughly between jobs, and be particularly careful before a protection job.
Specifications
| Product code | AP435.05 |
| Pack size | 5 litres |
| Product type | Silicone defoamer for extraction equipment |
| Appearance | White liquid |
| Odour | Bubblegum |
| Dilution | 1:4 to 1:10 with clean water |
| pH | 8.5 – 9 (Actichem SDS). This listing previously stated 7.5. |
| Key components | Methylated silica (CAS 67762-90-7) and octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane (CAS 556-67-2), both under 1% |
| WHS classification | Non-hazardous chemical |
| Signal word | None — not applicable |
| Hazard statements | None |
| Poisons schedule | None applicable |
| Dangerous goods | Non-dangerous goods |
| SDS referenced | Version 3.3 |
Related Products
- Actichem Foamex Powder — the powder defoamer. Also verified non-hazardous. Suits operators who prefer to dose dry, or who want longer shelf storage without made-up solution.
- Actichem Rinse Pro — low-residue acid rinse. Using a low-residue rinse is the upstream fix for foam, because residue left in carpet is what foams on the next clean.
Safety Data Sheet
Actichem Foamex Liquid safety data sheet (AP435, version 3.3)
SKU: AP435.05
Getting persistent foam on a particular type of job? It is usually residue from previous cleaning rather than anything you are doing. Talk to us — a rinse change often solves it more cheaply than defoamer does.
