Actichem Stone Soap 5 ltr

Product Overview

Actichem Stone Soap is an ultra-concentrated maintenance cleaner for natural stone and engineered quartz. It is designed for routine cleaning of stone that is already in good condition — the day-to-day and week-to-week work that keeps a floor looking right between restoration cycles.

Two things distinguish it from an ordinary floor detergent. It is diluted extremely far, which makes it economical and means very little chemistry is left behind. And it deposits a light conditioning micro-film that resists soiling and lifts lustre, so the surface cleans and improves in the same pass with no rinse required.

It is the correct companion product to a sealed stone floor. Aggressive routine cleaning is the fastest way to destroy a sealer; a very dilute, near-neutral maintenance product is the slowest.

Why Professionals Choose It

• Ultra-concentrated. At the routine dilution a 5 litre pack goes a very long way, which matters on large-area contracts.
• No rinsing required. One pass with a mop, microfibre or autoscrubber. On occupied commercial sites that is a real time saving.
• Cleans and conditions together. The micro-coating resists resoiling rather than stripping the surface back each time.
• Two working strengths from one product. A routine dilution for maintenance and a stronger dilution for reviving dulled stone.
• Sealer-friendly. Used at the recommended dilution it will not attack a penetrating sealer the way an alkaline degreaser will.

Important Corrections to This Page

The previous version of this page described Stone Soap as a "neutral pH cleaner" that was "environmentally friendly and safe for use on food preparation surfaces", with a safety profile of "non-hazardous". Actichem's current safety data sheet — version 1.2, issued 22 July 2025 — does not support those statements as written. We have corrected them.

Classification of the concentrate

• Signal word: WARNING
• H315 — Causes skin irritation. Skin Corrosion/Irritation Category 2.
• H319 — Causes serious eye irritation. Eye Irritation Category 2A.
• Poisons Schedule 5.
• Not regulated for transport of dangerous goods
• Ingredients: dipropylene glycol methyl ether (CAS 34590-94-8) 5 – 15%; monoethanolamine (CAS 141-43-5) <3%; balance withheld as trade secret

On pH — concentrate versus in-use solution

The concentrate has a pH of 9.2 to 9.8. It is alkaline, not neutral. At the routine dilution of 1 ml per litre the working solution is extremely dilute and behaves as a near-neutral cleaner in practice, which is almost certainly what the original "neutral pH" description was reaching for. Both facts are true and they are not in conflict — but they describe different liquids, and the one you handle out of the drum is the alkaline one.

On "environmentally friendly"

We have removed that claim. It is not substantiated by anything in the manufacturer's documentation, and an unqualified environmental claim of that kind is exactly what the ACCC's guidance on environmental representations warns against. The genuine environmental argument for this product is a concrete one: extreme dilution means very little chemical is used per square metre and very little goes down the drain. That is worth saying, and it is defensible.

On food preparation surfaces

Actichem lists the product as suitable for food preparation surfaces. That applies to the diluted working solution used as directed, not the concentrate. The concentrate is a Poisons Schedule 5 chemical. Dilute it before it goes near a food surface.

What this means on site

• Decanting and dilution is the exposure point. The concentrate is what causes skin and eye irritation. Once diluted at 1 ml per litre, the working solution is a mild product. Set up a dosing system or dilute carefully, and protect your eyes while doing it.
• Eye protection while decanting: safety glasses with side shields or chemical goggles. Actichem also specifies barrier cream and skin cleansing cream.
• Ventilation: natural ventilation is adequate in normal use.
• Do not mix with acids or oxidising agents.
• Store the concentrate as a Schedule 5 poison — labelled, out of reach, not decanted into unmarked bottles.

How to Use

Read and understand the safety data sheet before use. Always pre-test in an inconspicuous location for substrate sensitivity.

Routine cleaning

1. Add 1 ml of Stone Soap per litre of warm water.
2. Clean using normal technique — autoscrubber, mop or microfibre cloth.
3. No rinsing required.

Reviving slightly dulled stone

1. Add 20 ml of Stone Soap per litre of warm water.
2. Mop onto the stone surface and allow it to dry.
3. Once dry, buff with a white pad to bring up lustre.
4. No rinsing required.

A note on the dilution figures. Actichem's product literature quotes a headline dilution range of 1:50 to 1:250 while their own directions specify 1 ml per litre for routine cleaning, which is 1:1000. The two do not reconcile. Carpet Cleaners Warehouse has asked Actichem to confirm the correct figures. The directions above follow Actichem's current stated method. In the meantime, the practical guidance is simple: start at the routine dilution, and only step up towards the reviving dilution if the floor genuinely needs it. Over-dosing an ultra-concentrate leaves film, not shine.

Applications

• Routine maintenance cleaning of natural stone flooring — marble, limestone, travertine, granite, bluestone, sandstone
• Engineered quartz benchtops and surfaces
• Sealed stone floors where a neutral maintenance regime is required to protect the sealer
• Post-polishing cleans, where it excels — it lifts polishing residue without stripping the new finish
• Reviving dulled stone between full restoration cycles

Mistakes to Avoid

• Over-dosing. The most common error with any ultra-concentrate. More product does not clean better; it leaves a film that attracts soil and dulls the very surface you are trying to improve. If the floor looks hazy, you are using too much.
• Using the reviving dilution as the routine dilution. Twenty times the concentration, every clean, builds up.
• Treating the concentrate as if it were the working solution. The concentrate is Schedule 5 and irritant. The working solution is not.
• Expecting it to remove scale or heavy grime. That is Stone Gel Pro's job. Stone Soap maintains clean stone; it does not rescue neglected stone.
• Switching to a supermarket floor cleaner "just this once" on a sealed floor. Most are alkaline degreasers and will cost the sealer months of life.

Technical Specifications

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Stone Soap neutral or alkaline?

The concentrate is alkaline at pH 9.2 to 9.8. The working solution at 1 ml per litre is so dilute that it behaves as a near-neutral cleaner on the floor. Both statements are accurate; they just describe different liquids. When someone asks whether it is "safe as a neutral cleaner for my sealed floor", the answer is yes at the recommended dilution.

Do I really not need to rinse?

Correct, at the recommended dilution. That is the point of an ultra-concentrate — there is very little residue to remove. If you find you are getting film, you are dosing too heavily rather than under-rinsing.

What is the micro-coating and does it build up?

It is a light conditioning film that resists soiling and improves the look of the surface. Used at the routine dilution it does not build to a visible layer. Used at the reviving dilution every clean, it will.

Can I use it on a sealed floor?

Yes — it is one of the better choices. A near-neutral, low-residue maintenance cleaner is what extends sealer life. Avoid alkaline degreasers, acids and solvents on sealed stone.

Can I use it on engineered quartz benchtops?

Yes. Dilute as directed. Avoid the concentrate on a food preparation surface.

How does it compare with ProNeutro?

Both are maintenance cleaners for hard surfaces. Stone Soap is specifically formulated for natural stone and engineered quartz and leaves a conditioning film. ProNeutro is the general neutral cleaner across a wider range of sealed hard floors. On a stone contract, Stone Soap is the more specialised choice; across a mixed floor portfolio, ProNeutro is often the simpler one to standardise on.

Why does the safety data sheet say Schedule 5 when the label says it is safe on food surfaces?

Because the two statements are about different things. Schedule 5 relates to the concentrate as supplied and drives labelling and storage requirements. Suitability for food preparation surfaces relates to the diluted solution used as directed. Both are correct. The one that affects how you store and handle the drum is the Schedule 5 one.

Related Products

• Actichem Stone Gel Pro — the problem-solving cream cleanser for scale, soap scum and heavy soiling. Use it when Stone Soap is no longer enough.
• Actichem Stone Sealer Pro — the penetrating sealer that Stone Soap is designed to protect.
• Actichem ProNeutro — general neutral maintenance cleaner for sealed hard floors.
• Actichem Pre-Seal — pre-installation protection for stone and porous tile.

Summary

Stone Soap is the product that keeps a stone floor looking the way it did the day it was finished. Used at 1 ml per litre it cleans, conditions and lifts lustre in a single no-rinse pass, costs very little per square metre, and does not attack the sealer underneath.

The concentrate is a WARNING-classified, Poisons Schedule 5 chemical at pH 9.2 to 9.8 — not the "non-hazardous, environmentally friendly" product this page previously described. Handle the drum accordingly, dilute it properly, and the working solution is as mild as its reputation suggests.

Safety Data Sheet

Actichem Stone Soap Safety Data Sheet — version 1.2, issued 22 July 2025

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

SKU: AP184.05

Not sure whether your stone needs maintaining, reviving or restoring? Contact Carpet Cleaners Warehouse before you order — the three jobs need three different products, and buying the wrong one is the expensive mistake.