Actichem VDS 500ml spray

Product Overview

Actichem VDS is a dry solvent stain remover for oily spots on upholstery, carpet and delicate fabrics. It uses solvents drawn from the dry cleaning industry, which is what gives it its defining property: it evaporates completely, leaving no residue and no solvent ring.

That is the reason it exists. Water-based spotters leave something behind, and on a dry-clean-only fabric you cannot rinse it out.

Which pack size do you need?

This 500 ml trigger spray is the spotting pack — ready to use, on the truck. Note that a trigger spray puts this product into the air as a mist, which matters given the flash point and inhalation warnings below — spray it onto a cloth rather than into the room wherever you can. The 5 litre is the refill pack.

Benefits

• Powerful on oily soil — grease, adhesives, tar, and many paints and inks.
• Safe on most fabrics and fibres — with the solvent-sensitive exclusions noted below.
• Dries in minutes, no rinsing needed.
• Complete evaporation — no rapid resoiling and no solvent ring. This is the property that matters most on upholstery.
• First choice for dry-clean-only items and for touch-up spotting where you cannot rinse.

Application areas and surface suitability

• Fabrics that are dry-clean only and cannot be wet with water.
• As a prespray on high-soil areas of lounges.
• Touch-up spotting on carpet and upholstery where rinsing is not possible.
• As the solvent spotter in an encapsulation cleaning process.

Important — where not to use it

Do not use on acrylic, plastic or other solvent-sensitive surfaces, including bitumen-backed and latex-backed carpeting. Always pre-test in an inconspicuous location.

How to Use

Dilution

Ready to use. Do not dilute.

Application

1. Sponge or scrape up any surface spot material first.
2. Apply VDS to a clean, white, absorbent cloth.
3. Blot to remove the spot. Do not rub. Deep spots may need light brushing. Work from the outside towards the centre on large spots.
4. Repeat if necessary.
5. Brush the fabric to align the fibres.

Note. Mist onto areas of severe soiling when cleaning upholstery, then follow with normal upholstery cleaning technique.

Safety

Please read this section before your next job.

This listing previously recorded “Safety: Class 3 Flammable Liquid”. That was partly right — more honest than most pages in this catalogue — but it was substantially incomplete. Flammability is only one of six hazard statements, and it is not the one most likely to seriously injure someone.

Actichem’s safety data sheet for AP480, version 2.3 issued 11 September 2025, classifies VDS as a hazardous chemical with the signal word DANGER and Poisons Schedule 6.

• H226 — flammable liquid and vapour
• H304 — may be fatal if swallowed and enters airways
• H317 — may cause an allergic skin reaction
• H319 — causes serious eye irritation
• H335 — may cause respiratory irritation
• AUH066 — repeated exposure may cause skin dryness or cracking
• Flash point 30 °C | HAZCHEM •3YE | Poisons Schedule 6

⚠ Flash point 30 °C — the lowest in our solvent range

This is the number to take seriously, and it deserves context against the other solvents we carry:

• Defender SV — about 20 °C
• VDS — 30 °C
• Fabric Shield SV — 54 °C

30 °C is an ordinary Australian summer day. This product will generate flammable vapour in a van, in a shed, on a job site in February, and in any room that is not air-conditioned. Keep it away from heat, sparks and open flame. Do not smoke while using it. Do not store it in a vehicle over summer, and be alert to pilot lights, gas heaters and hot work anywhere near where you are spotting.

⚠ H304 — aspiration hazard

VDS is 30–60% hydrotreated heavy naphtha and may be fatal if swallowed and enters the airways. The danger is not poisoning from a large dose; it is that a small amount reaching the lungs causes chemical pneumonitis, which can be fatal and can develop hours later.

• Never siphon or transfer by mouth, and never decant into an unlabelled drink container.
• If swallowed, do NOT induce vomiting. Call a Poisons Information Centre or doctor immediately.
• Symptoms can be delayed. Seek assessment even if the person seems fine.

⚠ H317 and AUH066 — the skin combination

These two together describe a specific occupational pattern. AUH066 means repeated exposure dries and cracks the skin. H317 means the product can cause allergic sensitisation. Cracked skin absorbs more readily than intact skin, so the drying effect makes the sensitisation more likely over time.

Sensitisation is cumulative and permanent — once you are sensitised you stay sensitised. The technicians this catches are the ones who use solvent spotters daily for years. Keep it off your skin as a matter of routine, not as a reaction to a problem.

⚠ H335 and ventilation

VDS is 30–60% ethylene glycol monobutyl ether plus naphtha and isopropanol, and it is designed to evaporate quickly. Everything that evaporates goes into the air you are breathing. Upholstery spotting is close-range work with your head near the fabric.

Ventilate. Open a window, run an air mover, and use a respirator with an organic vapour filter for extended work or where you are misting it.

⚠ Poisons Schedule 6

Schedule 6 brings labelling and storage obligations. Keep it in its original labelled container, store it securely away from food and out of reach of children, and do not decant it into anything unlabelled.

A note on the manufacturer’s documentation

Actichem’s sheet assigns H226 with a flash point of 30 °C, and also states the product is non-dangerous goods under the ADG Code. A flammable liquid with a 30 °C flash point would normally be a Class 3 dangerous good. We have raised the discrepancy with Actichem, and in the meantime we advise you to handle it as a flammable liquid regardless of its transport status.

What it reacts with

Avoid strong oxidisers, strong acids and alkalis. Do not store or decant into aluminium or galvanised containers.

First aid

Swallowed — do NOT induce vomiting. Rinse the mouth and call a Poisons Information Centre or doctor immediately. Tell them the product is an aspiration hazard.

Eyes. Wash out immediately with fresh running water, holding the eyelids open. Seek medical attention.

Skin. Remove contaminated clothing. Wash with soap and water. If a rash develops, stop using the product and seek medical advice.

Inhalation. Remove to fresh air.

Specifications

Related Products

• Actichem VDS 5 litre — the same product in bulk, for refilling this bottle.
• Actichem PIG — water-rinseable solvent spotter for paint, ink and grease. Where you can rinse, PIG is the lower-hazard choice — no poisons schedule.
• Actichem Fabric Shield SV — solvent protector for dry-clean-only fabrics, applied after cleaning.

Safety Data Sheet

Actichem VDS safety data sheet (AP480, version 2.3, 11 September 2025)

SKU: AP480.005S

Working on a dry-clean-only fabric and not sure whether VDS is the right choice? Tell us the fibre and the care label. VDS exists for the jobs where you genuinely cannot use water — where you can, a water-rinseable spotter is both cheaper and considerably lower hazard.