What is Selleys Original Sugar Soap Super Concentrate, and where should you use it?

Selleys Original Sugar Soap Super Concentrate is a professional strength, high-performance cleaner supplied as a concentrate that you dilute before use. Selleys positions it for the crucial first step of cleaning walls and ceilings before painting and wallpapering, and it powers through tough grease and grime on the way. It comes in a 1 litre bottle that makes up to 80 litres of working solution.

The one thing to understand before you buy is in the name: this is a super concentrate, not a ready-to-use spray. Every job starts with a bucket and a dilution decision. If you want something you can pick up and use on a single mark, this is the wrong format — Selleys points you to Selleys Super Kleen for smaller areas and spot cleaning.

Technical specification

Property	Typical result
Colour	Clear blue
Density	1.13 g/mL
pH	11
Packaging	Bottle, 1 L
Dilution yield	Makes up to 80 litres
Standard dilution	½ cup into a full 10 litre bucket of water

These are indicative data from the product's technical data sheet only, and are not intended for the preparation of specifications.

What the dilution figures mean in practice

The standard dilution is half a cup into a full bucket — ten litres of water. Set against the stated yield of 80 litres, that tells you a single 1 litre bottle gives you about eight full buckets of cleaning solution. For a whole-house pre-paint wash-down, that is the difference between one bottle and a trolley full of ready-mixed cleaner, and it is the main reason to choose the concentrate over the ready-diluted formats.

The dilution is not fixed. Selleys tells you to dilute to suit the cleaning task, so the half-cup figure is a starting point for general work rather than a recipe you must follow. Lightly soiled walls will come up with less; a greasy range hood surround will want more. At the top end you can skip the bucket entirely and use the product neat on stubborn or in-ground marks, working it with a non-scratch scouring sponge or cloth.

The stated pH of 11 puts the product well on the alkaline side, and that is the context for the surface cautions further down this page. It is also why the technical data sheet recommends rubber gloves for anyone with sensitive skin, rather than treating that as optional.

Where to use it

The technical data sheet gives a broad but specific scope: all modern washable surfaces, both indoors and outdoors. That includes:

• Walls and ceilings, particularly as preparation before painting and wallpapering
• Floors
• Tiled surfaces
• Laminated surfaces

The qualifier that matters in that sentence is washable. The product is scoped to surfaces that are built to take water and a cloth. Anything that is not — an unsealed, absorbent or delicate finish — falls outside what Selleys has stated, and the safe move there is to test first rather than assume.

How to apply it

1. Dilute for the job. For most jobs, add half a cup of Selleys Original Sugar Soap Super Concentrate to a full bucket — 10 litres — of water.
2. Clean the area with a mop or cloth. Selleys nominates a Selleys Super Cloth as ideal here.
3. Adjust the dilution to suit the cleaning task rather than treating the half-cup measure as fixed.
4. For stubborn or in-ground marks, use the product neat with a non-scratch scouring sponge or cloth — a Selleys Wash Up Wiz is ideal.
5. Rinse floors, baths and shower recesses thoroughly after use. This is not optional in the source material; it is listed as a requirement.

Limitations — where it should NOT be used

These are the manufacturer's own stated limitations, and they are the part of the page worth reading twice:

• Wipe off immediately from aluminium and brass surfaces. The product is not intended to sit on these metals at all.
• Rinse well from glass before the product dries. Letting it dry on glass is specifically warned against.
• Test an inconspicuous area for compatibility and colourfastness before using on clothing, carpet or upholstery.
• Floors, baths and shower recesses must be rinsed well after use.

Read together, these tell you the product is designed to be applied, to do its work, and then to be taken off — not left in place. Two of the four limitations are about dwell time rather than the surface itself.

Storage and handling

Store the bottle in a cool, dry place out of direct sunlight. For anyone with sensitive skin, Selleys recommends rubber gloves. Because the concentrate is sold at strength and diluted by you, treat the neat product with more care than you would a ready-to-use spray — the neat application described in step 4 above is the same liquid that normally goes into ten litres of water.

Hazard classification

The concentrate carries the signal word Danger, on a single classification:

• Serious eye damage — Category 1. H318: causes serious eye damage.

That applies to both the Professional Strength Concentrate (makes 30 L) and the Super Concentrate (makes 80 L).

Category 1 eye damage is the point worth pausing on, because sugar soap has a reputation as a mild, old-fashioned product. In concentrate form it is not mild — H318 means permanent damage, not stinging that passes. The product is alkaline at roughly pH 11, and alkali injuries to the eye are more serious than acid ones because they keep penetrating the tissue rather than self-limiting.

This is the argument for wearing eye protection during the part of the job people skip it — decanting and diluting the concentrate — rather than during washing down, when the solution is already diluted and you are wearing gloves anyway.

What is in it

Chemical entity	CAS number	Proportion (w/w)
Sodium carbonate	497-19-8	1–10%
Non-hazardous balance	—	Balance

Property	Value
Form	Liquid
Colour	Clear blue
pH	Approximately 11 (alkaline)
Density	Approximately 1.13 g/mL

Sodium carbonate — washing soda — is the active. It is what cuts grease and what makes the solution alkaline, and the two are the same property.

Protection and first aid

Wear eye protection when handling the undiluted concentrate, and gloves. Keep it away from children. Do not mix it with other cleaning products.

Exposure	What to do
Eyes	Rinse cautiously with water for several minutes, holding the eyelids apart. Remove contact lenses if present and easy to do, then keep rinsing. Immediately call a Poisons Information Centre or doctor — this product causes serious eye damage and the injury is not always obvious at first.
Skin	Wash with plenty of water. Remove contaminated clothing and wash it before reuse. If irritation develops, get medical advice.
Swallowed	Rinse the mouth. Do not induce vomiting. Seek medical advice immediately.

Poisons Information Centre — 131 126 in Australia, 0800 764 766 in New Zealand. Selleys emergency line — 1800 220 770 in Australia, 0800 220 770 in New Zealand.

Common questions about Selleys Original Sugar Soap Super Concentrate

How much do I dilute it?

For most jobs, half a cup into a full 10 litre bucket of water. Selleys tells you to adjust that to suit the cleaning task, so treat it as a starting point rather than a fixed ratio.

How much cleaning solution does one bottle make?

Up to 80 litres. At the standard 10 litre bucket dilution, that is about eight buckets from the single 1 litre bottle.

What size does it come in?

A 1 litre bottle.

Can I use it without diluting it?

Yes, for stubborn or in-ground marks. Use it neat with a non-scratch scouring sponge or cloth.

Do I need to rinse afterwards?

Floors, baths and shower recesses must be rinsed well after use. Glass must be rinsed before the product dries on it.

Can I use it on aluminium or brass?

Selleys' stated instruction is to wipe it off immediately from aluminium and brass surfaces. Do not let it sit on those metals.

Is it safe on carpet, upholstery or clothing?

Test an inconspicuous area for compatibility and colourfastness first. That test is the manufacturer's stated condition for using it on those materials at all.

Can I use it to prepare walls before painting?

Yes — cleaning walls and ceilings before painting and wallpapering is the application Selleys leads with for this product.

What is the pH?

Approximately 11, which is alkaline. That figure is indicative data from the technical data sheet, not a specification.

Should I wear gloves?

Selleys recommends rubber gloves for sensitive skin. Refer to the product Safety Data Sheet for full warnings and first aid information.

What is the difference between this and the smaller Sugar Soap products?

Format and dilution. This is a concentrate sized for buckets and large areas. For smaller areas or spot cleaning, Selleys' own tip is to use Selleys Super Kleen instead.

How should I store it?

In a cool, dry place, out of direct sunlight.