Asaclean®’s Frequently Asked Questions About Purging

Purging Compounds (also known as commercial purging compounds or CPCs) are products formulated to clean injection molding machines, extruders, and blow molding machines. They typically contain a base resin and other additives optimized to clean your screw, barrel, hot runner, and extruder die thoroughly and quickly. Purging Compounds are used by processors across industries including automotive, packaging, medical, consumer products, and more.

Mechanical Purging Compounds are compounded specifically to match your processing temperatures, your resins, your MFR, and your processing needs. Mechanical Purging Compounds depend on your machine’s power to do the work. They perform best in injection molding and other high-pressure applications. This is because they rely on pressure and agitation to clean out the previous resin or any contamination within your machine.

Unlike regrind or virgin resins, Mechanical Purging Compounds are designed to clean. They have strong detergency and have no affinity to metal. This guarantees your machine will be running clean in no time.

Chemical Purging Compounds are blended products that also match your processing temperatures, your resins, your MFRs, and your processing needs. But unlike Mechanical Purging Compounds, Chemical Purging Compounds clean using a heat-activated chemical additive that performs best in low-flow and low-pressure environments. Chemical Grades are usually recommended for extrusion or blow molding because they expand to effectively clean large dies or other low flow areas where contamination can be difficult to remove. Chemical Purging Compounds are strong cleaners that clean hard-to-reach areas within your machine. They do require a short soak time, but a Chemical Purge will cut your changeover time in half thus making a short soak time more than worth it.

Purging Concentrates are cleaning masterbatches that super-charge your processing resins for superior cleaning. Purging Concentrates perform best in some of the trickiest applications. We recommend Purging Concentrates for hot runner color changes (including high-cavitation molds and manifolds), blow molding, and most extrusion applications.

Purging concentrates are incredibly easy-to-use.

They are easily displaced because they match your production resins’ MFR and their loading ratios can be adjusted to optimize your cleaning power.

No, injection molding and extrusion don’t require different kinds of purging compounds.

Grade selection is usually application-specific vs. process specific. Chemical Purging Compounds are often the first choice for extrusion, but Mechanical Purging Compounds are a great choice for screw and barrel cleaning.

Conversely, Mechanical Purging Compounds are usually the first choice for injection molding, but Chemical Purging Compounds excel at cleaning hot runners.

Purging Concentrates perform very well in hot runners and are great for extrusion and blow molding as well. Work with an Asaclean® Purging Expert to find the best grade for your goals.

Yes, purging compounds are worth the money.

High-quality commercial purging compounds like Asaclean® save injection molding, extrusion, and blow molding plants up to hundreds of thousands of dollars annually on reduced scrap and downtime.

You make back your initial investment quickly and will run a highly efficient facility moving forward.

Find out how much you might save using our Cost Savings Calculator.

High-quality purging compounds like Asaclean® Purging Compounds are needed

if you care about process efficiency, profitability, or sustainability.

Asaclean® improves performance in many different groups within your plant.

DIY-purging compounds, regrind, virgin resin, and budget alternatives may seem more affordable upfront, but they will cost you significantly more over time. Asaclean® Purging Compounds are incredibly effective at reducing time wasted during changeovers, start-ups, dealing with contamination, or maintenance. Asaclean® Purging Compounds will save you large quantities of production material, will reduce scrap, and even cut back on energy and labor costs. Other solutions won’t provide the same value or performance.

Methods such as flushing the machine with the next resin or using regrind are time-consuming, material-wasting, and ineffective in removing color and carbon contamination. A high-performance purging compound such as Asaclean® is designed to not only facilitate color and material changeovers but to clean the machine as well. You will save considerable time and money when you implement an Asaclean® Purge Program.

Purging with regrind contributes to further contamination and thus could not only increases your costs but works against your sustainability goals. Although it may seem counterintuitive, Asaclean® is far more cost-effective than regrind when you factor in machine time, material costs, labor costs, scrap costs, etc.

Additionally, the layering within your machine over time by purging with regrind will increase the frequency of full teardowns. If you allow contamination to get bad enough, purging alone won’t be enough to deal with the issue. You can avoid teardowns by purging preventatively using Asaclean®.

Purge time is affected by several key factors such as machine size, condition of screw and barrel, resins being purged, etc. We see a pretty wide range of purging times depending on those conditions. For example, purging a 30-ton machine often takes around 10 minutes, but purging a 3000-ton machine may take 45 minutes.

Additionally, your level of contamination or the difficulty of the material or color change will contribute to how long purging effectively will take. Work with an Asaclean® Purging Expert for a more informed estimate.

When it comes to purging, less is more.

Our purging compounds are very powerful cleaners so usually, you will only need 1-2 barrel capacities for excellent cleaning and faster changeovers. For very tough jobs, such as machines that haven’t been cleaned in a while, an additional 1-2 barrel capacity may be necessary. Check with your Asaclean® Purging Expert for guidance.

Yes. Because your machine likely has many layers of contamination, when you first implement a purge program it’s possible that you’ll pull out contaminants that you weren’t aware were in your machine.

Once you start purging regularly, your scrap rates will plummet.

This is also why it’s important to consider how dirty your machine is before trialing a purging compound. If you are comparing the results of two competitive products and you try one product on a dirty machine and the other on a machine that was cleaned by the first trial, this will skew performance results.

It’s necessary to trial your different purging compounds on machines with comparable levels of contamination if you’re trying to compare performance and cost savings.

For high-cavitation molds, stack molds, and caps & closures, we see amazing results with Asaclean® PLUS Grade Purging Concentrate. NCR Grade is one of our most popular choices for hot runners as well.

PLUS & NCR are usually excellent choices, but your specific application, resins, and processing temperatures might lead our Purging Experts to recommend a different grade of Asaclean® for your needs. Request a free 10-minute consultation.

Yes, several grades of Asaclean® Purging Compounds can hold a bubble in blown film extrusion. UF2 Grade is usually the best choice for this application. It saves customers countless hours of downtime.

Yes. Asaclean® Purging Compounds are safe for your machine.

After 25 years, Asaclean® has never had a customer report screw or machine damage due to using our products.

There’s a misconception that mechanical purging compounds are “abrasive.” This is not the case. In fact, purging compounds reduce machine wear and tear. Asaclean® Purging Compounds prolong the life of your screw and barrel.

We do offer several grades that we don’t recommend for highly polished screws or dies, and certain grades have gate clearance limitations. If you aren’t sure, check with an Asaclean® Purging Expert or refer to your SDS for specific recommendations.

Asaclean® Purging Compounds are a safe and effective choice for hundreds of packaging, medical or pharmaceutical applications.

Our Purging Experts help medical manufacturers reduce scrap and downtime daily.

There are no commercial purging compounds approved by the FDA. The FDA does not currently regulate or offer approval for purging compounds. But that doesn’t mean you cannot safely use purging compounds to clean your machinery.

Here is an FDA 3rd Party Opinion Letter that discusses Asaclean®’s product line.

No, there are no one-size-fits-all purging compounds.

Asaclean® offers the best purging compounds in the market—but different products are the best at different applications. Asaclean® U Grade is an example of a general-purpose purging compound. It’s great for preventative purging, material & color changes, and works with a range of resins.

General-purpose purging compounds work well with some of the more popular commodity and engineering resins within certain processing temperature ranges.

Yes. Asaclean® Purging Compounds make screw pulls much easier, safer, and more cost-effective.

Our EX Grade peels off the screw, like a banana peel. It’s a revolutionary product that dramatically helps during preventative maintenance and unplanned downtime.

Unless you can pre-program the Auto-Purge function using Asaclean®’s recommendations, we recommend you avoid using it.

While it’s attractive to be able to purge “with the click of a button,” there are 2 reasons why Auto-Purge usually hurts the performance of your purging compounds.

• One Size Doesn't Fit All

  
  

  The functionality on your machine makes generalized recommendations to "purge" the machine-meaning remove the material inside- but do not consider how purging compounds are supposed to be used. These features are not specific to the suppliers’ purge instructions. We recommend different procedures for different situations. Furthermore, Auto-Purge doesn’t offer options for Chemical Purging Compounds. You could be destroying your savings with the push of a button.

• Auto-Purge doesn’t Account for Cost-Per-Purge

  
  

  Auto-Purge may push material out of the barrel, it neglects to account for how long the purging process takes (overall downtime) and how much weight of purge is used for a thorough cleaning and to get the job done. This tracks towards taking longer while using more quantity purge to complete the purging process. This leads to higher cost-per-purge, inevitably resulting in spending more money than needed.

Yes, purging procedures can make or break your purging results and cost savings.

Most reputable commercial purge suppliers put a tremendous amount of R&D work into their purge products. They’ve spent countless hours perfecting their purge process over many years.

We understand it can be difficult to train all shifts using the same procedures. That’s why we offer free onsite training for all your shifts. If you have new hires that need training, we will visit to make sure they’re trained as well.

Yes. It’s important you follow your supplier’s instructions to get the best results.

It’s important to choose a purging compound that’s specifically designed to be a low-residue material, making it suitable for most purging applications.

For especially residue-sensitive materials such as clear or soft materials, special grades such as our E Grade are extremely useful.

Lastly, following proper purging (especially purge displacement) procedures will ensure that the least amount of purging compound residue is left behind.

It is no surprise that the regrind or virgin PP resin is not sufficient to purge your machines. These materials are not designed to purge and clean machines the way purging compounds are. When using regrind or virgin resins to purge, they simply layer over any resins, color deposits, or carbonized material within the barrel. In time, these layers become additional sources of contamination, making purging even more difficult. We recommend that purging compounds should be used to purge all resins, whether they are considered “simple” or “difficult” to purge, so that the machine is thoroughly cleaned and that any build-up of contamination is prevented.

Yes. Many of our purging compounds were designed to clean crevices and hard-to-clean places within your machine where contamination usually occurs.

We do offer products that are safe and very effective for all these scenarios. We recommend working with an Asaclean® Purging Expert to find the best solution for your needs.

We do offer some grades that we wouldn’t recommend for these situations, so do not attempt to use Asaclean® through melt pumps, screen packs, etc. without referring to our documentation or speaking with an expert.

EX Grade is the best cleaning purging compound on the market.

EX Grade is only recommended for screw and barrel cleaning.

To prevent carbon build-up and to maintain a clean machine, we recommend using one of our general-purpose grades as part of a preventive maintenance program.

Asaclean® Purging Compounds have helped processors reduce scrap and downtime for over 25 years.

In most cases, we offer superior performance compared to other purging solutions. We are the best-selling purging compound supplier in the world because we help processors save the most money, and we do it daily.

Find out how much you might save using our Cost Savings Calculator.

We offer three types of Asaclean® Purging Compounds; mechanical, chemical, and concentrates, and each works differently. Our mechanical purges are uniquely formulated to offer high material affinity to resins, carbon, and color deposits. At the same time, they have a lower affinity to metal surfaces (screw, barrel, etc.), which exemplifies Asaclean®’s lower-residue characteristics. Asaclean®’s Mechanical Purging Compounds maintain an effective cleaning viscosity over a wide temperature range, making it ideal for purging virtually any processing resin.

Chemical Purging Compounds of Asaclean® work with heat-activated chemical additives to dislodge contaminants in the barrel, and each is formulated to offer different properties for specific applications.

Asaclean®’s Concentrate Grade is formulated to offer the benefits of chemical purging compounds but uses your own resins to do the job.

When it comes to purging, less is more.

Our purging compounds are very powerful cleaners so usually, you will only need 1-2 barrel capacities for excellent cleaning and faster changeovers. For very tough jobs, such as machines that haven’t been cleaned in a while, an additional 1-2 barrel capacity may be necessary. Check with your Asaclean® Purging Expert for guidance.

Yes. Because your machine likely has many layers of contamination, when you first implement a purge program it’s possible that you’ll pull out contaminants that you weren’t aware were in your machine.

Once you start purging regularly, your scrap rates will plummet.

This is also why it’s important to consider how dirty your machine is before trialing a purging compound. If you are comparing the results of two competitive products and you try one product on a dirty machine and the other on a machine that was cleaned by the first trial, this will skew performance results.

It’s necessary to trial your different purging compounds on machines with comparable levels of contamination if you’re trying to compare performance and cost savings.

Yes, Asaclean® Purging Compounds are moldable. 

This is helpful when molding larger parts, particularly in automotive, aerospace, and consumer products.

Yes. Asaclean® Purging Compounds are safe for your machine.

After 25 years, Asaclean® has never had a customer report screw or machine damage due to using our products.

There’s a misconception that mechanical purging compounds are “abrasive.” This is not the case. In fact, purging compounds reduce machine wear and tear. Asaclean® Purging Compounds prolong the life of your screw and barrel.

We do offer several grades that we don’t recommend for highly polished screws or dies, and certain grades have gate clearance limitations. If you aren’t sure, check with an Asaclean® Purging Expert or refer to your SDS for specific recommendations.

Asaclean® Purging Compounds are a safe and effective choice for hundreds of packaging, medical or pharmaceutical applications.

Our Purging Experts help medical manufacturers reduce scrap and downtime daily.

There are no commercial purging compounds approved by the FDA.

The FDA does not currently regulate or offer approval for purging compounds. But that doesn’t mean you cannot safely use purging compounds to clean your machinery.

Here is an FDA 3rd Party Opinion Letter that discusses Asaclean®’s product line.

No, there are no one-size-fits-all purging compounds.

Asaclean® offers the best purging compounds in the market—but different products are the best at different applications. Asaclean® U Grade is an example of a general-purpose purging compound. It’s great for preventative purging, material & color changes, and works with a range of resins.

General-purpose purging compounds work well with some of the more popular commodity and engineering resins within certain processing temperature ranges.

Yes. Asaclean® Purging Compounds make screw pulls much easier, safer, and more cost-effective.

Our EX Grade peels off the screw, like a banana peel. It’s a revolutionary product that dramatically helps during preventative maintenance and unplanned downtime.

Whether or not you reuse Asaclean® should be determined on a case-by-case basis.

Asaclean® Purging Compounds are technically recyclable, but most plants have different rules/regulations about what resins they reuse in-house.

We do not recommend this.

When you do this, you are carrying the contamination you previously removed back into your system.

While Asaclean® regrind patties are technically recyclable, your cleaning power will be greatly diminished.

PLUS Grade is recyclable. It is our greenest grade of Asaclean®. 

However, recyclability should be decided on a case-by-case basis.

Please refer to all federal, state, and local regulations.

Yes. Asaclean® offers the two best purging compounds available for super-engineering resins.

PX2 Grade & PF Grade both are excellent cleaners that help with changeovers at temperatures up to 790° F.

In fact, these purging compounds have the highest processing temperatures available on the market.

For this reason and for their superior performance, PX2 Grade & PF Grade are the best available option for super-engineering resins.

Unless you can pre-program the Auto-Purge function using Asaclean®’s recommendations, we recommend you avoid using it.

While it’s attractive to be able to purge “with the click of a button,” there are 2 reasons why Auto-Purge usually hurts the performance of your purging compounds.

• One Size Doesn't Fit All

  
  

  The functionality on your machine makes generalized recommendations to "purge" the machine-meaning remove the material inside- but does not consider how purging compounds are supposed to be used. These features are not specific to the suppliers’ purge instructions. We recommend different procedures for different situations. Furthermore, Auto-Purge doesn’t offer options for Chemical Purging Compounds. You could be destroying your savings with the push of a button.

• Auto-Purge doesn’t Account for Cost-Per-Purge

  
  

  Auto-Purge may push material out of the barrel, it neglects to account for how long the purging process takes (overall downtime) and how much weight of purge is used for a thorough cleaning and to get the job done. This tracks towards taking longer while using more quantity purge to complete the purging process. This leads to higher cost-per-purge, inevitably resulting in spending more money than needed.

Asaclean® is generally considered to be a low-residue purging agent, making it suitable for most purging scenarios. For especially residue-sensitive materials, such as clear or soft materials, we have “low-residue” specialty grades including E Grade, U Grade & PLUS Grade.

No. Asaclean® is a resin-based purging compound of either styrenic or olefinic nature.

There are no worries of Asaclean® reacting with any processing resins, additives, or colorants.

Generally, yes.

Our styrenic grades are considered “General Purpose,” meaning they can purge out a variety of materials in a wide temperature range, including olefinic materials (PP, PE).

And although our olefinic UP Grade is specially designed for purging out PP, it has proven quite effective for other materials such as Nylon and PVC. AG Grade is an excellent option for PP changeovers. It’s one of our best-performing cleaners.

Yes. Many of our purging compounds were designed to clean crevices and hard-to-clean places within your machine where contamination usually occurs.

We do offer products that are safe and very effective for all these scenarios. We recommend working with an Asaclean® Purging Expert to find the best solution for your needs.

We do offer some grades that we wouldn’t recommend for these situations, so do not attempt to use Asaclean® through melt pumps, screen packs, etc. without referring to our documentation or speaking with an expert.

Asaclean® PLUS Grade is a concentrate grade that was designed to mix with your production resins. It cuts costs and supercharges your processing resins.

Our Mechanical and Chemical Grades of Asaclean® should not be diluted with resin because it will reduce your cleaning performance.

This will increase your material use and purging time, reducing overall cost savings.

Yes, we always recommend customers seal their machines with Asaclean® before shutdowns for easier start-ups.

Before you seal with any grade, always speak with your Asaclean® Purging Expert.

There are certain grades of Asaclean® that are not appropriate for sealing your machine. Make sure you are using a safe and appropriate product for your application.

We recommend customers seal their machines for short weekend shutdowns or for longer holiday breaks.

You should seal any time the plastic is under heat for an extended period in the screw, barrel, head, accumulator, or die.

It will always be helpful because resins are oxidizing over time even under heats. For more information, check out our section on sealing.

No, you do not need to dry Asaclean® before use.

But we do recommend Asaclean® be kept in a cool and dry environment.

Even though Asaclean® is not hygroscopic, prolonged exposure to water/moisture may negatively impact performance.

Yes, we currently offer free samples of Asaclean® Purging Compounds to production locations in North America.

The quantity and grade selections depend on recommendations from our Purging Experts.

We always recommend having an Asaclean® Purging Expert onsite for your trial to make sure you see the best performance.

Once you achieve your goals, your Purging Expert will train your team to make sure the success is easily replicated each time you purge.

Email sales@asaclean.com or fill out this form to get introduced to your dedicated Asaclean® Purging Expert and request a quote for your first order of Asaclean® Purging Compounds.

Contact your dedicated Technical Sales Representative directly, or email sales@asaclean.com for further assistance.

Yes, in most cases Asaclean® offers same-day shipping of our purging compounds.

Asaclean® has every Grade in stock and ready to ship.

We have consistent product quality and if you choose Asaclean®, you can count on orders arriving in a timely manner without interruption.

Asaclean®’s products are all in stock, so they ship the same day or the next morning.

Time in transit will vary between 3-7 days based on where your plant is located.

We have several strategically placed warehouses throughout North America to deliver your product as soon as possible.

Yes, Asaclean® accepts American Express, MasterCard, & Visa credit cards.

Default payment terms are net 30, depending on credit rating.

Shipping isn’t included in Asaclean® pricing because we offer several different shipping options.

Speak with your Technical Sales Representative to learn more so you can decide the most convenient choice for you.

Asaclean® has currently has warehouses stocked with our products in Michigan, Texas, & Ontario, Canada.

Yes, Asaclean® is sold in over 70 countries worldwide, including Mexico & Canada.

Here is Asaclean®’s full list of foreign distributors.

Asaclean® Purging Compounds are manufactured in the United States & in Japan.

Here is a link to our current W-9. Please email orders@asaclean.com if you have any further questions.

Email accounting@asaclean.com to confirm payments.

Email sales@asaclean.com or fill out this form to get introduced to your dedicated Asaclean® Purging Expert and request a quote for your first order of Asaclean® Purging Compounds.

Default payment terms are net 30, depending on credit rating.

Reach out directly to accounting@asaclean.com for bank information for payments.

Yes. Because your machine likely has many layers of contamination, when you first implement a purge program it’s possible that you’ll pull out contaminants that you weren’t aware were in your machine.

Once you start purging regularly, your scrap rates will plummet.

This is also why it’s important to consider how dirty your machine is before trialing a purging compound. If you are comparing the results of two competitive products and you try one product on a dirty machine and the other on a machine that was cleaned by the first trial, this will skew performance results.

It’s necessary to trial your different purging compounds on machines with comparable levels of contamination if you’re trying to compare performance and cost savings.

Yes. Asaclean® offers the two best purging compounds available for super-engineering resins.

PX2 Grade & PF Grade both are excellent cleaners that help with changeovers at temperatures up to 790° F.

In fact, these purging compounds have the highest processing temperatures available on the market.

For this reason and for their superior performance, PX2 Grade & PF Grade are the best available option for super-engineering resins.

Unless you can pre-program the Auto-Purge function using Asaclean®’s recommendations, we recommend you avoid using it.

While it’s attractive to be able to purge “with the click of a button,” there are 2 reasons why Auto-Purge usually hurts the performance of your purging compounds.

• One Size Doesn't Fit All

  
  

  The functionality on your machine makes generalized recommendations to "purge" the machine-meaning remove the material inside- but does not consider how purging compounds are supposed to be used. These features are not specific to the suppliers’ purge instructions. We recommend different procedures for different situations. Furthermore, Auto-Purge doesn’t offer options for Chemical Purging Compounds. You could be destroying your savings with the push of a button.

• Auto-Purge doesn’t Account for Cost-Per-Purge

  
  

  Auto-Purge may push material out of the barrel, it neglects to account for how long the purging process takes (overall downtime) and how much weight of purge is used for a thorough cleaning and to get the job done. This tracks towards taking longer while using more quantity purge to complete the purging process. This leads to higher cost-per-purge, inevitably resulting in spending more money than needed.

It’s important to choose a purging compound that’s specifically designed to be a low-residue material, making it suitable for most purging applications.

For especially residue-sensitive materials such as clear or soft materials, special grades such as our E Grade are extremely useful.

Lastly, following proper purging (especially purge displacement) procedures will ensure that the least amount of purging compound residue is left behind.

For high-cavitation molds, stack molds, and caps & closures, we see amazing results with Asaclean® PLUS Grade Purging Concentrate. NCR Grade is one of our most popular choices for hot runners as well.

PLUS & NCR are usually excellent choices, but your specific application, resins, and processing temperatures might lead our Purging Experts to recommend a different grade of Asaclean® for your needs. Request a free 10-minute consultation.

Yes. Asaclean® Purging Compounds are safe for your machine.

After 25 years, Asaclean® has never had a customer report screw or machine damage due to using our products.

There’s a misconception that mechanical purging compounds are “abrasive.” This is not the case. In fact, purging compounds reduce machine wear and tear. Asaclean® Purging Compounds prolong the life of your screw and barrel.

We do offer several grades that we don’t recommend for highly polished screws or dies, and certain grades have gate clearance limitations. If you aren’t sure, check with an Asaclean® Purging Expert or refer to your SDS for specific recommendations.

No, there are no one-size-fits-all purging compounds.

Asaclean® offers the best purging compounds in the market—but different products are the best at different applications. Asaclean® U Grade is an example of a general-purpose purging compound. It’s great for preventative purging, material & color changes, and works with a range of resins.

General-purpose purging compounds work well with some of the more popular commodity and engineering resins within certain processing temperature ranges.

Yes. Asaclean® Purging Compounds make screw pulls much easier, safer, and more cost-effective.

Our EX Grade peels off the screw, like a banana peel. It’s a revolutionary product that dramatically helps during preventative maintenance and unplanned downtime.

Yes, purging procedures can make or break your purging results and cost savings.

Most reputable commercial purge suppliers put a tremendous amount of R&D work into their purge products. They’ve spent countless hours perfecting their purge process over many years.

We understand it can be difficult to train all shifts using the same procedures. That’s why we offer free onsite training for all your shifts. If you have new hires that need training, we will visit to make sure they’re trained as well.

Yes. It’s important you follow your supplier’s instructions to get the best results.

Whether or not you reuse Asaclean® should be determined on a case-by-case basis.

Asaclean® Purging Compounds are technically recyclable, but most plants have different rules/regulations about what resins they reuse in-house.

We do not recommend this.

When you do this, you are carrying the contamination you previously removed back into your system.

While Asaclean® regrind patties are technically recyclable, your cleaning power will be greatly diminished.

Asaclean® is generally considered to be a low-residue purging agent, making it suitable for most purging scenarios. For especially residue-sensitive materials, such as clear or soft materials, we have “low-residue” specialty grades including E Grade, U Grade & PLUS Grade.

Yes. Many of our purging compounds were designed to clean crevices and hard-to-clean places within your machine where contamination usually occurs.

We do offer products that are safe and very effective for all these scenarios. We recommend working with an Asaclean® Purging Expert to find the best solution for your needs.

We do offer some grades that we wouldn’t recommend for these situations, so do not attempt to use Asaclean® through melt pumps, screen packs, etc. without referring to our documentation or speaking with an expert.

Generally, yes.

Our styrenic grades are considered “General Purpose,” meaning they can purge out a variety of materials in a wide temperature range, including olefinic materials (PP, PE).

And although our olefinic UP Grade is specially designed for purging out PP, it has proven quite effective for other materials such as Nylon and PVC. AG Grade is an excellent option for PP changeovers. It’s one of our best-performing cleaners.

No. Asaclean® is a resin-based purging compound of either styrenic or olefinic nature.

There are no worries of Asaclean® reacting with any processing resins, additives, or colorants.

Yes, Asaclean® offers grades that were designed to perform in clear applications.

We have years of experience working with clear resins like PS, SAN, PC, PET & PMMA.

We remove contamination and our grades are easily displaced.

Asaclean® is a great choice for purging clear resins.

EX Grade is the best cleaning purging compound on the market.

EX Grade is only recommended for screw and barrel cleaning.

To prevent carbon build-up and to maintain a clean machine, we recommend using one of our general-purpose grades as part of a preventive maintenance program.

Yes. Asaclean® offers grades that were designed to handle difficult resins and severe contamination.

Asaclean® is an excellent choice for purging severe contamination.

Asaclean® PLUS Grade is a concentrate grade that was designed to mix with your production resins. It cuts costs and supercharges your processing resins.

Our Mechanical and Chemical Grades of Asaclean® should not be diluted with resin because it will reduce your cleaning performance.

This will increase your material use and purging time, reducing overall cost savings.

Yes, we always recommend customers seal their machines with Asaclean® before shutdowns for easier start-ups.

Before you seal with any grade, always speak with your Asaclean® Purging Expert.

There are certain grades of Asaclean® that are not appropriate for sealing your machine. Make sure you are using a safe and appropriate product for your application.

We recommend customers seal their machines for short weekend shutdowns or for longer holiday breaks.

You should seal any time the plastic is under heat for an extended period in the screw, barrel, head, accumulator, or die.

It will always be helpful because resins are oxidizing over time even under heats. For more information, check out our section on sealing.

Preventative purging is the single best way to avoid teardowns. You will remove contamination on your screw and barrel and continue running more good parts without needing maintenance. Work with an Asaclean® Purging Expert to learn how to implement a Purge Program that can drastically reduce your unplanned maintenance.

Yes. Asaclean® Purging Compounds make screw pulls much easier, safer, and more cost-effective.

Our EX Grade peels off the screw, like a banana peel. It’s a revolutionary product that dramatically helps during preventative maintenance and unplanned downtime.

We always recommend purging during color and material changes to prevent contamination (seen and unseen) within your machine. We also recommend sealing your machine with purging compounds during shutdowns.

But we often help maintenance teams that are running the same color or same resins but still have unplanned teardowns.

Preventative purging relies on data collection and understanding when your scrap rates start to change. Know that resins aren’t designed to purge your machine. Layering and contamination are occurring even when it seems like you’re running good parts. Once you realize when your unplanned teardowns occur it’s easier to determine when to purge before things get to that point.

Yes. Asaclean® Purging Compounds are safe for your machine.

After 25 years, Asaclean® has never had a customer report screw or machine damage due to using our products.

There’s a misconception that mechanical purging compounds are “abrasive.” This is not the case. In fact, purging compounds reduce machine wear and tear. Asaclean® Purging Compounds prolong the life of your screw and barrel.

We do offer several grades that we don’t recommend for highly polished screws or dies, and certain grades have gate clearance limitations. If you aren’t sure, check with an Asaclean® Purging Expert or refer to your SDS for specific recommendations.

Asaclean® Purging Compounds are an easy way to decrease inventory turns.

We reduce your raw material costs because Asaclean® makes every pound of production resin more efficient. Each pound you buy is out at first-time quality.

You make more sellable parts using less raw materials. Although many buyers think of Asaclean® as an MRO supplier, we offer a win-win for inventory reduction.

Yes, purging compounds are worth the money.

High-quality commercial purging compounds like Asaclean® save injection molding, extrusion, and blow molding plants up to hundreds of thousands of dollars annually on reduced scrap and downtime.

You make back your initial investment quickly and will run a highly efficient facility moving forward.

Find out how much you might save using our Cost Savings Calculator.

Asaclean® Purging Compounds help you cut down on raw material costs. We help reduce your scrap rates by up to 85%. 

If you’re scrapping fewer parts, you will know that you are getting the most possible good parts when resin supplies are running low. 

Asaclean® helps your plant run more efficiently and requires a smaller footprint.

Yes, in most cases Asaclean® offers same-day shipping of our purging compounds.

Asaclean® has every Grade in stock and ready to ship.

We have consistent product quality and if you choose Asaclean®, you can count on orders arriving in a timely manner without interruption.

Asaclean®’s minimum order quantities are 44lbs, 55lbs, or 250lbs depending on the Grade. 

Check with your Technical Sales Representative to find out the minimum order quantity for a specific product.

Here is a link to our current W-9. Please email orders@asaclean.com if you have any further questions.

Packaging dimensions for Asaclean® Purging Compounds depend on the Grade and quantity of Asaclean® being purchased. Here are the dimensions of our 4 general packaging options.

Sometimes we are asked about the packaging weight when calculating shipping.

In general, add 2lbs for boxes and 40lbs for Gaylords.

Asaclean®’s products are all in stock, so they ship the same day or the next morning.

Time in transit will vary between 3-7 days based on where your plant is located.

We have several strategically placed warehouses throughout North America to deliver your product as soon as possible.

The best thing to do is check with your production team and establish:

1.) how many changeovers and shutdowns they have each month, and

2.) the average amount of purge needed for both situations.

Once you have that information, you’ll have a better idea of when you will run out of purge.

This depends on your internal ordering procedures, but avoiding running out of Asaclean® will keep your production team from having quality issues, unexpected downtime, etc.

A little planning goes a long way towards hitting your plant’s goals.

We recommend that you store Asaclean® in the original packaging, or in something that protects the product from dust, contamination, or water spills.

Asaclean®’s recommended shelf life is one year from the delivery date.

High-quality purging compounds like Asaclean® Purging Compounds are needed

Asaclean® improves performance in many different groups within your plant.

DIY-purging compounds, regrind, virgin resin, and budget alternatives may seem more affordable upfront, but they will cost you significantly more over time. Asaclean® Purging Compounds are incredibly effective at reducing time wasted during changeovers, start-ups, dealing with contamination, or maintenance. Asaclean® Purging Compounds will save you large quantities of production material, will reduce scrap, and even cut back on energy and labor costs. Other solutions won’t provide the same value or performance.

Purging with regrind contributes to further contamination and thus could not only increases your costs but works against your sustainability goals. Although it may seem counterintuitive, Asaclean® is far more cost-effective than regrind when you factor in machine time, material costs, labor costs, scrap costs, etc.

Additionally, the layering within your machine over time by purging with regrind will increase the frequency of full teardowns. If you allow contamination to get bad enough, purging alone won’t be enough to deal with the issue. You can avoid teardowns by purging preventatively using Asaclean®.

Asaclean® Purging Compounds have helped processors reduce scrap and downtime for over 25 years.

In most cases, we offer superior performance compared to other purging solutions. We are the best-selling purging compound supplier in the world because we help processors save the most money, and we do it daily.

Find out how much you might save using our Cost Savings Calculator.

We frequently deal with buyers who get seduced by other options that may have a lower cost-per-pound. We know how difficult it is to lower costs and hit your goals.

It’s important to understand that the cost-per-purge with Asaclean® is often many times lower than other products because you use much less product. You get what you pay for. If you choose a product based solely on the cost-per-pound, you might be costing your plant tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars over the course of a year.

Many buyers who choose another option eventually come back and choose Asaclean® when production complains about product performance. If you have questions about how to complete an apples-to-apples cost savings analysis, request a free consultation with one of our Purging Experts.

Yes, Asaclean® Purging Compounds are a great way to reduce issues with your customers.  We reduce scrapped parts and remove contamination issues.  When used correctly, you will have more perfect parts out the door.

When you choose Asaclean®, you are also choosing customized training for all shifts and ongoing plant visits to make sure the training sticks. We will provide your team with clear instructions to see the best results. We recommend you include the recommended procedures in your Operations Manual along with control plans, etc.

If you make the procedures auditable, it’s more likely you will see ongoing success. Once you make best practices in your system this is a good way to make sure the results continue.

As we mentioned in our last answer, Purging Compounds are a great way to reduce issues with your customers. We reduce scrapped parts and remove contamination issues. When used correctly, you will have more perfect parts out the door.

Asaclean® is manufactured in ISO-certified and IATF-Certified facilities. We have a full list of our certifications and documentation in our resource library.

Asaclean® Purging Compounds are a safe and effective choice for hundreds of packaging, medical or pharmaceutical applications.

Our Purging Experts help medical manufacturers reduce scrap and downtime daily.

There are no commercial purging compounds approved by the FDA. The FDA does not currently regulate or offer approval for purging compounds. But that doesn’t mean you cannot safely use purging compounds to clean your machinery.

Here is an FDA 3rd Party Opinion Letter that discusses Asaclean®’s product line.

We can help in 2 ways:

1. Asaclean® helps Human Resources because we help with injury prevention.

   
   

   Asaclean® products help employees achieve safer screw pulls/teardowns and safer changeovers when processing at high temperatures.

2. Asaclean® also helps Human Resources by offering ongoing training.

   
   

   We know many companies have training requirements and try to bring in consultants or companies to improve efficiencies or safety. We offer free onsite or virtual training to help your team continue hitting cost savings goals.

   
   

   We want to help your employees become purging experts. We offer in-depth training sessions to all your lines, perform live trials, and will customize your program based on your questions and goals. As you hire new people we will gladly come back to train them, too.

PLUS Grade is recyclable. It is our greenest grade of Asaclean®. 

However, recyclability should be decided on a case-by-case basis.

We do not recommend this.

When you do this, you are carrying the contamination you previously removed back into your system.

While Asaclean® regrind patties are technically recyclable, your cleaning power will be greatly diminished.

No. Asaclean® is a resin-based purging compound of either styrenic or olefinic nature.

There are no worries of Asaclean® reacting with any processing resins, additives, or colorants.

Please refer to all federal, state, and local regulations.

Yes. Here is a link to Asaclean®’s RoHS Compliance document.

Yes. Here is a link to Asaclean®’s REACH Compliance document for E Grade, EX Grade, & UF2 Grade.  Additionally, here is a link to our REACH Compliance document for U Grade, C Grade, UP Grade, CP Grade, PF Grade & PX2 Grade.

Asaclean® Purging Compounds have helped processors reduce scrap and downtime for over 25 years.

In most cases, we offer superior performance compared to other purging solutions. We are the best-selling purging compound supplier in the world because we help processors save the most money, and we do it daily.

Find out how much you might save using our Cost Savings Calculator.

Asaclean® actively serves over 2,000 customers in the US, MX, & Canada.

Due to confidentiality, we cannot name names, but we work with customers in electronics, tier-1 automotive, aerospace, medical/pharma, oil & gas, packaging, etc.

We proudly serve many of Plastics News’ top processors in injection molding, film extrusion, sheet extrusion, compounding, pipe/wire/tubing, & blow molding.

You should care about Asaclean® because we can help you save tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars each year. We dramatically decrease raw material, energy, and labor costs.

When you scale our savings to multiple machines or plant locations, we have a direct impact on your profitability as an organization.

How much would an additional 40-85% of savings be worth to you?

Once you fill out a form on our site, an Asaclean® Purging Expert will reach out within 10-minutes.

They will give you a free consultation and will send you a free sample of the best grade or grades of Asaclean® to help you achieve your goals.

Next comes the trial. We will work with you to conduct a trial using your production equipment and will use the data to complete a Cost Savings Analysis to prove our value to your organization.

Once we review your data, we will work together to build you a customized Purge Program.

Next, we will train your team on how to use Asaclean® to get the absolute best results. Our products work most effectively when used correctly. We will teach your shifts best practices and make sure you continue to see the amazing results that made you choose Asaclean® in the first place.

Finally, we will work with other members of your team to learn how to establish minimums and maximums within your internal system to make sure you are set for JIT-deliveries. We know that one-time training usually fails, so we visit our customers semi-annually to make sure you’re still happy with your performance.

If anything changes with your resins or end products, we visit and reassess that you're still using the best grade for your needs.

Plant Manager needs to include more than just members of production to make your Asaclean® Purge Program successful. Sometimes different groups have different objectives that can make it difficult to realize savings.

It shouldn't be a process objective. It should be a company initiative to achieve higher efficiency goals.

Our most successful customers explain the why and establish buy-in at a plant level.

It depends on your goals. It’s possible you might need more than one grade of Asaclean® for the best results. We often see this with custom molders, compounders, and packaging processors.

Think of it this way. You’re probably running more than one resin. If a second grade of Asaclean® will mean greater savings, it’s worth it.

We frequently deal with buyers who get seduced by other options that may have a lower cost-per-pound. We know how difficult it is to lower costs and hit your goals.

It’s important to understand that the cost-per-purge with Asaclean® is often many times lower than other products because you use much less product. You get what you pay for. If you choose a product based solely on the cost-per-pound, you might be costing your plant tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars over the course of a year.

Many buyers who choose another option eventually come back and choose Asaclean® when production complains about product performance. If you have questions about how to complete an apples-to-apples cost savings analysis, request a free consultation with one of our Purging Experts.

Asaclean® Purging Compounds are an easy way to decrease inventory turns.

We reduce your raw material costs because Asaclean® makes every pound of production resin more efficient. Each pound you buy is out at first-time quality.

You make more sellable parts using less raw materials. Although many buyers think of Asaclean® as an MRO supplier, we offer a win-win for inventory reduction.

Yes, purging compounds are worth the money.

High-quality commercial purging compounds like Asaclean® save injection molding, extrusion, and blow molding plants up to hundreds of thousands of dollars annually on reduced scrap and downtime.

You make back your initial investment quickly and will run a highly efficient facility moving forward.

Find out how much you might save using our Cost Savings Calculator.

Asaclean® Purging Compounds help you cut down on raw material costs. We help reduce your scrap rates by up to 85%. 

If you’re scrapping fewer parts, you will know that you are getting the most possible good parts when resin supplies are running low.  Asaclean® helps your plant run more efficiently and requires a smaller footprint.

Yes, Asaclean® has special procedures that make difficult temperature changeovers very easy.  Check our section on high and low temp changeovers, and if you still have any questions, request a free purge consultation.