Electrically-activated water no better than tap water

Plain tap water can clean many surfaces very well. The EcoFlex™ System provides total flexibility to effortlessly switch between chemical-free, water-only cleaning or different cleaning intensities at the touch of a button.  Nilfisk Advance’s strong sales of EcoFlex™ reflect the marketplace’s understanding of the cleaning power of ordinary tap water and the reality that certain soiled surfaces at times require detergent. To evaluate the performance of electrically-activated water, plain tap water and cleaning with a common detergent on floor scrubbers, Nilfisk-Advance worked with several experts to design a comprehensive test procedure using accepted ASTM  standards and best industry practice.
Nilfisk-Advance retained two independent and internationally-accredited labs to test the cleaning performance of today’s current floor scrubbers. The labs measured the cleaning efficiency when using three different cleaning solutions: 1) with electrically-activated water; 2) with plain tap water; and 3) with tap water and detergent. The results show that the floor scrubber using electrically-activated water performed no better than when that scrubber cleaned with only tap water, discrediting claims in the marketplace that electrically-activated water “converts” water into a “powerful cleaning agent/detergent” when used on floor scrubbers. 

“The claim that electrically-activated water acts as a ‘powerful cleaning agent/detergent’ on professional floor scrubbers was not supported in our testing,” said Wade Reitmeier, General Manager, R&D & Product Management for Nilfisk-Advance.  “Such claims must be met with careful analysis because our industry relies on credible science to provide products and services".  The results also indicate that when cleaning with electrically-activated water, the scrubber did not clean as effectively as when the scrubber cleaned with a common detergent. 

Click to download testing documents:
Cleaning Efficiency Testing Protocol 

Testing Results:
Professional Testing Laboratory, Inc. 
Environ Laboratories

Cleaning Efficiency Testing Summary