A quick degreaser is a specially designed surfactant which lifts oil, grease and other hydrocarbon soils from the cleaning surface without forming a permanent emulsion. Once the oil and water has been rinsed away the degreaser rapidly releases the oil again, allowing it to be separated. This leaves behind wastewater containing little or no toxic hydrocarbon content.

The right choice of degreaser has a direct impact on wastewater quality and, therefore, waste water compliance and disposal costs. Depending on your location and whether you are in a marine or land environments the limits on oil, grease and hydrocarbon content in wastewater vary.

For an oil water separator to function correctly, oil must be free to rise to the surface and coalesce into larger and larger droplets. Quick break degreasers only form a short-term oil emulsion which persist just long enough to remove the oil and grease from the cleaning surface. Once in the wastewater system, however, quick break degreasers quickly release these oils again where they float free and can be separated.