Commercial Cleaning Supplies: Concentrate vs Ready-to-Use Buying Guide
How Melbourne venues cut cleaning costs: when concentrate beats ready-to-use, how to read dilution ratios, and how to work out your real cost per litre before you buy a drum.
Cleaning is one of the few line items a commercial kitchen, cafe, aged-care facility or office pays for every single day - and one of the easiest to overspend on. The trap is simple: a 500ml trigger spray off the shelf looks cheap, so it goes on the order. But most of what you are paying for is water and a bottle, and at scale that quietly costs hundreds of dollars a year.
Commercial cleaning supplies are bought differently to household ones. The operators who keep costs down buy concentrate in 5L, 20L and 25L drums, dilute to the ratio on the label, and measure their spend in cents per usable litre rather than dollars per bottle.
This guide shows Melbourne cafes, restaurants, aged-care facilities, offices and commercial cleaners how to do exactly that: when concentrate beats ready-to-use, how to read a dilution ratio, what to buy for each cleaning job, and how to work out your real cost per litre before you commit to a drum.
The short version
- Concentrate beats ready-to-use on cost. Diluted to the label ratio, a 5L drum can deliver cleaning solution for a few cents a litre - a fraction of the cost of a pre-mixed trigger spray.
- Learn the dilution ratio. 1:50 means one part chemical to fifty parts water, so a 5L drum makes around 255L of working solution.
- Match the pack size to your usage. 5L for light or occasional jobs, 20L for everyday high-volume cleaning, 25L super-concentrate for the busiest operations.
- Buying wholesale cleaning products in 20L drums usually clears the $150 ex GST minimum for free Melbourne metro delivery in a single order.
Format economics
Concentrate vs ready-to-use: where your money goes
A ready-to-use (RTU) product is mixed for you and sprays straight from the bottle. It is handy for spot jobs and front-of-house touch-ups, but most of what you buy - and carry, and store - is water.
A concentrate is the cleaning agent on its own. You add the water on site, diluting to the ratio on the label. The sticker price on a drum is higher, but the cost per litre of usable solution is far lower, because one drum makes many times its own volume.
- Ready-to-use: no mixing, higher cost per litre, more packaging and freight per clean
- Concentrate: dilute on site, lowest cost per litre, far less packaging to store and dispose of
- Rule of thumb: use RTU for low-frequency spot tasks, concentrate for anything you clean daily
Cost per usable litre
What a litre of cleaning solution actually costs
Each row is a current DPack concentrate diluted to its own label ratio, next to a ready-to-use spray. Prices indicative, ex GST, correct at time of writing - check the live product page.
| Product | Price ex GST | Label dilution | Makes | Cost per usable litre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heavy-duty cleaner / degreaser, 5L | $15.73 | 1:50 (kitchen) | ~255 L | ~$0.06 |
| Lemon disinfectant, 5L | $16.00 | 1:100 (general) | ~505 L | ~$0.03 |
| Heavy-duty floor cleaner, 5L | $18.13 | 1:20 (mop) | ~105 L | ~$0.17 |
| Ready-to-use all-purpose spray | $21.92 (12 x 500ml) | none - ready to use | 6 L | ~$3.65 |
These are different products shown to illustrate format economics, not a like-for-like swap. Always dilute to the ratio on your own product's label. Browse all commercial cleaning supplies.
Read the label
Dilution ratios explained
The numbers on a concentrate label - 1:10, 1:50, 1:100 - are a recipe. The first number is the chemical, the second is the water. So 1:50 means one part cleaner to fifty parts water, by volume, and a 5L drum at 1:50 makes around 255L of ready-to-use solution.
Ratios vary by chemical and by job, so always work from the label rather than habit. Across the DPack range the real label ratios look like this:
- Heavy-duty cleaner: 1:50 for kitchen surfaces, up to 1:80 for mopping
- Lemon disinfectant: 1:100 for general cleaning
- Floor cleaner: 1:20 for manual mopping
Quick conversion
How far a 5L drum goes
How much ready-to-use solution one 5L concentrate drum makes at common dilution ratios.
| Dilution ratio | What it means | A 5L drum makes | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1:10 | 1 part cleaner, 10 parts water | ~55 L | The toughest, baked-on jobs |
| 1:20 | 1 part cleaner, 20 parts water | ~105 L | Floor mopping, heavy general cleaning |
| 1:50 | 1 part cleaner, 50 parts water | ~255 L | Everyday kitchen and surface cleaning |
| 1:100 | 1 part cleaner, 100 parts water | ~505 L | Disinfecting, light-duty and sanitising |
A standard mop bucket holds about 9L, so one 5L drum at 1:20 fills around 11 buckets - and at 1:50, more than 28. Always follow your product's label.
Per-job product map: the core commercial cleaning products
Most commercial sites run on a short list of core chemicals. Stocking the right format for each job - and knowing its dilution - is what separates a tidy cleaning budget from a messy one. The map below covers the commercial cleaning products most cafes, restaurants, aged-care facilities and janitorial teams reorder, with the label dilution for each.
Match the chemical to the task
Which chemical for which job
The everyday jobs, the product to use, the format that costs least, and the label dilution.
| Job | Product | Best format | Label dilution | Frequency |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manual dishwashing | Dishwashing liquid concentrate | 5L - 20L drum | ~30ml per 5L sink | Daily |
| Machine dishwashing / glasswasher | Auto dishwashing liquid (low-foam) | 20L drum | Dosed by the machine | Daily |
| Kitchen degreasing | Heavy-duty cleaner / degreaser | 5L - 20L drum | 1:50 kitchen, up to 1:80 mopping | Daily / per service |
| Surface disinfecting | Lemon disinfectant | 5L - 20L drum | 1:100 general cleaning | Daily |
| Floor cleaning | Heavy-duty floor cleaner | 5L - 20L drum | 1:20 manual mop | Daily |
| Commercial laundry | Laundry liquid | 20L drum | 1/4 to 1/2 cup per load | Per load |
Dilutions shown are from each product's label - always confirm on the product you buy. Shop the full commercial cleaning supplies range.
Bulk dishwashing liquid: the highest-use chemical in any kitchen
Dishwashing liquid is the single most-used chemical in most commercial kitchens, which makes it the first place to cut cost per use. Two things matter. First, manual dishwashing liquid is not interchangeable with machine detergent - hand liquid is built to foam, while auto-dishwasher and glasswasher detergent is low-foam and dosed by the machine. Using one in place of the other wastes product and can damage equipment.
Second, the maths favours the drum. A mint dishwashing concentrate uses roughly 30ml per 5L sink of water, so a 20L drum delivers around 650 sink fills - well under 5 cents a sink. Buy it by the bulk dishwashing liquid drum rather than the bottle and the per-wash cost drops sharply.
Pack size
5L, 20L or 25L: which drum to buy
Pack size is where wholesale cleaning supplies either save you money or sit half-used on a shelf. Match the drum to how often you actually clean:
- 5L: right for small operators, single-site offices, trialling a new product, or low-frequency tasks like glass and specialty cleaning.
- 20L: the everyday workhorse for most venues - the best per-litre price on high-use chemicals like dishwashing liquid, floor cleaner and laundry liquid.
- 25L super-concentrate: for the busiest kitchens, aged-care laundries and contract cleaners, where a more concentrated drum stretches even further per litre.
The per-litre price drops as the drum grows. The same mint dishwashing concentrate works out around $2.67 a litre in a 5L drum but about $1.35 a litre in a 20L - close to half price for buying one size up. For office cleaning supplies, a small kit of 5L concentrates - all-purpose, glass and disinfectant - usually covers a single site for months.
Store drums off the floor, out of direct heat and somewhere ventilated; a full 20L drum weighs around 20kg, so plan your shelving. One 20L drum usually clears the $150 ex GST threshold for free Melbourne metro delivery, which trims the effective cost again.
Shop the guide
The cleaning concentrates our trade customers reorder
Wholesale pricing shown ex GST · free Melbourne metro delivery over $150
Manual dishwashing
Kitchen degreasing
Surface disinfecting
Floor care
Commercial laundry
Set up one dilution station with measured dosing and the whole team mixes to the right ratio every time - the simplest way to stop concentrate being over-poured.
Common questions
Commercial cleaning supplies FAQs
What is the difference between concentrate and ready-to-use cleaning products?
Ready-to-use (RTU) products are pre-mixed and spray straight from the bottle - convenient, but you are mostly paying for water. Concentrates are the cleaning agent on its own, which you dilute with water on site to the ratio on the label. Concentrate costs more per drum but far less per litre of usable solution, so it wins for anything you clean regularly.
How do I calculate the cost per litre of a cleaning concentrate?
Take the drum price, then work out how much solution it makes at its label dilution. A 5L drum at 1:50 makes about 255L of working solution (5L plus 250L of water). Divide the drum price by that figure: a $15.73 drum making 255L works out to about 6 cents per usable litre. Compare that to a ready-to-use spray, which is the bottle price divided by its litres.
What does a 1:10 dilution ratio mean?
It means one part cleaning chemical to ten parts water, measured by volume. So 1 litre of concentrate plus 10 litres of water makes 11 litres of working solution, and a 5L drum makes about 55 litres. A bigger second number means more water and a more diluted, lower-cost solution - always use the ratio your product's label specifies for the job.
What size drum should I buy for commercial dishwashing liquid?
For most cafes and restaurants the 20L drum is the sweet spot - it carries the best per-litre price and a single drum lasts a busy kitchen weeks. Small or single-site operators can start with 5L; the highest-volume kitchens and aged-care laundries step up to 25L super-concentrate. You can shop sizes on the bulk dishwashing liquid page.
Do I need different dishwashing liquid for a commercial glasswasher?
Yes. Hand dishwashing liquid is designed to foam, which is the wrong behaviour inside a machine - it can overflow and leave residue. Commercial dishwashers and glasswashers use a low-foam auto detergent that is dosed automatically by the machine. Keep the two separate and use each for its intended job.
Is there a minimum order for free delivery on bulk cleaning supplies in Melbourne?
There is no minimum order - we sell by the drum. Orders over $150 ex GST ship free across Melbourne metro, and a single 20L drum of most chemicals will clear that threshold on its own. Talk to the trade desk if you want help building a standing order.
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