Commercial Cleaning Supplies Checklist for Perth Businesses

A good commercial cleaning supplies checklist covers five areas: cleaning chemicals matched to your surfaces, washroom consumables and dispensers, floor and surface tools, bin liners, disposables and protective gear, and the paperwork that comes with the chemicals (labels, safety data sheets and, where it applies, a register). What sits under each heading depends on what your premises do. The main categories stay broadly the same.

That’s true whether you manage an office in the Perth CBD, a café in Fremantle, a medical practice in Joondalup or a workshop in Welshpool. This guide goes through each area for anyone buying commercial cleaning supplies in Perth, with a tick-box list you can copy into your own ordering sheet and the checks worth making before anything goes in the trolley.

Cleaning Chemicals: Start with Your Surfaces, Not a Product List

Most premises can be covered by a short list of commercial cleaning products. The trick is matching each one to the surfaces and soils you actually have, rather than buying one product per job.

• General-purpose surface cleaner for desks, benches, walls and fittings
• Floor cleaner suited to your floor type, plus a heavy-duty option if you deal with grease or workshop-style soiling
• Toilet and bathroom cleaner
• Glass and window cleaner
• Kitchen degreaser or oven cleaner, if you have a kitchen or lunchroom
• Sanitiser or disinfectant for the places that need one (more on that below)
• Carpet shampoo or spot cleaner, if you have carpet
• Stainless steel cleaner, if you have a lot of it

Read the label for what each product is designed for, how to dilute it and what it shouldn’t be used on. If you buy concentrate, make sure one person owns the dilution. WA Health’s guidance for food businesses makes the point about sanitisers, but it applies more widely: too weak and the product doesn’t do its job, too strong and you’re just spending more.

Don’t mix products in a bucket unless the label tells you to. Some chemicals react with each other and can release toxic, flammable or corrosive gases, which is why WorkSafe WA’s storage guidance says to keep incompatible chemicals well apart.

Our range of commercial cleaning chemicals in Perth is sorted by job (floors, kitchens, toilets, windows, carpet and so on), so you can work down this list and tick items off as you go.

1. Commercial Washroom Supplies

A well-stocked washroom goes unnoticed. An empty dispenser doesn’t. Washrooms are where a missed top-up shows fastest, so they deserve their own part of the list.

• Toilet paper that matches your dispensers (jumbo roll or interleaved)
• Paper hand towels, or a hand dryer that works
• Hand soap in the refill format your dispensers take (liquid or foam)
• Dispensers for paper and soap, lockable if the washroom is open to the public, with spare keys
• Toilet brushes and holders
• Urinal screens or blocks and a deodoriser, if you have urinals
• Bins with liners that fit them

Check dispenser and refill compatibility before you buy in bulk. Roll sizes, soap cartridges and foam versus liquid formats aren’t interchangeable between dispenser types, and a cheap refill that doesn’t fit isn’t a saving.

The hygiene side is simple. WA Health’s hand hygiene advice is to wash with soap and water when it’s available or when hands are visibly dirty, use an alcohol-based hand sanitiser when it isn’t, and dry hands completely with a towel, a paper towel or a hot air dryer. 

So the washroom basics are working soap, running water and something to dry with. A bottle of sanitiser at the entry or in the lunchroom is a useful extra.

Hand soap, dispensers, urinal screens and deodorisers sit in our commercial washroom products in Perth range, with toilet rolls and paper towels in their own category alongside.

2. Floor Care, Tools and Janitorial Supplies

Janitorial supplies are the unglamorous kit that decides how quickly a clean gets done.

• Broom, dustpan and lobby set
• Mop with spare mop heads (flat mop or fringe mop, depending on your floors)
• Bucket with a wringer, and a separate one for washrooms
• Squeegee for glass and wet areas
• Microfibre cloths, scourers and sponges
• Spray bottles for any product you dilute or decant, labelled
• Cobweb brush or duster for high spots
• Cleaning trolley, if you have several floors or a large site
• Commercial vacuum cleaner, with spare bags
• Wet and dry vacuum, if entries or floors get wet

A common approach is to colour-code cloths, mops and buckets by area, for example one colour for washrooms and another for the kitchen, so a toilet cloth never ends up on a bench. It’s easiest to set up when you first buy the kit.

In a food business, WA Health suggests wiping surfaces with paper towel rather than reusing dish cloths, which can spread bacteria. That’s worth building into the list if you serve or prepare food.

Large hard-floor areas, such as warehouses, schools or retail floors, may justify a floor scrubber, and workshops often use a pressure washer for outdoor areas. 

Think about hours of use rather than floor size alone. A machine that runs twice a week has to earn its place. Whatever you buy, keep a few spares of the parts that wear out, such as mop heads, squeegee blades and vacuum bags.

3. Bin Liners, Disposables and Protective Gear

• Bin liners that fit your bins (check the liner size against the bin, not just the litres)
• Paper towel or wipes on a roll for quick jobs
• Disposable gloves in a material that suits the chemicals you use
• Eye protection for anyone diluting or decanting concentrates
• Aprons or other protective clothing where a product calls for them
• Wet floor signs

Protective equipment isn’t one-size-fits-all. What a product calls for is on its label and safety data sheet, and it can range from a pair of gloves to eye protection and more. 

WorkSafe WA’s guidance on duties says employers should look at other ways to reduce exposure first and use protective equipment where those aren’t practical or enough. It also expects people likely to be exposed to be trained in how to use and care for that equipment before they start work.

Labels, Safety Data Sheets and Storage: The Paperwork Side

This part of a cleaning supplies checklist is easy to skip, but it matters most when there’s a spill, or someone is exposed. 

In Western Australia, chemical safety at work sits under the Work Health and Safety Act 2020 and the Work Health and Safety (General) Regulations 2022. Where a product is a dangerous good, the Dangerous Goods Safety Act 2004 applies as well.

• A current safety data sheet (SDS) for each hazardous chemical you hold
• A register of hazardous chemicals, kept where staff can reach it
• Original labels left intact, and any container you transfer a product into labelled
• Incompatible products stored apart, lids on, with enough ventilation
• Staff briefed on safe use, protective equipment and spills before they start, with a record kept
• Good practice: the Poisons Information Centre number (13 11 26) made readily available to staff alongside your emergency procedures

1. Safety Data Sheets

An SDS covers a chemical’s ingredients, hazards, safe handling and storage, emergency procedures and disposal. WorkSafe WA says employers must obtain an up-to-date SDS for each hazardous chemical and make sure workers, contractors and emergency services can get to it at any time. 

Manufacturers and importers have to review each SDS at least every five years, so check the date on the ones you hold. If one is out of date, ask the supplier for a new version. Not every cleaning product is classed as hazardous, and the SDS is how you find out.

2. The Register 

WorkSafe WA’s register guidance says the register must hold the current SDS for each hazardous chemical listed, be kept readily accessible to workers and anyone else likely to be affected, and be up to date. 

It can be electronic, as long as everyone who needs it can use it and there’s a backup plan for something like a power outage. Products packed for household use and used the way a household would use them can be left off. 

WorkSafe’s example is a small tub of laundry detergent used weekly to wash work clothes, as against a large container used by a commercial laundry, which must be listed.

If you run an office and contract cleaners keep their chemicals on site, WorkSafe says both you and the cleaning firm have obligations. As the office operator, you hold the register and the SDSs, so everyone in the building can get safety information after a spill or exposure. The cleaning firm still has to give its own cleaners the information too.

3. Storage 

WorkSafe’s storage guidance covers appropriate containers, keeping incompatible chemicals apart, clear signs and labels, and adequate ventilation. Above certain quantities, a manifest and placards are also required.

4. Labels And Decanting 

Hazardous chemicals must be labelled under WorkSafe WA’s labelling code of practice, which also notes that other laws, such as those covering dangerous goods, may apply in addition. If you transfer a product into a spray bottle or another container, label it and follow the product’s instructions. 

The labelling code is the place to check what applies to your situation. WA Health’s guidance for food businesses specifically mentions labelled spray bottles for sanitiser solutions, and its household advice is never to use a food or drink container.

If someone is exposed to or swallows a cleaning product, the Poisons Information Centre on 13 11 26 is open 24 hours. If the person has collapsed, call 000.

This is a summary of WorkSafe WA’s published guidance, not legal advice. If you’re not sure whether something applies to your business, WorkSafe WA’s own pages are the place to check.

Cleaning, Sanitising and Disinfecting: What’s the Difference?

They’re different jobs, and product labels are written accordingly. Cleaning removes dirt, grease and food waste. Sanitising reduces germs to a safe level. WA Health’s food premises guidance notes that detergents remove dirt and grease but don’t kill bacteria, which is why cleaning comes first. 

A sanitiser may not work as well on a surface that’s still visibly dirty. FSANZ gives the same order for food businesses: clean, then sanitise.

Disinfectants carry an extra layer of regulation. The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) says hard surface disinfectants are labelled hospital, household or commercial grade depending on where they’re intended to be used or how they performed in testing, and that many household-labelled products share active ingredients with hospital-grade ones. What counts on the label is the claim:

If the label says	What the TGA requires
It kills or is active against viruses, spores, tuberculosis, mycobacteria or fungi (a “specific claim”)	The product must be listed on the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods (ARTG) before it’s supplied in Australia
It’s a disinfectant, but makes no specific claims	No ARTG entry is needed, but it must still meet the rules for exempt disinfectants
It’s a general cleaner or sanitiser with no disinfectant claims	Not regulated by the TGA

What to check on the label before you buy:

• What the product says it does (clean, sanitise or disinfect), and on which surfaces
• The dilution rate
• The contact time, meaning how long the surface needs to stay wet. WA Health says it can be seconds or minutes depending on the job
• Whether it needs rinsing. Some sanitisers are toxic and must be rinsed off, while others are food-safe and don’t need it
• Shelf life and storage instructions
• If the product makes claims that require ARTG listing, its ARTG entry (your supplier should be able to give you the details), and whether the listed claims match how you’ll use it

Food businesses have a legal reason to get this right. Under Standard 3.2.2 of the Food Standards Code, premises, equipment and food-contact surfaces have to be kept clean and sanitary. If you use diluted bleach as a sanitiser, FSANZ says to throw it out after 24 hours.

How Much to Stock, and When to Reorder

There’s no universal quantity. A small office and a busy café use very different amounts, and the same café will use more in a busy month. The most reliable method is a dull one: for a few weeks, note what runs out and how quickly, then set a minimum level for each item that triggers a reorder before the last one is opened.

Split the list into two speeds. Toilet paper, soap, paper towel, bin liners and gloves are fast movers and need regular top-ups. Chemicals, tools and spare parts move slowly, and chemicals in particular shouldn’t be stockpiled.

That’s partly a storage point. WorkSafe WA’s duties page puts how much you need to keep, and how you’ll store it safely, among the questions to ask before a hazardous chemical comes on site. 

More stock means more to label, keep apart and hold safety data sheets for. WA Health’s sanitising guidance also says to check the shelf life and storage details of chemicals before use.

Adjusting the Checklist for Your Type of Business

The core list stays the same. What changes is what you lean on and what you need to double-check.

Business type	Prioritise	Worth checking
Offices and shared workplaces	Washroom supplies, kitchenette products, a reliable vacuum, sanitiser for shared touchpoints	If contract cleaners store chemicals on site, both you and the cleaning firm have obligations
Cafés, restaurants and commercial kitchens	Kitchen degreaser, food-contact sanitiser, paper towel, soap and dispensers	Clean first, then sanitise, and check the label to see whether the sanitiser needs rinsing
Warehouses and workshops	Heavy-duty floor cleaner, degreaser, a scrubber or pressure washer for large areas	Larger volumes raise storage questions: manifests and placards apply above certain quantities, and other laws such as dangerous goods rules may apply
Schools, childcare and community venues	Washroom supplies in volume, hand soap, lockable chemical storage	WA Health’s household guidance advises keeping chemicals secured and restricting access by children, which suits a school or childcare chemical store too
Medical and allied health practices	Surface disinfectant matched to your infection control policy, hand hygiene products, protective gear	Healthcare settings often have their own infection control requirements, so check yours before choosing a disinfectant, and look at the claims the TGA regulates

FAQs

Do I Need Safety Data Sheets for Cleaning Products?

For hazardous chemicals, yes. In Western Australia, employers must obtain an up-to-date SDS for each hazardous chemical they use and give workers, contractors and emergency services access to it at all times. The SDS also sets out a product’s hazards, and your supplier can provide current copies.

What’s the Difference Between a Cleaner, a Sanitiser and a Disinfectant?

A cleaner removes dirt and grease. A sanitiser reduces germs to a safe level and works best on a clean surface. A disinfectant that claims to kill specific microorganisms, such as viruses or fungi, must be listed on the ARTG before it’s supplied in Australia. Check the label for its claims, dilution rate and contact time.

Can I Put Cleaning Chemicals into a Spray Bottle?

Businesses commonly do, but treat it as a deliberate step. Label the bottle, follow the dilution on the product label, and never use a food or drink container. WA Health’s poisoning prevention advice warns that mistakes often happen when products are moved out of their original containers, particularly into drink bottles.

Is Hand Sanitiser Enough, or Do Staff Need Soap and Water?

Soap and water come first when it’s available or when hands are visibly dirty. WA Health says an alcohol-based hand sanitiser is for when soap and water aren’t available.

Where Can I Buy Commercial Cleaning Supplies in Perth?

WesKleen Supplies sells commercial cleaning chemicals, washroom products, janitorial supplies and cleaning equipment online and from our store at Unit 21, 100 Prinsep Rd, Jandakot. Store hours are Monday to Friday, 8 am to 5 pm, and Saturday, 9 am to 2 pm. You can also call us on 1800 728 926.