Marine and Industrial Cleaning Chemicals for Vancouver and the Lower Mainland
Terminal, shipyard, rail and fleet cleaning chemistry from a Canadian manufacturer, with a BC-based representative.
Since 1960 | 220+ Products | 4,000+ Clients | ISO 9001, 14001, 45001 | COR (AB)
Our Kamloops-based representative serves the Lower Mainland and the rest of British Columbia.
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Chemistry built for a port economy
The Lower Mainland runs on Canada’s largest port, two national railways, the Trans Mountain marine terminal in Burnaby and the trucking that moves it all. Guardian’s cleaners and degreasers are built for the soils those operations deal with: heavy crude, sludge, hydraulic fluid, grease and diesel film.
Guardian’s BC representative works from our Kamloops office and serves customers across the province, including Vancouver and the Fraser Valley. Guardian crews have also worked on site in Vancouver: our water treatment team completed the chlorination and disinfection of the domestic water system at the new St. Paul’s Hospital before it opened, treating about 6,000 fixtures over four days.
Guardian is Canadian-owned and has manufactured specialty chemistry since 1960. Product ships from our Sturgeon County plant on standard trucking into the Lower Mainland, with hotshot delivery available for an additional charge when a job cannot wait. The order desk will confirm a date before you commit.
Terminal and tank cleaning
BrightShield programs for sludge, H₂S and vapour control, built around the deposit.
Canadian-owned manufacturer
Formulated and blended by Guardian at our own plants.
A BC-based representative
Serving the Lower Mainland and the rest of the province from Kamloops.
What Happens When You Request a Recommendation
A Guardian industrial cleaning specialist will contact you to understand your application, your deposit, and your cleaning challenges.
Our team will review your deposit, surface, and operating conditions — and if needed, our lab will test your soil to identify the most effective chemistry.
We’ll provide a product recommendation, application guidance, and a quote — with no obligation to proceed.
If the solution makes sense for your operation, we’ll arrange supply, provide application training, and support you from day one.
Bilge, engine room and hull work each need their own chemistry
Marine and terminal work shows why product choice matters. Tank and vessel cleaning around crude and heavy oil has to deal with sludge, H2S and flammable vapours, and the fluids have to stay manageable for disposal. Around ships, the cleaner you pick also has to suit the waste stream: a strong emulsifier can carry oil through an oily water separator, so bilge and engine room products need to be chosen with the separator in mind.
Shipyards and repair facilities deal with heavy oil on engine components and surface prep on steel and aluminum. Fleets and rail yards carry the same road film and heavy grease they do anywhere, in a wetter climate. We match the chemistry to the soil, the surface and where the rinse water goes.
Discharge rules apply here as well. Metro Vancouver’s Sewer Use Bylaw and municipal bylaws, such as the City of Vancouver’s Sewer and Watercourse By-law, control what wash and cleaning water can go to sewer. We can provide product information and safety data sheets for your permits and compliance program. The wet climate also means outdoor wash areas collect a lot of stormwater, so containment and product choice need to be planned together.
Where to start for common Lower Mainland jobs
- Bilges: tell us what separator you run before choosing a cleaner. Strong emulsifiers are the wrong choice where an oily water separator follows.
- Engine rooms and shipyard components: a solvent degreaser for heavy oil, or the VOC-free hybrid Breakaway VF in enclosed spaces where odour matters.
- Tanks and terminal equipment: an engineered cleaning program with H2S and vapour control.
- Rail and fleet: wash products matched to your equipment, and an aluminum cleaner for tanks and wheels.
Our guides cover the trade-offs in more depth: water-based vs. solvent-based cleaners and how to choose an industrial degreaser. For the full range, see our industrial degreaser supplier page.
Cleaning Chemistry for Lower Mainland Industry
Guardian supplies terminal and tank operators, shipyards, rail yards, fleets and heavy industry across the Lower Mainland and British Columbia.
Engine Rooms and Bilges
Engine Rooms and Bilges
Shipbuilding and Repair
Shipbuilding and Repair
Pipeline and Terminal Maintenance
Pipeline and Terminal Maintenance
Rail and Port Intermodal
Rail and Port Intermodal
Fleet and Heavy Trucking
Fleet and Heavy Trucking
Heavy Equipment and Wash Bays
Heavy Equipment and Wash Bays
Chemistry is half of it. The other half is who picks up the phone.
Guardian has manufactured specialty chemicals since 1960, with our lab in Alberta and blending plants in Canada and the United States. In British Columbia you deal with a Guardian representative who covers the province. When something is not working the way it should, you call someone who can fix it.
Formulated for the deposit
Our lab matches chemistry to the soil you are actually removing, whether that is bunker oil, crude residue or road film.
Documentation for your permits
Product data and safety data sheets for discharge permits, vessel paperwork and contractor pre-qualification.
Safety-Forward Chemistry
High flash points (>95°C), ultra-low VOC, and VOC-free formulations, with less fire risk and solvent vapour than conventional solvents. Our chemistry meets or exceeds Canada’s VOC legislation.
Proven in the Field
65+ years serving oil sands, mining, manufacturing, transportation, and heavy industry. 4,000+ clients across North America trust Guardian.
Featured Cleaners and Degreasers
What Customers Say About Guardian’s Cleaning & Degreasing Solutions
“Guardian Chemicals is a trusted vendor. Responsive, helpful and providing great customer support, they are an important part of our team. Their products work as-advertised and are competitively priced.”
“Have dealt with Guardian many times over the years and they have always come through with great products and great solutions. Highly recommend!”
"We brought...Guardian Chemicals into our business to offer options to simplify our truck washing soap product line. [They] provided a single cost effective product that spans all of our various site needs and has been user accepted."
Industrial Cleaning Case Studies
Where we serve in British Columbia
Guardian serves Vancouver and the Lower Mainland, including Burnaby, Richmond, Delta, Surrey, North Vancouver, Coquitlam and the Fraser Valley, through our Kamloops-based representative and product shipped from our plant.
Guardian Chemicals Inc.
Head office and plant: #155 55202 SH825, Sturgeon Industrial Park, Sturgeon County, AB T8L 5C1
Phone: (780) 998-3771 Toll free: (800) 661-6544
Email: info@guardianchem.com
Water treatment in the Lower Mainland: commercial water treatment for Vancouver. Other Guardian industrial service areas: Edmonton, Calgary, Fort McMurray and Toronto and the GTA.
Tell us what you are cleaning.
Describe the vessel or equipment, the deposit and the conditions, and a Guardian specialist will recommend a product. Prefer to talk? Call (780) 998-3771 or (800) 661-6544, or email info@guardianchem.com.
Frequently Asked Questions: Marine and Industrial Cleaning in Vancouver
Yes. Guardian’s BC representative works from our Kamloops office and serves customers across the Lower Mainland and the rest of British Columbia.
Yes. Our water treatment team completed the chlorination and disinfection of the domestic water system at the new St. Paul’s Hospital in Vancouver before it opened, treating about 6,000 fixtures over four days.
That depends on what the bilge water goes through next. A strong emulsifier can carry oil through an oily water separator, so tell us your separator and discharge setup and we will recommend a product that suits it.
Yes. In one published job, Guardian’s BrightShield program removed more than 700 m³ of tank sludge, eliminated H2S and cut mercaptans 77%, with continuous vapour monitoring and compliant disposal.
Yes, with the right product. Strong alkaline cleaners etch and dull aluminum, which matters on marine and transport equipment where the finish is part of the asset. SafeGuard AL cleans aluminum and chrome without that damage.
Yes. TerraSol ULV is an ultra-low VOC solvent degreaser that complies with Canadian VOC regulations, and Breakaway VF is VOC-free.
Yes. Guardian Chemicals is Canadian-owned and has manufactured specialty chemistry since 1960.
Discharges to sewer are regulated by Metro Vancouver’s Sewer Use Bylaw and by municipal bylaws such as the City of Vancouver’s Sewer and Watercourse By-law. Some operations need a waste discharge permit. Tell us your setup and we will recommend products that suit it and supply the documentation you need.
From our plant in Sturgeon County, Alberta, on standard trucking. Stocked items ship within three working days of order acceptance and items we blend to order need a minimum of six working days, plus transit. When a job cannot wait, hotshot delivery can often be arranged for an additional charge. Call the order desk and we will confirm a date before committing.
Call (800) 661-6544 or send the form on this page. Our BC representative covers the Lower Mainland from Kamloops and will follow up within one business day.
Talk to Guardian about marine and industrial cleaning.
Tell us what you are cleaning and we will recommend the right product, or call the order desk at (780) 998-3771.
