Chapter 4: Bleaches and brighteners · Part 2: Chlorine bleaches (and ammonia)
Ammonia
- Poison schedule (Australia)
The worst fact: mixed with bleach, it makes chloramine gas. In two US military "cleaning party" incidents, 72 soldiers were hurt when bleach and ammonia were mixed in their barracks. Urine contains ammonia too.
Why brands use it: it's a cheap alkali for glass and surface cleaners.
Take care if: you have asthma or other breathing problems. Ammonia is linked with asthma in professional cleaners. In Australia it's a Schedule 5 Poison above 0.5% and a Schedule 6 Poison above 5%.
Comes from: nitrogen from the air and hydrogen, usually from natural gas.
Myth check: "Bleach plus ammonia makes a stronger cleaner": no. It makes toxic gas.
Contaminants: nil.
Fair to say: on skin, solutions under 5% rarely cause serious burns, but they can irritate, and a splash in the eye can still be serious. More about ammonia as an alkali is in Chapter 10.
Correct as of November 2026. What the badges mean
Sources
- Australian Government. Poisons Standard October 2026 (SUSMP), F2026L01327: chlorinating compounds, dichloroisocyanuric acid, hydrogen peroxide, sodium percarbonate, peracetic acid, ammonia.
- Safe Work Australia. Hazardous Chemical Information System (HCIS): classifications for each chemical, and for borax. hcis.safeworkaustralia.gov.au
- UK Health Security Agency. Sodium hypochlorite: general information (2025); Ammonia: general information (2024).
- US ATSDR. Medical management guidelines for ammonia.
- Pascuzzi TA, Storrow AB. Mass casualties from acute inhalation of chloramine gas. Mil Med 1998.
- Vizcaya D et al. Cleaning products and asthma among cleaning workers. Occup Environ Med 2011.
The full source list is at the end of Chapter 4.