Useful tips for Ice machine cleaning and maintenance

Ice machines are one of the most important equipment’s required in different settings including nursing homes, restaurants, bars, hotels, and healthcare facilities.  As it is essential equipment but many business or restaurant owners ignore its regular cleaning process that leads to a negative impact on its performance and efficiency also. In this article, we are sharing a few tips that help you in cleaning the ice machine and ensure its complete safety.

Tips for cleaning an Ice cube maker

Ice cube maker maintenance requirements vary from vendor to vendor but generally, ice machines follow the same process.  It is good to read your machine manual before you start the procedure but some general steps that you should follow include:-

•                     Remove ice from the dispenser

During the cleaning and sanitizing cycle, you should remove all the ice and follow one of the below methods:-

1.                  Press the power button of the harvest cycle once the ice falls from evaporators

2.                  Press the power button and wait for melting the ice completely

•                     Switch on the clean or wash button

This will enable the water to flow from the water dump valve and down the drain.  Wait until water trough gets a refill and show the indicator to add chemicals. This will take around 1 minute.

•                     Add cleaner

Now add the recommended amount of cleaner in the machine as per the manual. Now, wait for at least 20 minutes to complete the cleaning process. After that, disconnect the power to the ice machine.

•                     Remove internal ice machine component for cleaning

You should read the machine manual for removing all parts safely and continue with the next step

•                     Mix cleaner solution and lukewarm water

Refer to the ice machine manual and use the right amount of solution.  According to the amount of mineral build-up you can increase the cleaner quantity. Use half of the water and cleaner solution to clean all removed components and parts. The most solution will start creating foam once they come in the contact of lime, scale, and mineral deposits. You can use a soft nylon brush, cloth, or sponge to clean all parts and rinse them with water.

•                     Clean food zone surface

Use half portion of the cleaner solution to clean the food zone surface of the ice machine dispenser or bin. With the help of brush or sponge, you can clean ice machine areas like sidewalls, evaporator plastic parts, etc. in the last, rinse all the area with clean water to remove chemicals and prevent ice from becoming contaminated.

How to clean the exterior of Ice Maker?

Here are the steps that how you can clean the outside of your commercial ice maker.

•                     You should clean the outer area of the ice machine which is necessary. This is  important to maintain cleanliness and efficient operation

•                     Use damp cloth rinsed in water to remove dirt and dust. Don’t use an abrasive pad or brush otherwise it hamper the machine exterior.

•                     If greasy residue remains on the ice machine then use mild dish soap and water with a damp cloth for cleaning. Check the manual to see the restriction. Never use chlorinate or abrasive cleaners to clean the exterior panels and plastic trim of the machine

Useful ice machine cleaning tips

Here, we are sharing a few tips that you should consider before cleaning the ice machine

•                     Always read the manual because some manufacturer recommends for specific cleaner and sanitizer for cleaning the machines

•                     You also read instructions in your ice maker manual and follow it.

•                     Never mix cleaner and sanitizer solution

•                     Choose rubber gloves when you are handling sanitizer or cleaner solution

•                     If your ice machine needs frequent maintenance then check your water quality. There is a possibility you need new water cartridge or water treatment.

•                     Nugget and flake ice machines have more moving parts therefore you need to pay extra attention to it.

By cleaning and sanitizing you can improve your machine efficiency and save money on its energy cost. Remember it is important to sanitize and clean your ice machines once every six months. If you are also looking for any type of ice machine, cleaning supplies, or commercial kitchen equipment then buy them online from a trusted store like Horeca Traders. 

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Created on Aug 7th 2020 01:28. Viewed 340 times.

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