How to Clean Your Commercial Ice Machine - PartsFPS

Clean commercial ice machines and dispensers regularly is necessary to prevent the build of mold, bacteria, and other factors that may affect the ice being produced. In addition, you should replace or clean condenser fins and air filters every six months. Even though these ice machines are important equipment in restaurants, bars, hotels, houses, and other healthcare facilities, many owners neglect to clean them regularly. Do, you know how to clean commercial ice machine ? Follow our step by step guide below to ensure the equipment is safe for your customers.

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How to Clean Ice Maker ?

The ice maker's maintenance process will vary from one manufacturer to another manufacturer. But the overall process is the same for all brand machines. So, before you start, make sure to check the manual for any specific instructions for a particular model or brand. Or, visit the manufacturer's website and find the ice machine cleaning instructions for your type of machine. Moreover, you should use only approved chemicals to sanitize the machine.

Required Items for Cleaning Ice Maker

Scale remover & cleaner, Nylon brush, sponge or cloth, Warm water, Stiff brush, and Vacuum cleaner.

Commercial Ice Machine Cleaning

• Remove all ice from the dispenser or bin.
• First, you should remove all the ice during cleaning cycle. You can remove the ice on the evaporator by pressing the power switch at the end of the harvest cycle. Or, press the power button and wait until it melts completely.
• Now, press the clean or wash button.
• Water will flow through the water dump valve and down the drain. You have to wait until the reservoir fills the water and the display indicates to add chemical or cleaner. It can take around one minute. After that, you need to add the recommended amount of ice machine cleaner as per manual instructions.
• Wait until the cleaning cycle is completed.
• This complete process will take approximately 20 minutes. Once the cycle is completed, disconnect power to the ice maker.
• Remove the internal components of the ice machine to clean.
• Before removing, refer the manual for safe and proper removal. After removing all parts, proceed to the next step in cleaning process.
• Mix a solution of ice machine cleaner and warm water.
• You have to add the appropriate amount of cleaner as per the owner's manual. Generally, we can use the water to cleaner ratio as 1 gallon of water to 1 ounce of cleaner. Depending upon the buildup mineral amount, you have to increase or decrease the cleaner ratio.
• Use half mixture to clean all internal components and another half to clean food zone surfaces.
• When this water and cleaner mixture contact with scale, lime, and other mineral deposits, it starts foaming. Once the foaming stopped, clean all parts with the use of a soft bristle nylon brush, cloth, or sponge carefully. Later, rinse with water. Although, clean ice machine surfaces, bin or dispenser, sidewalls, base, evaporator parts, etc. by using a nylon brush or cloth. If any parts are more scaled, soak them some time and clean with water.
• Rinse all surfaces with clean water. This will help to remove chemicals from the commercial ice maker.

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Clean the Exterior of an Ice Machine.

Bacteria formed on the exterior may migrate and contaminate inside of the machine. So, try to clean the surroundings of the machine as often as possible. With a damp cloth wipe down the ice machine's surfaces to remove dust and dirt. Don't use an abrasive pad or brush. If any grease residue formed on the exterior, mix vinegar and warm water, then rinsed with a damp cloth.

How to Sanitize your Ice Machine ?

Once the cleaning is completed, you should sanitize the machine. This is specifically used to disinfect the ice maker. Here are a few tips to follow for sanitizing.

1. Take the solution of ice machine sanitizer and warm water. You should mix the ratio as suggested in the manual.
2. Use half of the solution to sanitize all removed components of the machine. Use other mixture to an evaporator and ice bin where the cleaner was used. You should not rinse ice machine parts after sanitization.
3. Next, replace all components and wait for 20 minutes to properly disinfect.
4. Give the power supply and water to the machine. Press the wash or clean button.
5. Add a specified amount of sanitizer to the water trough.
6. You can set the ice maker to start automatically producing ice after the sanitizing cycle complete.
7. Observe two cycles and check the freeze as well as the harvest cycle. It's recommended to remove the first batch of ice made after cleaning and sanitizing.

Clean Ice Machine Condenser and Filter

To clean the condenser, first, disconnect the power to the machine head section. With a flashlight, look at the condenser to check for dirt in between the fins. Blow air through the condenser to remove dust or dirt. Remove the filter and simply rinse it with mild soap and water for its cleaning.

The provided instructions above are all general tips for any type of model so that you can follow this for all model machines including Scotsman ice machine cleaning, Manitowoc ice machine sanitizer, and more.

Signs You Need to Know that Require Clean Your Ice Machine

• Ice produces odor.
• Ice quality is poor.
• The machine produces incomplete or shallow cubes.
• Ice maker does cycle into harvest mode or not making ice.
• Low ice capacity.

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Final Thoughts:-

Thanks for reading! We hope this clean ice machine guide helps you keep your unit running effectively. Don't forget that proper maintenance will make your machine work well. Also, it extends the lifespan of your machine. If you are looking for purchasing ice machine cleaners such as Manitowoc ice machine cleaner, we provide you various brand cleaners so that visit PartsFPS and get whatever you need.

About the Author

Haritha

Haritha is a Content Writer at PartsFPS. She has a great understanding of today's marketing strategies that yield strong results and always happy to create valuable content & share her thoughts.

She was good at writing content for E-Commerce websites related to Restaurant Equipment Parts, Appliance Parts, Food Service Parts, HVAC Parts, etc.

You can see some her contributions at PartsXP.com, PartsAPS.com, PartsIPS.com