Ice Machine Maintenance Checklist for Small Restaurants

Founder, ampeli

Why ice machines get neglected

In a small kitchen, the ice machine falls into a gap. It isn't on the line, so the cooks don't think of it as theirs. It isn't in the dish pit, so the dishwasher doesn't either. Front of house scoops from it all night but assumes the kitchen handles it. The kitchen assumes the repair guy handles it. And the repair guy only shows up when it's already broken.

A few things happen when nobody owns it:

• Slime and mold build up in the dark, damp parts you can't see from the bin door.
• Scale builds up from minerals in the water, especially if you're on hard water. The machine works harder and makes less ice.
• Dust clogs the condenser on air-cooled machines, so it runs hot and struggles in a hot kitchen.
• The scoop ends up living in the ice, which is exactly where it shouldn't be.

None of this is dramatic on any one day. It adds up quietly, and then it shows up at the worst time: on an inspection, or on the first 95-degree Saturday of the summer.

First, read the manual (really)

Every ice machine is different. Cleaning steps, the right cleaner and sanitizer, how often to deep clean, and how often to change the water filter all depend on your make and model. The manufacturer's manual is the rulebook, and your local health department may have its own requirements on top of that.

If the paper manual disappeared years ago, look up the model number (usually on a plate on the back or side of the unit) on the manufacturer's website. Most post manuals online. Print the cleaning section and keep it in a sheet protector near the machine.

Two rules that hold for pretty much every machine:

1. Use only the cleaner and sanitizer your manual calls for. Don't improvise with whatever is under the dish sink, and never mix chemicals.
2. Cleaning and sanitizing are two different steps. Cleaning removes scale and gunk. Sanitizing kills what's left. Most deep-clean routines do both, in that order.

The ice machine maintenance checklist

Treat the frequencies below as a starting point. Your manual, your water and your kitchen's heat will tell you whether to do things more often.

Daily

• Store the scoop outside the ice, in a clean holder or container, handle up. Never leave it buried in the bin.
• Never scoop with a glass. If a glass chips in the bin, the whole bin has to be emptied and cleaned. Use the scoop, every time.
• Wipe the outside, especially the bin door and handle, which get touched all night.
• Look and listen. Is it making ice like normal? Any odd noises, leaks or water pooling underneath? Catching it today beats discovering it at 6 p.m.
• Keep the bin door closed when nobody's scooping. Open doors let in heat, dust and whatever's floating around the kitchen.

Weekly

• Clean and sanitize the scoop and its holder. Run them through the dish machine or wash, rinse and sanitize by hand.
• Check the bin and door gasket for slime, mold or discoloration. If you see any, don't wait for the monthly clean.
• Clear the area around the machine. Boxes stacked against the vents or the side of an air-cooled unit trap heat.
• Check the drain. Make sure water is draining freely and there's no standing water or smell.

Monthly

• Clean the air filter on air-cooled machines, if yours has one. It's usually a removable screen near the front or side. Rinse it, let it dry, put it back.
• Check the condenser coils for dust and grease. A kitchen with a fryer nearby will coat them faster than you'd think. Your manual will say how to clean them safely; some owners leave this to their service tech.
• Look at the water filter. Note the install date. Change it on the schedule the filter manufacturer recommends, or sooner if ice production drops.
• Empty, wash and sanitize the bin if your volume and manual call for it. Many busy kitchens do this more often than the full deep clean.

Deep clean and sanitize (per your manual)

This is the full cleaning cycle: shut the machine down, empty the ice, run the cleaner through the system, remove and scrub the removable parts, then run the sanitizer and wipe down the bin and food-contact surfaces. Your manual will spell out the exact steps and how often to do it. A hot kitchen or hard water usually means more often, not less.

A few tips that make deep-clean day easier:

• Schedule it for a slow day and make sure you have backup ice, or bag some ahead of time.
• Throw out the first batch of ice after cleaning, unless your manual says otherwise.
• Write it down when it's done (more on that below).

Once or twice a year: call the pro

Even with good in-house cleaning, it's worth having a refrigeration tech look the machine over on a regular schedule. They can check refrigerant, water pressure, the parts you shouldn't be taking apart yourself, and things like scale inside the evaporator. Ask what they recommend for your model and your water. If you already have a service company for the walk-in, ask if they'll add the ice machine to the same visit.

Signs your ice machine needs attention now

Don't wait for the schedule if you notice any of these:

• Pink, orange, black or green slime anywhere in the bin or on the panels.
• Cloudy, soft or oddly shaped ice, or ice that smells or tastes off.
• Less ice than usual, especially on a day that isn't unusually hot.
• Water leaking or pooling around the base.
• Loud, new or grinding noises.
• The machine running constantly without keeping up.

Some of these are a cleaning problem. Some are a repair problem. If a deep clean doesn't fix it, call your tech before it turns into an emergency on a Friday.

Make it someone's job

The checklist only works if a real person owns it. Not "the kitchen." A name.

• Daily tasks fit easily into opening or closing duties. If you already run a closing checklist or a prep list system for busy days, add the ice machine lines right there so they don't live on a separate piece of paper nobody reads.
• Weekly and monthly tasks go to one trusted person, with a backup for their days off.
• Deep cleans and service visits go on the calendar. Put the next date on the log as soon as you finish the last one.

And don't forget the supplies. Ice machine cleaner, sanitizer and replacement water filters are easy to run out of because you don't use them every day. Put them on your par sheet with everything else. If you haven't built one yet, here's how to set par levels for your restaurant, and it works for cleaning supplies just as well as for mozzarella.

A simple ice machine cleaning log you can copy

You don't need a fancy template. Print this, put it in a sheet protector and tape it to the side of the machine, or keep it in your opening binder.

Date	Task	Done by	Notes (slime, leaks, low ice, filter changed)	Next due
(date)	Scoop and holder washed and sanitized	(initials)		(date)
(date)	Bin and gasket checked	(initials)		(date)
(date)	Air filter cleaned	(initials)		(date)
(date)	Water filter changed	(initials)		(date)
(date)	Full clean and sanitize cycle	(initials)		(date)
(date)	Service visit	(tech/company)		(date)

How to use it:

1. Fill in a row every time a task gets done, with initials.
2. Write down anything odd in the notes column, even if it seems small.
3. Always fill in "next due," so the next person knows when it's coming.
4. Keep the old sheets. If an inspector asks, or a tech wants to know when the filter was last changed, you'll have the answer in ten seconds.

The bottom line

An ice machine is one of those things that's easy to ignore and expensive to neglect. A few minutes a day, a short weekly check, and a deep clean on your manual's schedule will keep the ice clean, the machine running and the inspector happy. Write it down, give it an owner, and keep the supplies on the shelf.

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