Having an ice cube maker in your home adds ease to serving and enjoying a perfectly chilled drink with family and friends. In order to keep your home ice machine at peak performance, ice machine cleaning is vital. Let’s show you how to clean an ice maker, and you will find that it can be the easiest way to maintain your investment long term.
Why Should I Clean My Home Ice Machine?
Ice machine cleaning is important for not only maintaining ice quality and increasing your machine’s longevity but also your health. Anything that comes in regular contact with water can eventually build up residual slime or mold, which can then become part of your ice. Ice that is not clear or that has pieces of build-up frozen in it does not make for a great party impression.
Not to mention that additives to your ice can impact the flavor of your drink and lower the overall quality of any beverage you enjoy. Sharing drinks with only clean homemade ice also promotes good health for everyone in the family.
On top of the effect on your beverage, a dirty machine cannot produce ice as effectively as a home ice machine that is kept well cleaned. Build up within a machine can wear down on special coatings in your machine that are designed to help it create and release ice effectively.
The steps to cleaning ice machine are not difficult and take only a bit of time and attention to detail.
How to Clean an Ice Maker?
Following the steps below will make cleaning ice machines a pain-free process that helps you have the best ice at all times.
1. Gather Your Supplies
Having a few simple supplies in one place will save you time while ice machine cleaning.
- Warm Water
- Ice Machine Cleaner Solution or Home-Made Cleaning Solution (Using vinegar and lemon juice)
- Vinegar
- Q-Tips, an old toothbrush or a nylon brush
- Several washcloths
- A spoon
2. Unplug Your Ice Maker
This may seem like an obvious step – but it is very important when you clean an ice machine! In order to avoid harm through electrocution, your machine needs to be completely unplugged from all electrical sources before the cleaning cycle. Unplugging your machine also means that it will not be trying to create ice during the cleaning process.
3. Empty Out Any Ice and Liquid
In order to properly clean all of the parts of your ice machine, you will need to make sure that all of the ice in the commercial ice maker is emptied out. This is where an ice scoop can come in handy. You will want to get any ice fragments that may be built up in corners or parts of the machine such as an ice storage bin, are completely removed.
We will also be disassembling parts of the machine for close ice machine cleaning. Taking the time now to drain the machine of as much fluid as possible will make this process easier. Even though some liquid may remain behind, do your best to let out any liquid from your ice maker before moving on.
4. Remove Interior Ice Bin Parts
Most home ice machines have several removable parts such as a water tank, ice bucket, and a protector for the ice chamber. Specific removable parts vary by machine maker and type. Use the instruction manual that came with your machine to find a complete list of removable parts and the best ways for removing them without damaging your machine. Removing these parts allows you to carefully inspect them for any cracks or damage and to easily clean each piece of the machine.
5. Clean All Removable Parts
Use the specialized ice machine cleaning solution you gathered earlier and a damp cloth to clean each part that was removed from the ice machine. Make sure to use a Q-tip or toothbrush to clean out small crevices and corners of parts and to clean both the tops and bottoms of all pieces. This is where attention to detail makes all the difference!
After you clean off each part with a cleaning solution, rinse the part in clear warm water and dry each piece entirely. Putting dry parts into your machine is important when it begins making ice. Give your parts some extra dry time by laying them out in a safe clean spot while you finish the ice machine cleaning process. If you notice a part that is broken or needs maintenance, contact your ice machine manufacturer for help with repairs or replacement.
6. Wash The Inside of The Ice Maker
Use a fresh cloth and dampen it with a cleaning ice machine solution. Wipe down the inside of your ice maker, taking time to reach into far back corners and other spaces that may hide residue. Use caution around the freezing mechanism in the machine to avoid damaging this vital part. After using the cleaning solution, wipe down the interior with a warm water cloth and then thoroughly dry the entire home ice machine.
7. Assemble and Prepare Your Ice Machine For Use
Now that all of your parts are clean and dry, place them back into your machine. Once your machine has been reassembled, plug the machine in and check it for a good running status
8. Run Two Ice Cycles
You are almost ready to get back to your regular ice-making routine, but first, we want to make sure that everything is running smoothly. In this step, you will make two test cycles of ice. The first cycle of ice you should make with your clean machine uses your remaining cleaning solution.
Running a cycle with an ice machine cleaning solution makes sure that any places you might not have been able to reach are disinfected and gives a final burst of freshness to your machine. This is the time to check that your machine both looks and sounds like it is running properly.
After this cycle is complete, empty your ice reservoir and throw away your cubes. The second cycle of ice should be made with warm water. This cycle will flush out any remaining cleaning solution and give the machine one more observed test round. Even though this ice is made with only water, you should still discard the cubes so that any lingering cleaning solution doesn’t become a part of your drink.
9. Wipe Down The Outside Of Your Used Ice Machine
Unplug your machine and use a damp cloth to wipe down the outside of your machine for a clean and polished look.
10. Enjoy Fresh Homemade Ice
Now that your ice machine is clean you can plug it in and enjoy crisp, clear ice for plenty of time to come!
When Do I Need To Clean My Ice Cube Maker?
If you have never cleaned your home ice machine, or have just cleaned it for the first time after reading this article, you might be wondering how to know when it needs to be cleaned again.
Here are some signs that it might be time to clean your machine:
1. Your ice cubes aren’t as big as usual.
Buildup in the machine can prevent the machine from making ice cubes of normal size. A good ice machine cleaning will help.
2. Your drinks begin to taste like ice or other unwanted flavors.
Ice that isn’t from a clean machine can have a bit of a flavor or frostiness to it that can start to affect the flavor of drinks.
3. Your ice is becoming cloudy.
Occasionally cloudy ice isn’t a huge concern, but if your homemade ice is regularly cloudly or cloudier than normal, it is time to clean your machine.
The Importance Of Proper Cleaning Solution
It is very important when cleaning ice machine that you use a solution suitable for cleaning food appliances. Anything you use to clean your machine can remain in trace amounts within the machine and your ice. This means that anything you clean your machine with could also end up in your future drinks.
Avoiding harsh chemicals is always a good way to go when cleaning an ice machine. Most ice machines can be cleaned wonderfully using a mix of water, vinegar, and lemon juice. You can easily place the solution in a spray bottle so that you can easily use it next time. Vinegar is a safe and non-toxic cleaning agent.
Lemon juice gives a fresh natural scent to anything it is added to. By mixing together vinegar and water (2 cups of vinegar for every 1 cup of water) you can affordably make your own cleaning solution at home. If you don’t want to make your own solution, you can purchase solutions specially designed for ice machines online that work very well.
Maintaining A Clean Ice Cube Maker
To maintain your machine between cleanings there are a few things we suggest doing.
First, make sure to clean your ice tray on its own more frequently than you clean the entire machine. A lot of dirt can enter the machine through the tray and ice machine cleaning this piece is a simple way to keep your ice maker clean.
Second, if you aren’t going to be using your machine go ahead and unplug it. A machine that is running when it doesn’t need to be can collect more dirt during operation than if it is allowed to rest when not in use.
Last, change out the water in your machine every cleaning and sanitizing cycles. Ice makers can recycle water but each time it recycles, the water is a bit less clean through the system than the time before. Replacing old water with fresh water every few cycles will increase the time you can go between cleanings.
Enjoy Your Ice Maker For Years To Come
Now that you know how to clean an ice maker and maintain your ice cube maker, you should be able to enjoy it for many years. By having a home ice machine and keeping it clean to run at peak performance you will be serving up the best drinks at every get-together.