How-To Clean a Restaurant Exhaust Hood

Taking the time to clean your restaurant exhaust hood on a regular basis will make for a cleaner kitchen, improve restaurant exhaust hood air flow and reduce the risk of fire. Restaurant exhaust hood cleaning should be done every three months, and when done during closed hours will not interfere with normal kitchen operation.

Preparation
Before you begin cleaning your restaurant exhaust hood, turn off any pilot lights on the stove top, ovens and fryers. Any equipment with casters and quick disconnect gas hoses should be disconnected and moved from the work area. All remaining equipment should be allowed to cool and then covered.
Be sure to also turn off the power to your restaurant exhaust hood at both the switch and breaker box.

Hood Cleaning
Begin by removing the grease hood filters and drip cups. Clean the filters and drip cups with a degreaser and set them aside. Next, scrape any visible grease from the hood troughs, filter pans and ducts. Be careful not to disturb the fire suppression system trigger mechanism or fusible links.
When all visible grease has been removed, use a commercial degreaser to clean the surface of the restaurant exhaust hood. Working from the highest accessible point in the interior of the restaurant exhaust hood, wipe clean the inner surface working your way down. Clean the outside surface last.
Be sure to wear rubber gloves, eye protection and a face mask while using any commercial degreaser product. It is also helpful to change cleaning rags as they become heavily soiled and to use scouring pads where needed. Allowing the degreaser to soak on heavily-soiled areas may also be helpful.

Clean Up
Remove the covers from any neighboring equipment, and check for any spilled grease that may need to be cleaned up. Clean the floor in the hood area before returning any equipment to its original position. Replace the hood filters and drip cups, and then polish the exhaust hood and any surrounding equipment with a stainless steel polishing spray. Relight any pilot lights and restore the power to the restaurant exhaust hood system. Finally, check to make sure all equipment is working properly.

Key Elements of Ice Machine Maintenance

There are four key elements to keeping your ice machine running effectively: quality and adequate water supply, proper filtration, operating environment and cleanliness. All four of these elements contribute to quality ice production.

If your ice machine is not operating at its full potential it may be due to a water supply issue. Up to 70% of ice machine problems can be traced to poor water quality, slow water fill, insufficient water supply, or no water supply. Water is a critical factor for an ice machine to perform at peak efficiency. So simply put, the better the quality of the water, the better the quality of the ice product.

Nearly all ice machine manufacturers will recommend that end users install water filters on their ice machines. Without a water filter, poor water quality can cause ice cubes to stick on evaporators during the harvest sequence, resulting in freeze-up or even failure of major components. A good quality commercial-grade filter is well worth the investment.

The location of your ice machine can greatly impact performance. An ice machine’s operating environment can vary greatly in different areas of the country as well as within individual applications. For example, an ice machine that is located near an oven will likely operate at a different level than an ice machine that is located in the front of the house. Also, it is important to consider how kitchen elements such as grease, high levels of steam or heat, as well as dust from flour or baking ingredients may affect your ice machine’s performance. Specialized filters are available to help you combat many of these environmental factors.

Even an ice machine operating with the best water and in ideal environmental conditions will need to be cleaned and sanitized at least twice a year. In those applications where water and air quality is less than ideal, ice machines must be cleaned more frequently. The cleaning and sanitizing process for an ice machine should include circulating a cleaning solution through the water system to remove buildup, as well as to sanitize. All water-related components in the machine should be cleaned including the evaporator.

For more information on how to properly maintain your ice machine, visit http://www.scotsman-ice.com.

Last week, the Restaurant Guru blog addressed fryer oil and its important role in your commercial fryer. Whether your operation uses a single fryer, double fryer, or counter top fryer, all restaurant fryers have the same maintenance needs. You can maximize service life with regular and thorough cleaning. There are tasks to be performed on an hourly, daily and weekly basis in order to keep your commercial fryer producing golden fries, poppers and onion rings.

Hourly: Battered and spiced foods may taste delicious when fried, but they can leave behind sediment in your fry baskets. When you notice sediment particles floating, probably on an hourly basis, depending on the frequency of operation, you should use a fryer skimmer to remove the particles. Simply skim the floating debris off the surface of the fryer oil to prevent it from degrading your oil. Crumb scoops are another option for a deep fryer.

Daily: Filtering is another key to removing sediment. Some fryers have built-in filtration systems. Others require portable fryer filtration systems which remove the oil from the fryer, automatically filters it, and pumps clean oil back in. With the rising costs of oil, filtering is a great option that can save costs for your restaurant. Filters should be changed regularly for optimum effectiveness. Oil purifiers can also be added to your fryer to maintain food quality, extend oil life, and reduce oil costs by up to 50 percent.

Weekly: Boiling out your commercial fryer is the best way to eliminate acidic or caustic oil buildup on the metal. Commercial fryer detergents should be added to the water before boiling to help loosen deposits. After boiling the fryer, add a small amount of vinegar to your rinse to neutralize any soap residue. Dry the frypot thoroughly to avoid contaminating your fryer oil!

Crush, cubed or shaved, ice is a crucial part of any foodservice operation. Commercial ice machines work overtime to produce the best results, keeping your customers’ glasses chilled and fresh food iced. The best thing you can do to ensure reliable performance is to pay attention to the maintenance needs of your ice machine.

Controlling the temperature of the water flowing into ice-making equipment is crucial. The lower the water temperature, the greater the ice-making capacity of your machine will be. Generally, temperatures should never exceed 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Remember that drinking water must be used when making ice for consumption or food chilling and ice that is used to chill food or beverages should never be used as an ingredient.

Commercial ice machines require regular cleaning. You can save yourself some work by purchasing a model with Pure Ice antimicrobial protection built in to prevent bacteria and slime fungus growth. Frequently check your ice machine to make sure all wires are secure and keep the lines clean by purging them with water. A commercial ice machine cleaning solution will remove scale deposits from ice machines that use nickel or tin-plated evaporators.

Water filters that prevent mineral buildups, such as the Everpure water filter system, reduce the necessity for frequent cleanings. Taste can also be enhanced with the purchase of a filtration system that works to remove dirt, rust and sediment. The filter system also increases energy efficiency of your ice machine.

Ice should always be stored in a clean, sanitized bin. Over time the ice bin can absorb difficult-to-remove odors from the freezer. Serv-U recommends that you replace your ice bin whenever it seems to be transferring impurities to your cubes.

 Ice scoops can also be a culprit in making your ice impure. Store ice scoops outside of the ice machine in a protected holder. Serv-U offers a variety of ice scoops and scoop/holder combinations. Use the scoop to clear out your bin. Never let half frozen ice take up permanent residence in your ice bin!

Remember that cleaning out ice machines is a time-consuming task that requires the storage bin to be emptied. Foodservice operators should make sure a service agency will properly handle this. With these safeguarding tips you can make your ice machine more efficient, requiring less frequent service. Practice regular maintenance to keep this crucial piece of restaurant equipment producing quality cubes!