Hoshizaki recommends cleaning and sanitizing their ice machines every six months under normal conditions, but food-service kitchens with hard water or heavy use often need it quarterly. Here’s how to do it correctly, step by step.
What You’re Actually Doing (and Why It Matters)
There are two separate procedures: descaling and sanitizing. Descaling removes mineral buildup (scale) from the evaporator and water system. Sanitizing kills bacteria, mold, and slime. You need both, in that order. Skipping the descale first means sanitizer can’t reach the surface underneath the scale layer. Skipping the sanitize means you’ve just cleaned a machine that still has pathogens in it.
Hoshizaki machines use stainless steel evaporators (304-grade), which is a key difference from many competing brands that use nickel-plated evaporators. This matters for cleaning: the stainless steel is more durable and tolerates a broader range of cleaners. That said, you should still use products Hoshizaki actually recommends. Their own Scale Away cleaner and LIME-A-WAY are both listed in official Hoshizaki guidance. One hard rule: do not use ammonia-based cleaners. Hoshizaki explicitly warns these can damage the machine.
Tools and Supplies
- Hoshizaki-approved ice machine cleaner (Hoshizaki Scale Away or LIME-A-WAY per manufacturer guidance)
- An NSF-listed sanitizer appropriate for ice machines (diluted chlorine bleach solution is used in Hoshizaki’s own documentation)
- Clean cloths or food-safe sponges
- A bucket
- Gloves and eye protection
Do not mix the cleaner and sanitizer together in the same solution. That warning is in Hoshizaki’s own documentation.
Step-by-Step Cleaning Procedure
1. Empty the machine and discard the ice. Ice in the bin before you start should be discarded. Don’t serve it.
2. Put the machine into Clean mode. The exact steps vary by model. On many Hoshizaki units there is a dedicated Clean button or mode switch; consult your specific model’s manual before you touch switches. The machine will drain and begin a wash cycle. If you don’t have the manual, Hoshizaki’s full manual library is at hoshizakiamerica.com/support/manuals/.
3. Add the cleaner to the water trough. Once water starts filling the trough, add the recommended amount of cleaner per the product label. The machine circulates the solution through the water system automatically during the clean cycle. Cycle times vary by model; a common range for modular units is around 20 to 30 minutes, but check your manual.
4. Manually clean the removable parts. While the machine runs, remove the ice bin, water curtain, and any other accessible components. Wash them in the cleaner solution, rinse thoroughly, and set aside.
5. Let the clean cycle finish. The machine drains automatically. Don’t interrupt it.
6. Rinse cycle. After the cleaner drains, run a rinse cycle with fresh water. Some operators run two rinse cycles to be sure no cleaner residue remains.
7. Add sanitizer and run the sanitize cycle. Refill the trough, add sanitizer at the recommended dose, and run another cycle. This step is what health inspectors are checking for.
8. Final rinse and reassembly. Drain the sanitizer, rinse, reinstall the cleaned bin and components, and restart the machine in normal ice-making mode. Discard the first batch of ice that comes out after cleaning.
The Exterior and Air Filters
While you’re in there, wipe down the exterior, clean or replace the air filter (most Hoshizaki machines have a removable plastic filter on the front or side), and check that the condenser fins aren’t clogged with dust. A dirty condenser makes the machine work harder and shortens its life. If you’ve got a remote condenser, that’s a job for a technician.
Frequency: How Often Is Often Enough
Every six months is the manufacturer’s baseline. A few factors push it toward quarterly or more often:
- Hard water (common in parts of the Bay Area, including Tri-Valley)
- High-volume kitchens
- Units located near cooking equipment where grease and vapor accumulate
- Any history of slime or pink residue, which indicates bacterial growth that needs more aggressive intervention
California’s retail food code requires maintaining equipment per manufacturer specifications, and local health departments enforce that standard during inspections. The six-month cleaning intervals aren’t suggestions for a commercial operation.
What to Log
Keep a cleaning log next to the machine. Date, who performed the cleaning, what products were used, and any observations (unusual scale buildup, slow ice production, odors). This protects you during health inspections and gives a technician useful history if something breaks.
When to Call a Pro
Some things come up during routine cleaning that you shouldn’t handle yourself. If you see visible corrosion or pitting on the evaporator, stop and call a technician. If the machine isn’t cycling correctly, producing smaller or misshapen cubes, or the clean cycle doesn’t complete, those are diagnostic issues, not cleaning issues.
Scale buildup that’s thick and hard, to the point where a normal cleaning cycle doesn’t dissolve it, usually means it’s been too long between cleanings and now requires a manual descale by someone who knows the machine. Applying stronger chemicals without knowing the condition of the evaporator risks permanent damage.
If slime keeps coming back within weeks of a full clean-and-sanitize, there’s likely a water quality issue or a component that needs replacing.
We work on Hoshizaki commercial ice machines throughout Tri-Valley and the East Bay. If the machine needs more than a routine cleaning, or if you want a technician to handle the full procedure, you can schedule at adriumservice.com.