How often should you clean
Bacteria growth begins from the time the syrup is opened, as long as the syrup and mix is kept at below 5 degrees at all times, the product will remain food safe for seven days. If the syrup or slushy mix is kept above 5 degrees, the product will develop bacteria that will shorten the safety of the product. So keep it cold, keep it frozen and discard any left over after a week.
When you are at the end of each week, clean your machine. Especially inside the tap mechanism where bacteria can turn to black mould if you don’t keep it clean.
Turning off, draining
Simply turn your machine off at it switches and unplug from the wall. Empty any remaining product into a bucket and discard. Remember, if the product is frozen, its easier to add a bucket of warm water to the bowl and then empty it out, otherwise you need to wait until everything has melted.
Leaning
Be careful! Leaning you machine forward, with someone giving you some help, is the easiest way to remove all liquid in the bowl, before you remove it. Any remaining trickles of slushy mix in the bowl are going to come out very rapidly when the bowl is removed. That may mean, all over you.
Removal of bowls
Push back and lift up from the front. Then twitch the bowl to release front the rear seal. Take care not to damage legs
Removal of augers, seals and rear seals
Pull back off machine. Take care with machines that have a magnetic drive system as the magnets are strong and can smack into the housing and break it.
Remove the auger seal and the rear seals.
Cleaning silicone grease
Use paper towel to wipe the grease from the evaporator and the auger seal, otherwise you’ll spread it everywhere when you clean the machine. Do the same with any tap mechanisms.
Cleaning machine body and evaporators
Use warm and very lightly soapy water with a chux cloth or similar. Just wipe the machine all over, but especially around the evaporators and get right into any corners.
Cleaning of
- Bowls
You can remove the taps and tap seals from the bowl and then you can use either a dishwasher or just hand wash the bowl inside and out. Best practice is to wash the bowl in a commercial dishwasher, then use a bottle brush inside the tap mechanism and wash the bowl a second time by hand using a standard sponge. Then re-wash in your dishwasher. The main consideration is any residue silicone grease inside your bowl (which is inevitable).Using paper towel before cleaning will help. Sometimes using a product like Citro Clean can help.
- Augers
Augers can be cleaned in a dishwasher. In the event your augers are stained from the slushy mix, use a product like Citro Clean to help break down any residual silicone lube from the auger and then clean again (don’t let Citro clean soak for more than a few minutes as it will start to degrade the plastic). In extreme events you might need to soak your augers in a bleach bath. Make sure you re-wash thoroughly.
- Seals
Rear tank seals can be either washed by hand with standard sponge and dishwashing liquid or clean in a dishwasher
- Taps / tap O rings and seals
You should only hand wash your taps, O rings, plungers and handles. A dishwasher tends to weaken the plastic handles and with deform O rings and tap seals to a point where they cause leaks. So just hand wash with warm soapy water.
Reassembly of the bowl and taps
When re-assembling the bowl, make sure to use silicone grease on the tap O rings, seals and stoppers. This prevents leaks and makes them slide effortlessly which prevents damage and lengthens their lifespan
Greasing auger shaft
ALWAYS apply silicone lubricant around the shaft and bushing on the slushy evaporator. This has two functions, firstly it lubricates the auger seal to prevent it tearing when under load, but more importantly is acts as a barrier between the shaft and the shaft bushing, preventing slushy mix from entering inside the evaporator. While evaporators will leak out any slushy mix ingress, this may well fall onto another internal part or simply sit inside the machine eventually becoming sludge. I may also promote corrosion inside the evaporator which is expensive to replace and needs to be done by a fridge mechanic.
Assembly of augers & seals
First add the rear seal and make certain it has been evenly and properly seated. This is the only line of defence between the slushy mix and leaking out from behind the evaporator. Do not grease the rear seal, its silicone and designed the seal between the bowl and the evaporator. If you apply the seal when wet, this will help when fitting the bowl and getting it into position.
Add the auger seal to the auger and push it onto the evaporator, you might need to turn the auger so it seats properly on the shaft and can be pushed home.
Fitting bowls
When installing your bowl, leave the rear opening wet or at least damp, it will make pushing the bowl onto the rear seal much easier and when that moisture dries (if it gets a chance), you’ll gave a really tight seal.
Push back on the bowl until it is fully seated on the rear seal, then push down making certain you clip in the bowl or bowl legs into the machine, so they can’t move. A bowl that not clipped in with at best leak, at worst, catastrophically push itself off the evaporator as the mix freezes and you’ll end up with a whole slushy bowl of mix all over the floor!
Cleaning the Condenser
Your slushy machine has a condenser, normally located on the left hand side of the machine, it’s the part you should be able to see through the grills in the machine and looks like a radiator, which is exactly what it is. All those little fins are precious, so be careful not to bend them. Remove the cover of your machine to expose the ‘radiator’ fins. The easiest way to clean these, if you don’t have access to some compressed air (which is best to do outside), is use a vacuum, perhaps with a soft brush attachment, which very few people have. So use your vacuum to collect the dust, but don’t let it touch the condenser fins, instead use a paint brush, or soft nylon brush to gently brush down the fins, and catch the dust, fluff and grime by having your vac nearby. Whilst you may not need to do this every week, its good practice to at least have a look once a week and keep those fins clear and clean. It is the difference between a machine that freezes well and not so well.
