How to Clean Residential Ice Makers

Many home refrigerators come with an ice maker. Depending on the type of refrigerator, the ice maker may or may not be removable. Regardless of whether it comes out completely or only partially, an ice maker should be kept clean to prevent the buildup of bacteria. Keeping the ice in your drinks sanitary is just as important as only eating sanitary food. A simple cleaning procedure will rid the ice maker of bacteria and provide your family with fresh, clean ice to enjoy.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Dish soap
• Spray bottle
• Household bleach

1. Check the instruction manual for your refrigerator to see whether your ice maker is removable or not. Certain ice makers can be taken out while others can only be partially removed.

2. Allow the ice maker to run through two to three freezing cycles. After it has finished, remove the ice maker. Wash the ice maker and other parts with hot water and dish soap. Rinse the pieces thoroughly.

3. Empty out the ice from an ice maker that is not removable and use a spray bottle to apply a mixture made from 1 ounce of household bleach to 2 gallons of water to all visible parts of the ice maker. Allow the mixture to dry. If any parts are removable, clean them as described in step 2.

4. Wash a removable ice maker unit in the bleach mixture described in step 3. Allow the parts to dry, then reassemble the ice maker.

5. Allow the ice maker to create a bin full of ice. Throw away this ice. The next bin of ice should be fine and ready to use.

References

• Procedures for Cleaning Ice Machines