How to Make Sanitizing Solution

Food preparation surfaces should be routinely sanitized with a bleach solution.

Surfaces and equipment used in the preparation of food should be sanitized as well as cleaned. Sanitizing solutions reduce the number of live bacteria. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recommends that food preparers sanitize preparation surfaces and equipment with solutions containing between 25 and 100 ppm bleach, although federal regulations allow concentrations up to 200 ppm. Household bleach typically contains about 6 percent sodium hypochlorite -- the active ingredient -- by weight, or roughly 60,000 ppm. A suitable sanitizing solution therefore requires only a small portion of bleach diluted in water.

Things You'll Need

• Plastic gallon jug with cap
• Magic marker
• Household bleach
• Teaspoon measuring spoon
• Spray bottle

Instructions

1. Label an empty gallon jug "Bleach Sanitizing Solution" and fill the container with warm tap water, but leave an inch or two of headspace above the water to allow the bleach to be added and the solution to be mixed.

2. Measure 1 tsp. of bleach and add it to the warm water. This will result in a sanitizing solution of 200 ppm bleach. Cap the jug and, holding one hand over the cap, shake the jug four or five times in an up-and-down motion to mix the solution.

3. Transfer the solution to a spray bottle for convenience. Apply this solution liberally to surfaces being sanitized. Scrub with surfaces with a sponge or rag soaked in sanitizing solution, but allow the surfaces to air dry.

Tips & Warnings

• Sanitizing solutions lose strength over time. Test strips for sanitizing solutions are available from food supply stores. Otherwise, fresh sanitizing solutions should be prepared weekly.

• Bleach sanitizing solutions are most effective at temperatures of at least 75 F (see references 2).

• Household bleach is a strong oxidizing agent and is corrosive to tissue. The use of safety glasses and rubber gloves is strongly recommended when working with bleach. Even dilute bleach solutions are dangerous if splashed in the eyes.

References

• University of Rhode Island Cooperative Extension: Sanitation of Food Preparation Work Areas and Equipment
• "Oklahoma State University Food Technology Fact Sheet"; Guidelines for the Use of Chlorine Bleach as a Sanitizer in Food Processing Operations; W. McGlynn
• Towson University: Concentration Units

Resources

• North Dakota State University Agricultural Extension: It's Clean, But Is It Sanitized?