Sanitation and Safety

Because warewashers have a number of components, the likelihood of breakdowns and failures is increased. By properly caring for these units with regular cleaning and routine maintenance, operators can expect them to have as much as a 10-year service life.

Service Q&A: Richard Smith, general manager, Cooking Equipment Specialists, Mesquite, Texas

Consultant Q&A with Timothy A. Barker, founder of Table & Bar Consulting Group, Memphis, Tenn.

Not following manufacturers’ recommendations when selecting a disposer can result in an inadequate system that will not meet the operation’s waste needs. Because most operations become more dependent on these systems than anticipated, it is better to go bigger in terms of horsepower to ensure the waste amount can be accommodated.

Rack warewashers, commonly referred to as rack conveyors, are often used in full-service restaurants and higher-volume applications, such as universities and healthcare foodservice. This is because the average production rate for these continuous-motion machines is between 100 and 300 racks an hour. While undercounter and door-type machines also use racks, this reference typically is limited to the conveyor-type units.

Despite the number of options available for reducing water costs associated with dishwashing, the drawback remains that there has been little research in terms of total life-cycle costs. “Usage can very day by day,” says Chris Moyer, manager of Conserve.restaurant.org, the National Restaurant Association’s sustainable information resource.