To avoid milk stone buildup, a combination cleaner and sanitizer is recommended for cleaning soft-serve machines’ stationary components. After assembly, this chemical acts as a sanitizer and has the added benefit of working on milk stone film. These chemicals are intended to be used in food zones.

Using household chlorine bleach diluted in water is not recommended for sanitizing as it does not contain any cleaner and could damage some O-rings and plastic components.

Changing scraper blades on a regular basis is a critical maintenance task. When scraper blades are not in good condition, they leave a film of frozen product on the cylinder walls. This layer builds up and acts as an insulator, increasing product freezing times. In soft-serve equipment, soft product from the refrigeration system will run longer and overbeat the product.

Another key to maintaining air-cooled refrigeration equipment is to clean the condenser at least once a month. Dust, lint and debris can build up on the condenser and cause some of the same symptoms as not changing the blades. With water-cooled equipment, operators should make sure that the water supply valve is completely open and that there are no kinks in the water hoses.