The Types of Warewashing Chemicals

Warewashing is an important step when it comes to the cleaning of dishware and cutlery. When wares are washed properly, restaurants are able to protect customers from food poisoning or illness and at the same time, ensure a pleasant dining experience.

By merely using water, there is no guarantee that it will effectively remove all food debris. With the right warewashing chemicals, cleaning pots and pans will no longer be a chore.

Warewashing chemicals can be categorized into three types as below.

Detergents 

This type of cleaning chemical can effectively remove surface contamination such as stains or grease. Normally used during the first stage of warewashing process, they come in several formulations to remove the toughest food residues.

The liquid form of detergent is a mixture of high foaming surfactants and is usually used for handwashing dishes. It can dissolve easily in the water and be dispersed evenly throughout the dishwashing machine.

By contrast, solid detergent does not dissolve as easily as liquid detergent does. As such, hot water is recommended during usage in order to ensure that the solid detergent dissolves.

Metal-safe detergent is specially formulated for safe and effective use on metal cookware like copper, aluminium or stainless steel. Unlike other abrasive dish cleaners which will destroy metal cookware, this type of detergent is non-chlorinated and low foaming which aids the elimination of all kinds of food residue and also prevent corrosion of metal cookware.

Phosphate-free detergents are not only environmentally friendly, they also provide fast and effective cleaning results. They can be used in any water condition as well as temperature.

Rinse Aid

This works by reducing surface tension to promote the rapid sheeting of water from dishes. In doing so, it speeds up the drying process and prevents spots or film from depositing on dish surfaces.

They come in different formulas for high or low temperature dishwasher. Some may even contain added colorants and fragrances to enhance the appearance and leave behind a pleasant scent.

Sanitizer

A highly concentrated chemical used to kill a vast amount of microorganisms. However, it is only effective on surfaces which have been previously washed.

It is suitable for low temperature dishwashing applications as well as manual warewashing. In this regard, there are certain guidelines for the recommendced sanitizer concentration. For instance, when warewashing with Chlorine and Quaternary Ammonium Compounds, there are test strips to measure its concentration.  

In short, the marketplace is populated by a wide variety of warewashing materials. Always make sure that you choose the right warewashing chemical to keep your appliances sparkiling clean!