Pre-rinsing dissolves some surface sugars and fats, flushes the system, and allows our Biosafety Account Managers to check for, and where possible, eliminate leaks or water loss.
We recommend using de-ionized water, water that has been processed through reverse osmosis, or re-use the final rinse solution from the previous cleaning sequence. A Turbidity Sensor may be used to verify that the pre-rinse has effectively removes solid soil build up.
Next, our Biosafety Account Managers will add a cleaning solution (typically Spray Kleen LV) at the prescribed concentration (400 to 1200 P.Alk. or pH between 12-14) and circulate for a minimum of 10 minutes.
For tougher soils P.Alk can be increased to ≤ 2000ppm to help to dissolve more aggressive oil build-up and fats.
For mineral build-up or milk-stone, Acid should be periodically substituted as an alternative chemistry or as a second CIP for cleaning. This dissolves mineral scale from hard water deposits and protein residues, and neutralizes the system pH.
Acid CIP for cleaning concentration should be between 1-2%, but higher concentrations can be used for soaking (up to and including undiluted concentrate).
Intermediate rinses can flush out residual traces of detergent remaining from the cleaning cycle.
In many systems, the final rinse water may be recovered and reused as the pre-rinse solution for the next cleaning cycle. The residual heat and chemicals it retains from the final rinse will help make the next pre-rinse more effective and economical.
After the final rinse, we may decide to do a sanitizing rinse cycle. This involves flushing the line with a prescribed concentration of sanitizer used to control pathogens and biofilm. This chemistry will change depending on your specific pH and material needs.
After cleaning and rinsing, we recommend validation with an ATP meter or Indicon gel. An ATP meter (like the AccuPoint Advanced Next Generation) measures the amount of Adenosine Triphosphate on the surface, which has proven to be an excellent indicator of organic soils.
The other method we recommend for validation is Indicon gel, which provides a cost-effective, rapid visual indication of the presence of biofilm on a surface which may contain harmful microorganisms such as Listeria, Escherichia coli (E. coli) or Salmonella.
What’s most important in our recommendations is taking into consideration your facility’s specific needs before we recommend any treatment or CIP Cycles. We do not provide one-size-fits-all solutions, and we take into consideration all the costs (both financial and environmental) of wasting water and chemical on redundant cycles. With our state of the art chemistries and validation processes, we can ensure that your CIP Cycles are as efficient and effective as possible, without unnecessary waste.
When you’re ready to get started, you can reach out to us by filling out our Contact Form, or by calling 1 (800) 424-2436
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