Stainless steel, it’s used in practically every piece of restaurant equipment on the market today. Unlike other materials that may leech contaminants into food, stainless steel is held up as the shining example of purity in food quality in restaurant equipment. However, while this modern wonder boasts a relatively maintenance free care guide there are still dos and don’ts when it comes to upkeep on your stainless steel restaurant equipment.
Despite what you may have heard, or think you know, about stainless steel it IS susceptible to rusting. It just isn’t as susceptible to rusting as other metals. Just like any metal, rusting is caused by the standard culprits: mechanical abrasion, deposits & water, and chlorides.
By following a simple set of cleaning instructions you can ensure that your restaurant equipment will have every chance of lasting for a very long time.
1. Never use a steel wool to clean stainless steel, you’ll actually do more harm than good (go back and read the first cause of corrosion – mechanical abrasion). Use only plastic pads or pads approved for stainless steel.
2. When you must use chlorinated detergents be sure to read the equipment manufactures directions for using chlorides and be sure to thoroughly rinse off any cleaning agents once you are finished cleaning. Use a fresh rag when wiping down the equipment after cleaning, if you use the towel that you were using with the chlorinated detergent all you’ll end up doing is spreading around the chlorinated residue instead of removing it.
3. Never leave dirty rags or other foreign matter in a stainless steel sink bowl or other piece of restaurant equipment. A damp rag or worse a chlorinated one, will cause rust to form on your equipment.