How to Clean Countertop Ice Maker

It is super important that you keep your ice maker clean. Whilst you may think ice cannot go bad, it can.

Bacteria can be easily transferred to ice from food and us humans. If your countertop ice maker is not regularly cleaned it can harbor all sorts of bacteria from your kitchen which can then contaminate the ice. 

As well as this, ice can easily take on odors from cooking and from other foods that are placed near it. This can happen even through the walls of your ice maker.

For this reason, your countertop ice maker should be cleaned regularly, both on the outside of the appliance and the inside. 

 In this article, we will be giving you a step-by-step guide on how to clean your ice maker to ensure that it is in perfect working condition and that it produces safe ice.

We will be exploring first how you can give the inside a deep clean, as well as explaining how best to clean the outside of the appliance.

If you have a countertop ice maker of your own you can consider this essential reading! 

Cleaning the Inside of Your Ice Maker - Internal Cleaning

1. The first step is to unplug your appliance to ensure you can safely clean it and move it if you need to. When you have done this you should drain any water that may be left in the water reservoir. 
2. The next step you need to follow is to remove the ice basket. This is the section of the ice maker that holds the ice. On most models, this section is removable to ensure easy cleaning. If there is any ice left in there you should, of course, take all of that out. You can hand wash this yourself using warm water with a touch of soap, ensuring you rinse it thoroughly and dry it all off. You should do the same for any scoops that you use. 
3. With the ice basket removed, cleaned, and set aside, you can get to work on cleaning the inside of the countertop ice maker. To do this we recommend making a cleaning solution. All you need for this is some common household ingredients. You can choose from either lemon juice or white vinegar. Add in 1 part of whether to 10 parts water. Of course, if you prefer, you can buy a dedicated ice machine cleaner to do this, ensuring you follow the instructions that come with it regarding how much of it you need to use and whether you need to dilute it.
4. When your cleaning solution is made up you can take a clean, dry cloth and apply some of the cleaning solutions to it. Start small, dabbing it onto your cloth and then rubbing your cloth around the inside of the ice maker. Do this until all stubborn spots of grime and build-up are gone, repeating the process as much as is necessary. Make sure you keep your solution because it will also be used later on!
5. If you find you still have some tough spots you can apply either vinegar or lemon juice undiluted right on to the spot, rubbing it hard until it comes off. Ensure you rinse it well with water afterward, though, or else you may be left with lemon or vinegar flavored ice cubes!
6. After the inside has been cleaned, dry it with another dry, lint-free cloth. You can now put the clean and dry ice basket back into the countertop ice maker and get ready for the next step. 
7. Remember that solution we asked you to make up with 10 parts water and 1 part vinegar or lemon juice? Well, now you will be using it again. Pour the remaining solution into your water reservoir. You should then plug in your appliance and run it to make one batch of ice.
8. When the first batch of ice has been made drain all of the water out and remove the ice from it by rinsing it. Dry it again and then pour in some freshly poured water like you would to make a fresh batch of ice. Run the appliance again to make this batch.
9. When this second batch of ice has been made you should repeat the steps above, draining it, rinsing it, removing any ice, and then drying it.
10. The ice maker is now clean and ready to use. You can make a fresh batch immediately if you wish. Remember, whenever the ice maker is not in use, you should drain it thoroughly so as not to leave any water in there to stagnate.

Cleaning the outside of your countertop ice maker - Exterior and Surface Cleaning

Whilst your ice maker needs to have regular internal cleans, the external cleans should happen far more frequently.

This is especially true if it is in a place in your kitchen where you do all of your food preparation and cooking. 

Oils can splash on to it without you realizing, and we all know how quickly dust gathers, even on appliances that are constantly in use!

Don’t forget to wipe over your ice maker on your daily and weekly cleans! To do this follow our simple steps below: 

1. Ensure the ice maker is not currently running a batch of ice and then turn it off. You can also unplug it if you wish. Then you should remove the ice basket, discarding any ice in there. 
2. Grab a clean, dry cloth. Any soft cloth is good as you do not want anything too abrasive that might scratch the exterior of your countertop ice maker. You should, at this point, make up a mild cleaning solution.
3. For the solution, you can use the lemon/vinegar solution we suggested above if you wish, or you can use a regular detergent, as long as it is mild and contains no harsh chemicals. You should dilute all commercial cleaning solutions well, and according to their instructions. You should also check that it is suitable for use on an ice maker before using it.
4. Wipe over the outside of the appliance with the solution of the cloth. You can do this for the inside too, in the place where the ice basket sits. You can also use this solution to clean the ice basket itself if you wish.
5. When you are satisfied that the inside and exterior are clean, you can dry it with a clean, dry cloth and turn it back on if you wish.