The American Cleaning Institute (ACI)

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Kitchen Knives A rule of thumb in safe food preparation is to be sure you don’t cut raw meat, poultry or fish on the same surface without thoroughly cleaning it between uses. The same is true for your knife. Wash your knife with dish soap and hot water after each use. Rinse with clear water. Air-dry or pat dry with clean paper towels. Typically you should wash hollow-handled knives by hand Handle kitchen knives carefully by their handles; don’t pile them into the sink or…
December 5, 2018
Dishwashers are great time savers. To keep you and your family safe the American Cleaning Institute offers a dozen tips for dishwasher safety: Place sharp items, like knives, with points down in the utensil basket. Carefully place glassware to prevent breaking/chipping. Make sure they can’t rattle against each other when the dishes and glasses are sprayed with the water or when you slide the rack in or out. Avoid overloading. Crowing glasses and plates can cause them to chip or break (and…
December 6, 2018
Image used with permission: Ramona Lynam These special-occasion items should be hand washed to preserve their finishes: Crystal Decorated glassware Hand-painted ceramics or stoneware Milk glass Pewter Silver Items with precious metal (such as gold or platinum trim) HOW When washing by hand, follow these easy instructions: 1. Use clean, hot water and liquid dish soap. 2. Start with lightly soiled items, followed by plates, serving dishes, and finally any…
February 8, 2019
Most of us have done it. We grab the dish liquid instead of the dishwasher detergent and have found ourselves with more suds that we bargained for. The American Cleaning Institute recommends these dishwashing clean-up steps: If you catch this mistake before running the dishwasher, remove the dish liquid from the dispenser by wiping it out with a dry paper towel. You may need to follow up with a damp towel to remove any excess soap residue. If you have run the dishwasher and…
December 5, 2018
To be sustainable, we must meet our current needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirs. As an industry, we are striving to optimize use of our planet’s resources across all phases of a product’s lifecycle. In order to achieve this, we must pay particular attention to the water and energy we use and the waste we generate as a result of creating cleaning products. The product packaging is critical in allowing your cleaning product to be safely transported to you…
February 8, 2019
Here's a few tips that will make sure you get the best flavors from your wines and keep your wine glasses sparkling clean. Cleaning Wine Glasses Yes, you can put most wine glasses in the dishwasher. Be sure to use a delicate wash cycle, skip the heated drying cycle and space glasses so they won't hit each other and possibly chip or break. The best long-term results, though, come from washing special glassware by hand. Follow these tips to avoid chips and spots:…
December 6, 2018
Ideally, there shouldn’t be a right way or a wrong way to clean – as long as someone is actually cleaning! But, many a fight has been had over the proper way to load a dishwasher. So here are some handy tips to keep the dishes clean, and families intact. For dishwashers made in the past 10 years, simply scrape off food. You do not need to rinse. This wastes water. Many dishwashers have a "quick rinse" setting that will take the place of rinsing in…
December 6, 2018
Clean water is a critical element of cleaning.  The vast majority of water on Earth’s surface, over 96%, is saline water in the oceans (USGS). Which means, even though water is plentiful there are limited resources of fresh water to relay on. Beyond cleaning, we also need water to drink and to grow food. The average household may use 88,000 gallons of water per year (REU2016). Within your home, faucets and clothes washers make up a significant portion of…
December 6, 2018
One of the main uses for cleaning products is washing clothes and dishes. Each load of clothes and dishes requires water, and energy is often used to heat that water. While one load of laundry or dishes may seem like a small task, when you consider all the times we run the washing machine or dishwasher in a week and multiply that by all the households doing the same thing, it adds up! The good news is that our washing machines and dishwashers are getting more efficient. In the U.S., a new…
February 8, 2019
If your plastic dish or container can’t hold its shape in hot water or the microwave, then you may need to recycle it. This is true of most containers that are meant for on-time use only, like takeout containers and those that you purchase food products in, such as yogurt containers. Plastic Food Containers If the container is a keeper, make sure it is clean for the next use. Wash Remove any leftover food and rinse in hot water Wipe extra grease with a sponge or paper…
December 6, 2018