ServSafe Manager · Cleanliness and Sanitation · 7 min read
Wiping Cloths, Cleaning Tools, Linens and Vomit Cleanup
- Manage wiping cloths, cleaning tools, and linens according to FDA Food Code rules to prevent cross-contamination.
- Implement compliant storage, maintenance, and wastewater disposal procedures for facility cleaning equipment.
- Execute and document a compliant written plan for responding to vomiting and diarrheal events in a food establishment.
Wiping Cloths: Segregation, Storage, and Sanitation
The FDA Food Code sets distinct rules for dry cloths used on food spills during service, wet cloths used on counters and equipment, and cloths used on surfaces that contact raw animal foods. Managers should assign separate cloths to food-contact and non-food-contact surfaces to prevent cross-contamination. The Food Code requires wet wiping cloths used on surfaces that contact raw animal foods to be kept separate from wiping cloths used for other purposes.
Wet wiping cloths must be stored fully immersed in an approved chemical sanitizer solution between uses. These cloths must never be left sitting on prep tables, cutting boards, or tucked into employee aprons. Containers holding wet wiping cloths in sanitizer must be kept off the floor and used and stored so they cannot contaminate food, equipment, utensils, linens, or single-service or single-use articles. Managers may also provide single-use disposable sanitizer wipes for surface wiping, provided staff use them according to their EPA-approved label instructions.
Active managerial control requires monitoring sanitizer concentration. Managers must ensure employees regularly verify wiping-cloth sanitizer concentration with a suitable test kit or other device that accurately measures that sanitizer. Sanitizer solutions must be changed when visibly cloudy, soiled, or when the concentration drops below the required level. Furthermore, wet wiping cloths must be laundered daily, and visibly soiled cloths should be replaced immediately. For dry wiping cloths used to wipe food spills from tableware or carry-out containers during service, managers must ensure they are kept dry, free of food debris and visible soil, and used for no other purpose.
| Cloth Type | Permitted Use | Storage and Handling Requirements |
|---|---|---|
| Dry Wiping Cloths | Wiping food spills from tableware and carry-out containers during service | Must be kept dry, free of food debris and visible soil; used for no other purpose. |
| Wet Wiping Cloths (General) | Wiping counters and general equipment surfaces | Stored completely immersed in approved sanitizer between uses; laundered daily; containers held off the floor. |
| Raw Animal Food Cloths | Counters and equipment surfaces contacting raw animal foods | Kept strictly separate from all other cloths; held immersed in sanitizer between uses; laundered daily. |
Common mistakes
- Discarding mop water down a toilet, urinal, or handwashing sink instead of using an approved service sink or curbed cleaning facility with a floor drain.
- Applying disinfectant over bulk vomit or fecal material without first removing the material and cleaning the contaminated surface according to the written procedure and product label.
- Assuming that wiping cloth sanitizer buckets can be set on the kitchen floor or that dry wiping cloths can be used interchangeably on food-contact counters.
- Relying on an assumed fixed radius (such as exactly 25 feet) to throw away food after a vomit incident, rather than assessing the true potentially contaminated area.
Key points
- Wet wiping cloths must be held in sanitizer between uses, and managers must regularly check the sanitizer with an appropriate test kit or other accurate device; wet cloths used on surfaces that contact raw animal foods must be kept separate from cloths used for other purposes.
- Dry wiping cloths used during service for tableware spills must remain dry, clean, and used for no other purpose.
- Cleaning tools must be stored so they cannot contaminate food or supplies; used mops must be positioned to air-dry without soiling nearby items, and mop water must be disposed of in an approved service sink or curbed cleaning facility with a floor drain.
- Linens cannot contact food directly except as container liners that are laundered between uses, and cloth gloves can only touch food that will subsequently be cooked.
- Establishments must maintain written vomit and diarrhea response procedures that minimize contamination and exposure; managers should train staff to use appropriate protective equipment, remove organic material, and disinfect according to the procedure and product label.
- Following a bodily-fluid incident, affected food and single-service items must be discarded, food-contact surfaces must be re-sanitized, and managers must exclude symptomatic employees and document corrective actions.
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