7 tips for clean glasses
From glass quality to wash temperature and polishing:
there's a lot of things you can do wrong when handling glassware
High-quality glasses are pricey and need to be looked after with an appropriate level of care. This is the case whether you're in Berlin, Canberra or Singapore. Since a good, clean glass plays such an important role, hotel, restaurant, bar and café operators all want their valuable washware to last as long as possible, for them and their diners to enjoy. To achieve this, you need to manage your glassware professionally and you should follow these seven tips.
1. Glass quality is crucial
Much is demanded of glasses used in food service and they are washed several times a day so they should be high quality. This reduces the risk of glass corrosion and significantly lengthens their service life.
2. Improve water quality
Water quality is an important factor in the dishwashing process. Water that has not been properly treated for dishwashing leaves a grey film and limescale deposits on glassware, even after an intensive wash cycle. Optional water treatment modules on professional dishwashing machines can avoid this. Click here to read about how a reverse osmosis system works.
For clients who want their glasses and dishes to sparkle, improving the water quality is essential – and that calls for demineralisation or osmosis.
Water does not always behave the same way when we clean with it. Some of the minerals it contains can inhibit performance by leaving those familiar ugly and unappetising smears on cutlery and glasses. In dishwashers they may deposit a fur commonly known as limescale.
3. Glassware needs its space
When you are placing glassware in the rack, think about how to stop the glasses from clanking against each other as the water moves. This can prevent minor damage or, in some cases, breakages. The best way to protect against breakage from mechanical stress is to use racks which securely hold the glasses in place. Wine glasses should be placed at an angle in the dishwashing machine so that water does not remain in the concave part of the foot after the cycle.
4. Don't wash too hot
For delicate glassware, the dishwashing machine should be set to between 60° and 63° (according to DIN and VGG) and, where possible, a gentle cycle. At higher temperatures, glasses may become cloudy or suffer other kinds of damage after prolonged use. You should also use a specific glasswashing detergent and remove the glasses from the dishwashing machine as soon as the cycle finishes.
5. The shorter, the better
Wash cycle times should be as short as possible. The shorter the wash cycle, the less energy consumed. That is not all, though. Short, efficient wash cycles also reduce wear on the washware. All of this pays off and contributes to improved profitability.
6. No need to polish
An integrated water treatment module will remove all the minerals from the water (as well as bacteria and viruses), providing the highest standard of pure water to rinse your washware. Pure water is a prerequisite for sparkling, spotless and hygienically clean results. This way, glasses and cutlery no longer have to be polished by hand – saving time and money. Polishing with a tea towel is unhygienic and therefore not to be recommended anyway.
Water does not always behave the same way when we clean with it. Some of the minerals it contains can inhibit performance by leaving those familiar ugly and unappetising smears on cutlery and glasses. In dishwashers they may deposit a fur commonly known as limescale.
7. Odour-neutral storage
Even when clean, the pores in glass are quick to absorb smells from their surroundings. If you do not have an odour-neutral place to store your glassware, you should give it a quick rinse with water before use.
