When it comes to ice cream freezers, proper maintenance is critical in the guarantee of serving a quality product. Simple wear items, such as worn scraper blades, will cause a product to be wet, sloppy, grainy or gritty, and unappealing to the customer. Dust and/or grease build up on air-cooled condensers can severely decrease the capacity or product output of the freezer. Worn hoses or o-rings can cause a product to be wet and heavy, decreasing profitability.

Remember, rubber goods and plastic parts are intended to wear first to prevent wear on more expensive stainless steel parts.
Always lubricate parts according to your operator's manual, and only use approved sanitizer with milkstone remover. This will help reduce wear and extend the life of the parts, and prevent bacterial problems.

The following is a recommended maintenance schedule for a pressurized or gravity freezer:

Daily or Weekly (verify with your local Health Dept.)
* Disassemble, wash, rinse, sanitize, air-dry, reassemble all parts that come into contact with the mix or product.
* Clean the cylinder and drain tube with the appropriate brushes.
* When cleaning, inspect all seals, o-rings and hoses. Replace any seal, o-ring and hose that is worn, torn, or loose fitting.
* Wipe all exterior surfaces of the freezer to remove any splattered mix.
* Check overrun and temperature of the product.

Weekly
* Carefully inspect all parts for wear, including seals, o-rings, mix transfer hoses (pressurized models) and blades. Replace as required.
* Check beater shanks and drive coupling for wear.

Monthly
* Clean air cooled condenser fins.

Quarterly
* Check the refrigeration system and have any necessary adjustments made.
* Replace mix transfer hoses (pressurized models).

Annually (as needed)
* Replace the drive belts.