Sanitizer bucket procedure and test strip log (free template)

The red bucket at the end of the line looks like the simplest thing in the kitchen. It's also one of the most common things an inspector tests. A strip dipped at 2 p.m. often shows water that was mixed at 7 a.m., has had a dozen dirty cloths dunked in it, and now reads as nothing at all. Or the opposite: someone "made it stronger to be safe," and the strip goes off the chart.

This post gives you a one-page procedure for mixing, using and changing sanitizer buckets, a map of where they live, a test strip log, and the Food Code rules behind them.

General information. Your state or local health department enforces its own edition of the Food Code, and *your sanitizer's label is the final word on strength, water temperature and contact time. Section numbers below are from the FDA Food Code 2026.*

The rules, in one table

Rule	What the Food Code says	Section
Dry cloths	Cloths for wiping food spills from tableware and carry-out containers during service are "Maintained dry" and "Used for no other purpose."	§3-304.14(A)
Wet cloths	Cloths for wiping counters and other equipment are "Held between uses in a chemical SANITIZER solution" at the concentration in §4-501.114, and "Laundered daily."	§3-304.14(B)
Raw animal food	Cloths used on surfaces in contact with raw animal foods "shall be kept separate from cloths used for other purposes."	§3-304.14(C)
Clean solution	The sanitizer solution that wet cloths are held in "shall be free of FOOD debris and visible soil."	§3-304.14(D)
Bucket placement	Containers of that solution "shall be stored off the floor and used in a manner that prevents contamination" of food, equipment, utensils, linens and single-use items.	§3-304.14(E)
Wipes	Single-use sanitizer wipes are used by their EPA-approved label instructions.	§3-304.14(F)
The label	A chemical sanitizer "shall be used in accordance with the EPA registered label use instructions".	§4-501.114
Test kit	"A test kit or other device that accurately measures the concentration in MG/L of SANITIZING solutions shall be provided."	§4-302.14(A)
Using the kit	The concentration "shall be accurately determined by using a test kit or other device", used by the kit's own label instructions.	§4-501.116
Labels	Working containers of cleaners and sanitizers taken from bulk supplies are "clearly and individually identified with the common name of the material."	§7-102.11
Storage	Chemicals are stored apart from food, equipment and single-use items, by spacing or partitioning, and not above them.	§7-201.11
The person in charge	Makes sure employees sanitize properly "through routine monitoring of solution temperature and exposure time" for hot water, and "chemical concentration, PH, temperature, and exposure time" for chemical sanitizing.	§2-103.11(L)

Mg/L is the same as ppm (parts per million), which is what most test strips print.

The numbers for each kind of sanitizer

Sanitizer	Concentration	Water temperature	Section
Chlorine (bleach)	Set by the label. The Food Code ties the minimum temperature to the strength and pH: 25–49 mg/L needs 120°F; 50–99 mg/L needs 75°F at pH 8 or less, 100°F at pH 10 or less; 100 mg/L needs 55°F.	See left	§4-501.114(A)
Quaternary ammonium ("quat")	As on the label	At least 75°F	§4-501.114(C)
Iodine	12.5 to 25 mg/L, pH 5.0 or less (or the label's level)	At least 68°F	§4-501.114(B)
Anything else	As on the label	At least 75°F unless the label says otherwise	§4-501.114(E)

Use a sanitizer whose label says it's for food-contact surfaces, and mix it to that label; the Food Code requires sanitizers on food-contact surfaces to meet the EPA's rules for that use (§7-204.11). If your chemical supplier sets up a dispenser that mixes for you, test what comes out of it anyway.

The procedure

Print it, laminate it and hang it where buckets are filled.

[Café / restaurant name] — Sanitizer bucket procedure

Our sanitizer: [product name] · Mix: [amount] per [gallon / bucket], or from the [dispenser at the mop sink] · Pass range: [e.g. 200–400 ppm] · Water: [temperature from the label] · Test strips: [kind], kept [where]

1. Mix

Fill a clean bucket labeled Sanitizer with water at [temperature].
Add the sanitizer by the measure or the dispenser, never "a splash."
Never mix sanitizer with soap, degreaser or another chemical.

2. Test

Dip a strip as the strip's own instructions say (how long, how deep), and compare it with the chart straight away.
In range: write it on the log and put the bucket out.
Below range: add sanitizer and test again. Above range: add water and test again.

3. Use

Put the bucket off the floor, below and away from food, at [the stations on the map].
Wet cloths live in the bucket between uses, not on the counter or over a shoulder.
Cloths for raw meat, fish and poultry use their own bucket, marked [color].
Dry cloths for wiping plates and to-go containers stay dry and do nothing else.

4. Change

Change the solution when it tests below range, looks cloudy, or has food in it, and at least every [house rule, e.g. 4 hours] whatever it reads.
Test every bucket at every check on the log.

5. Close

Empty buckets into the mop sink. Wash, rinse and air-dry the buckets.
Wet cloths go into the laundry bin every day; never reused tomorrow from today's bucket.

The "every [4 hours]" line is a house rule, not a Food Code number: the code's test is whether the solution is in range and clean. A fixed time just makes sure someone looks.

The bucket map

Write down every bucket so nobody wonders whether the bar has one.

Station	Bucket	Cloth type	Bucket color	Who sets it up	Who checks it
Line, hot side	1	Wet, general	[red]	Opener, cook	Lead cook
Prep, raw proteins	1	Wet, raw animal food only	[another color]	Prep cook	Lead cook
Bar / coffee bar	1	Wet, general	[red]	Opening barista	Shift lead
Front-of-house station	1	Wet, tables and counters	[red]	Opening server	Shift lead
Expo / pass	Dry cloths	Dry, plate rims only	—	Expo	Shift lead

The test strip log

One sheet a day, kept on a clipboard by the test strips.

[Café / restaurant name] — Sanitizer test log

Date: [date] · Sanitizer: [product] · Pass range: [ppm] · Water: [°F]

Time	Station	In range?	Changed?
[7:00]	Line	Y / N	Y / N
[7:00]	Bar	Y / N	Y / N
[7:00]	FOH station	Y / N	Y / N
[11:00]	Line	Y / N	Y / N
[11:00]	Bar	Y / N	Y / N
…

Manager review: ………………………… Time: ……………

Write the actual reading, not a tick. A log that says 200 every time for a month tells an inspector nobody is really testing.

When a reading is off

What you see	Do this
Below range	Remake the bucket (don't just top it up if it's dirty), test again, log both readings. Ask what was wiped since the last good reading and re-wipe food-contact surfaces with fresh solution.
Above range	Add water to bring it back into range, test again. Stronger isn't safer: above the label's range is outside how the product is meant to be used (§4-501.114).
Strip shows nothing at all	Check the strip is the right kind for your sanitizer and isn't expired or damp, then remake and test.
Water too cold for the label	Remake with water at the label's temperature.
Cloudy, greasy or food in it	Change it, whatever the strip reads.
No test strips	Stop and get some: the Food Code requires a test kit on site.

Training it

Five minutes at the line, once for every new hire, and again whenever you change products: mix a bucket, dip a strip, read it against the chart, log it. Then ask them to explain the difference between the dry cloth at expo and the wet cloth in the bucket. Our training sign-off sheet has a line for it, and the dish machine and three-compartment sink log covers the sanitizer in the dish pit.

Your sanitizer bucket checklist

[ ] A food-contact sanitizer, its label and SDS on file
[ ] The right test strips for that sanitizer, on site and in date
[ ] Every bucket labeled Sanitizer and shown on the bucket map
[ ] Buckets off the floor and away from food
[ ] A separate bucket for raw animal food cloths
[ ] Dry cloths dry, for plates and containers only
[ ] Every bucket tested and logged at every check, with the reading
[ ] Wet cloths laundered daily

Where Mays fits

The log as a form. Build a Sanitizer check form under Tasks → Types with a Single choice field for the station, a Number field for the ppm reading, a Temperature field for the water, a Yes / No for Changed, and a Text field for the action. Leave the Number field's Min and Max empty and put the pass range in its label (Reading, ppm (200–400)), so the reading is recorded as it was. Put the form on your line check or opening checklist. See Building custom forms.
An alert when a bucket fails. Under Insights → Alerts & Reports, a Task Form Field Threshold alert fires every time someone submits the form with the reading At or below your minimum (add a second alert for At or above your maximum). See Alerts and scheduled reports.
The record for the inspector. Tasks → Data lists every submission with a column per field, and Export CSV downloads them. See Task Data.
A quick version. On a checklist template, a task with the Number answer type (Bar sanitizer, ppm (200–400)) works too; Mays doesn't check a Number answer against its range, so the range belongs in the task's name. See Task answer types.

What Mays doesn't do: photos inside a custom form aren't checked by AI photo verification, so a photo of the strip is only a picture; the number staff type is the record. And there's no timer that prompts the next bucket check, so put the check times on your checklists.

A bucket that actually sanitizes

Mix it to the label, test it with the right strip, write the real number, keep wet cloths in it and change it before it turns into soup. That's most of what an inspector is looking for, and all of what keeps the counters safe.

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