Janitorial & Sanitation

Every restaurant needs a core set of cleaning supplies: dish soap, a commercial degreaser, a food-safe sanitizer (bleach or quaternary ammonium), all-purpose cleaner, mop heads and buckets, scrubbers and pads, can liners, gloves, towels and tissue, and restroom toiletries like hand soap and toilet paper.

Here is a practical restaurant cleaning supply checklist broken into categories:

Kitchen & Food Prep: 1. Commercial dish soap and degreaser for manual warewashing 2. Sanitizer — either chlorine bleach (50–100 ppm) or quaternary ammonium (200 ppm) from EKKO’s sanitizers & bleach selection 3. Heavy-duty degreaser for hoods, fryers, and grills 4. Scrub pads and steel wool — green pads for general scrubbing, steel wool for baked-on grease 5. Sanitizer test strips (chlorine or quat, depending on your chemical)

Floors & General: 6. Wet mop heads — cotton or microfiber loop-end for kitchen tile 7. Broom and dustpan for dry debris 8. Floor cleaner/degreaser concentrate

Restrooms & Front-of-House: 9. Toilet bowl cleaner and toiletries (hand soap, paper towels, toilet paper) 10. Glass cleaner for windows and display cases 11. Towel and tissue rolls — multifold towels for restrooms, center-pull for kitchen

Safety & Waste: 12. Disposable gloves — nitrile for chemical handling, latex or poly for food prep 13. Can liners in 23-gallon (slim jim), 33-gallon, and 55-gallon sizes 14. Protective apparel — aprons for dishwashers, shoe covers for deliveries

Buying these items in bulk through a wholesale distributor like EKKO saves most restaurants 20–40% compared to retail. For more on compliance, see our Cleaning & Safety Compliance FAQ.

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Commercial kitchens should be deep cleaned at least once every 3 months (quarterly), but high-volume restaurants often deep clean monthly. The FDA Food Code and most local health departments require certain equipment — like hood ventilation systems — to be cleaned on specific schedules.

Here is a recommended deep cleaning frequency schedule:

• Daily: Clean and sanitize all food-contact surfaces, sweep and mop floors, empty grease traps, wipe down equipment exteriors with a degreaser
• Weekly: Degrease oven interiors, clean walk-in cooler shelves, scrub floor drains, deep-clean fryers, wash walls behind cooking stations with cleaning supplies
• Monthly: Clean hood filters and exhaust fans, descale dishwashers, sanitize ice machines, deep-scrub tile grout with heavy-duty scrubbers
• Quarterly: Full hood and duct cleaning (often by a licensed service), deep-clean behind and under all equipment, inspect fire suppression systems, replace worn mop heads

Keeping a written cleaning log is critical for health inspections. Inspectors want to see documented proof of regular cleaning — not just a clean kitchen on inspection day. NFPA 96 requires commercial cooking exhaust systems to be inspected for grease buildup at least quarterly, and high-volume operations (24-hour kitchens, charcoal-burning grills) may need monthly hood cleaning.

Read our full guide: Restaurant Kitchen Deep Cleaning Checklist

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The proper bleach sanitizing concentration for food-contact surfaces is 50 to 100 parts per million (ppm) of available chlorine, according to the FDA Food Code. This equals roughly 1 tablespoon (½ fluid ounce) of standard household bleach (8.25% sodium hypochlorite) per 1 gallon of cool water.

Getting the concentration right is essential. If it’s too weak (below 50 ppm), the solution won’t kill enough bacteria to meet food safety standards. If it’s too strong (above 200 ppm), it can leave a chemical residue on dishes and surfaces that contaminates food and creates an off-taste. At the proper 50–100 ppm range, bleach solution requires only 7 seconds of contact time to sanitize food-contact surfaces — making it one of the fastest and cheapest sanitizers available.

Always verify concentration with chlorine test strips before each shift. Bleach solutions lose potency quickly — within 2 hours at room temperature, a solution can drop below effective levels. Mix a fresh batch at the start of each shift, use cool water (below 120°F — heat degrades chlorine), and never add soap to bleach as it deactivates the sanitizing action. For higher-strength disinfection of non-food surfaces (restrooms, sick areas), the CDC recommends 500–5,000 ppm. EKKO carries commercial bleach and sanitizers in bulk containers ideal for high-volume operations. For more details on compliance requirements, see our Cleaning & Safety Compliance FAQ.

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The best commercial degreasers for kitchen hoods are alkaline-based, heavy-duty formulas with a pH of 12–14 that can dissolve polymerized grease buildup. Look for degreasers containing sodium hydroxide (caustic soda) or potassium hydroxide — these break down carbonized fats that milder cleaners can’t touch.

Kitchen hoods accumulate layers of vaporized cooking oil that oxidize and harden over time. Standard all-purpose cleaners won’t penetrate this type of buildup. For routine weekly maintenance of hood filters and surfaces, a concentrated commercial degreaser diluted per label instructions works well. Spray it on, let it dwell for 5–10 minutes, then scrub with a heavy-duty green pad or steel wool and rinse thoroughly.

For quarterly full hood and duct cleaning, most businesses hire a licensed service that uses industrial-strength caustic degreasers and pressure washers. Between professional cleanings, restaurant staff should remove and soak baffle filters in hot degreaser solution weekly, wipe down the hood interior and plenum, and check grease cups daily. Always wear chemical-resistant gloves and protective apparel — including eye protection — when working with alkaline degreasers. EKKO offers bulk-priced commercial degreasers and the protective equipment you need to use them safely. For PPE requirements, see our Gloves & Protective Equipment FAQ.

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A quaternary sanitizer (quat) is a chemical sanitizer based on quaternary ammonium compounds (such as benzalkonium chloride) used to sanitize food-contact and non-food-contact surfaces. Quats are the most popular alternative to bleach in commercial foodservice because they are odorless, non-corrosive, and remain effective longer in solution.

The FDA Food Code allows quat sanitizers at a concentration of 150–400 ppm (check the product label — most require 200 ppm for food-contact surfaces). At the proper concentration, quats need a 30-second contact time to sanitize food-contact surfaces. Unlike bleach, quat solutions stay effective for 8–12 hours without losing potency, making them ideal for busy kitchens that need all-day sanitizing buckets.

However, quats have some limitations. They do not work well in hard water above 500 ppm hardness — the minerals deactivate the quaternary compounds. They’re also less effective against certain viruses compared to chlorine bleach. Quats should never be mixed with anionic detergents (most dish soaps) because the opposite charges neutralize each other. Always use quat test strips (not chlorine strips) to verify concentration, and rinse surfaces after cleaning with soap before applying the quat. You can find commercial quat sanitizers and test strips from EKKO. For a deeper comparison of sanitizer types and compliance requirements, visit our Cleaning & Safety Compliance FAQ.

Read more: Choosing the Right Cleaning Products for Your Business

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Most restaurants use three standard sizes of can liners: 23-gallon slim-fit bags for bus stations and under-counter cans, 33-gallon bags for standard kitchen trash cans, and 55- to 60-gallon bags for large back-of-house receptacles and dumpster-area drums. The 33-gallon size is the most commonly used across restaurant kitchens.

Choosing the right thickness (gauge) matters as much as size. Can liners are measured in mils (1 mil = 0.001 inch) for low-density (LLDPE) bags or microns for high-density (HDPE) bags:

• Light-duty (0.5–0.7 mil / 6–8 micron): Paper waste, dry trash in offices and restrooms
• Medium-duty (0.8–1.2 mil / 10–12 micron): Mixed kitchen waste, food prep scraps
• Heavy-duty (1.5–2.0 mil / 16–20 micron): Wet food waste, broken glass, sharp bones, heavy refuse

For restaurant use, choose low-density (LLDPE) can liners for kitchen waste — they stretch instead of tearing when punctured by bones or utensils. High-density (HDPE) liners work well for lighter, drier waste in restrooms and offices because they’re thinner and more economical. Color coding is also common: black for general waste, clear for recycling, and red for biohazard (healthcare settings). EKKO carries can liners in all standard sizes and gauges at wholesale prices, with case quantities designed for monthly restaurant use.

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Choose your mop head based on the floor surface and the type of cleaning task. Cotton loop-end mops are best for rough-textured commercial kitchen tile, microfiber flat mops are ideal for smooth floors like vinyl, laminate, and polished concrete, and synthetic blend mops work well for general all-purpose mopping on multiple surfaces.

Here is a quick guide by floor type:

1. Commercial kitchen tile (quarry tile, ceramic): Use a cotton or cotton-blend loop-end mop in a 20–24 oz size. Loop-end mops don’t unravel, last longer, and cover rough grout lines well. Pair with a commercial floor degreaser.
2. Vinyl composite tile (VCT) / Linoleum: Use a microfiber flat mop or a lightweight synthetic mop. Microfiber traps more dirt particles and uses less water, which prevents warping on water-sensitive floors.
3. Polished concrete / Epoxy floors: Use a microfiber flat mop — it won’t scratch the finish. Avoid abrasive cotton mops on sealed or polished surfaces.
4. Restroom tile: Use a synthetic or cotton saddle mop (16–20 oz) for getting around toilets and under stalls. Dedicate separate mop heads for restrooms — never use the same mop in the kitchen.
5. Hardwood (dining room): Use a microfiber dust mop for dry cleaning and a lightly dampened microfiber flat mop for wet cleaning. Excess water damages wood.

Replace mop heads every 15–30 uses (about monthly for most restaurants). Dirty, worn mop heads spread bacteria instead of removing it. Always wring mops thoroughly and store them head-up so they dry completely between uses. EKKO offers mop heads in cotton, synthetic, and microfiber options at wholesale bulk pricing.

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Yes, green cleaning products are effective enough for most commercial cleaning tasks, including general surface cleaning, floor care, and glass cleaning. Many EPA Safer Choice–certified products perform comparably to conventional cleaners in independent lab testing for grease removal, soil lifting, and odor control.

However, there are important limitations. For food-contact surface sanitizing, you must use an EPA-registered sanitizer that meets the FDA Food Code requirements — most green or “natural” sanitizers based on thymol, citric acid, or hydrogen peroxide are registered as EPA disinfectants for non-food surfaces but may not meet the specific FDA standard for food-contact sanitizing (99.999% bacterial reduction in 30 seconds). Always check the product label for FDA food-contact approval before using any green sanitizer in a kitchen.

Where green products excel in commercial settings:

• All-purpose cleaning: Green detergents work well for daily surface wiping, mopping, and general cleaning
• Glass and mirror cleaning: Plant-based formulas perform on par with ammonia-based products
• Restroom cleaning: Green toilet bowl cleaners and hand soaps reduce chemical exposure for staff and guests
• Floor care: Bio-based floor cleaners are effective on most commercial flooring

For heavy-duty degreasing (kitchen hoods, fryer areas) and medical-grade disinfection, conventional chemicals still outperform green alternatives in most cases. A practical approach is to use green products for 70–80% of daily tasks and reserve conventional degreasers and sanitizers for the high-demand jobs. For more on sustainable options, see our Eco-Friendly Packaging FAQ.

Read more: Complete Guide to Commercial Cleaning Supplies

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A typical restaurant or small business with 50–100 daily visitors should order approximately 30–50 rolls of toilet paper, 15–25 cases of paper towels (multifold or roll), and 4–8 rolls of center-pull towels for the kitchen per month. Exact quantities depend on foot traffic, number of restrooms, and whether you use air dryers alongside paper towels.

Here are practical benchmarks for estimating monthly usage:

• Toilet paper: The average person uses about 8.6 sheets per restroom visit. A standard commercial roll has 500–1,000 sheets. For a restaurant with 100 covers per day and a 2-restroom setup, expect to go through roughly 40–60 rolls per month.
• Paper hand towels (multifold/C-fold): Each handwash uses 2–3 towels. A case of multifold towels typically contains 4,000 sheets (16 packs of 250). A 100-cover restaurant needs roughly 3–5 cases per month for restrooms alone.
• Kitchen center-pull towels: Kitchen staff use these constantly for wiping surfaces, drying hands, and cleaning up spills. Budget 6–12 rolls per month for a mid-size kitchen.

Ordering in bulk from EKKO’s towel and tissue selection means lower per-unit costs and fewer emergency restock runs. We recommend keeping a 2-week safety stock on hand at all times — running out of restroom supplies during service is a health code violation and a terrible guest experience. Don’t forget to stock hand soap and toiletries alongside your towel and tissue order.

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Janitorial staff need, at minimum: chemical-resistant gloves, eye protection (splash-proof goggles or safety glasses), closed-toe non-slip shoes, and in many cases a protective apron. OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard (29 CFR 1910.1200) requires employers to provide appropriate PPE based on the specific chemicals their employees handle.

Here is a breakdown of required and recommended PPE by task:

Every chemical you use must have a Safety Data Sheet (SDS) on file, and employees must be trained to read it. The SDS Section 8 specifies exactly what PPE is required for that chemical. EKKO stocks disposable and reusable gloves and protective apparel including aprons, shoe covers, and hair nets. For a full breakdown of glove types and when to use each, see our Gloves & Protective Equipment FAQ. For OSHA compliance details, visit our Cleaning & Safety Compliance FAQ.

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To pass a health inspection, you need an EPA-registered sanitizer (bleach or quat), sanitizer test strips, a three-compartment sink setup (with detergent, rinse water, and sanitizer), separate cleaning supplies for kitchen and restrooms, and an up-to-date cleaning schedule log. Health inspectors look for both the correct chemicals and proof that you use them properly.

Here is what inspectors specifically check:

1. Sanitizer at correct concentration: Your sanitizing solution must be within range — 50–100 ppm for chlorine bleach or 150–400 ppm for quat sanitizers. They will test it with strips.
2. Sanitizer test strips on-site: You must have the correct test strips for your sanitizer type (chlorine OR quat — they are different). No test strips = automatic violation.
3. Three-compartment sink properly set up: Compartment 1 has dish soap/detergent, Compartment 2 has clean rinse water, Compartment 3 has sanitizer at the correct concentration.
4. Clean wiping cloths stored in sanitizer: Wiping cloths used between tasks must be kept in a sanitizer bucket — not left on the counter.
5. Handwashing stations fully stocked: Every handwash sink needs soap, paper towels, and warm running water. Empty dispensers are a common citation.
6. No toxic chemicals stored above food: Cleaning supplies must be stored below and away from food items, in a dedicated janitorial area.
7. Safety Data Sheets (SDS) accessible: All cleaning chemical SDS sheets must be organized and available to all staff.
8. Clean floors, walls, and equipment: Grease buildup on hoods, dirty floors, and grimy equipment are visual red flags for inspectors. Keep scrubbers, mops, and degreasers well stocked.

EKKO supplies everything on this list at wholesale prices — from sanitizers and test strips to towels and gloves. Contact us to build a custom cleaning supply order for your operation.

Read more: Restaurant Kitchen Deep Cleaning Checklist

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