Cleaning Toothpaste from Mixing Tank

Q. We work with several cosmetic products.  One is particularly troublesome… how do we get toothpaste from our mixing tank?

A. Removing toothpaste from a mixing tank, assuming stainless steel, requires heat.  Use of an effective, free-rinsing detergent such as Solujet® Low-Foaming Phosphate-Free Liquid, or Keylajet® Low-foaming Chelating High Alkaline Liquid if a Clean-In-Place (CIP) cycle is intended.  Or Detonox® Ultimate Precision Cleaner, a potent emulsifier, if immersion (soak) cleaning is used. If latter is used, we recommend moderate agitation be applied by turning on mixing blades.

Generally speaking, manually cleaning techniques, especially those involving the addition of mechanical force, are more effective than sprayer/CIP techniques.  Note that while heat typically expedites and improves cleaning, there are noted exceptions.  This is especially true in the cosmetic industries.  Compounds such as zinc oxide and titanium dioxide require ambient temperatures to clean.  And of course some toothpastes contain some TiO2 and/or ZnO.  We are happy to discuss in more detail.

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