Once the storage empties
Before the new crop goes in.
ServicesProduce storage
Produce storage and packing sheds, washed down.
We wash potato and vegetable storage, apple and fruit cold storage, bulk bins and packing lines once the storage empties, before the new crop goes in. Our rig brings hot and cold water pressure washers and hooks up to your water.
Storage, bins and lines
Floors, walls, ducts and conveyors.
Locked out first
Conveyors, graders and fans.
Hot or cold water
Our washers, your hydrant.
Windsor to Kingston
Lake Erie to Georgian Bay.
01 · When to book
Once the storage empties.
Pick the window that suits your crop, or call when the storage is empty. We’ll get back to you to agree a day and a price.
Any time
Between packing runs
Conveyors, graders and packing-line exteriorsYour quote gives the time
With the line down and locked out. Ontario’s agriculture ministry advises cleaning equipment on a set schedule and keeping the records; we can work to yours.
Winter
Dec–Feb
Little or no washing while the storage is full
The crop is in and packing lines are running. Bins washed outside need days above freezing and time to dry.
Spring
Mar–May
Rooms and bins as the storage emptiesYour quote gives the time
Rooms empty one by one as the crop ships. A room washed once it’s empty has the summer to dry.
Summer
Jun–Aug
Storage, ducts and bins before harvestYour quote gives the time
Ontario Potato Board storage advice starts with a clean storage before the potatoes go in (2020). Leave time for floors, walls and bins to dry.
Fall
Sep–Nov
Rooms and bins still empty, just before they fillYour quote gives the time
Harvest fills the storage through the fall. A room or bin still empty can be washed and dried before it’s loaded. Late in the fall, outside work needs a day above freezing.
02 · What we wash
Storage, bins and packing lines, washed down.
Tell us what you want done. We wash from the top down, so soil and dust don’t land on clean surfaces.
- Potato and vegetable storage buildings: floors, walls, ceilings and doors
- Apple and fruit cold storage rooms, once they’re empty and opened up
- Bulk bins and pallet boxes, wood or plastic
- Ventilation ducts and plenums: outside surfaces, and inside as far as we can reach from the openings
- Fans and air-system housings, once they’re shut off and locked out
- Conveyors, bin pilers and graders, locked out first
- Packing-line exteriors: hoppers, rollers, tables and frames, with water kept off motors and controls
- Packing shed floors, walls and loading areas
- Storage outsides and doors, where we’ve agreed the access with you first
You do
Before we arrive
- Empty the storage: crop, culls and spoiled produce out, and loose soil swept up, or tell us you want us to do the dry clean-out.
- Tell us about any sprout inhibitor or other product used in the storage this season, and anything on your food-safety program’s cleaning schedule.
- Show us the lockout points for conveyors, pilers, graders, fans and refrigeration, and agree with us who locks out what.
- Open up cold storage and controlled-atmosphere rooms, and get the air back to normal before anyone goes in.
- Show us a hydrant or tap, and where the wash water should go.
- Show us anything that has to stay dry: control panels, sensors and motors.
- Leave time for the storage and bins to dry before the new crop goes in.
We do
On wash day
- Bring the rig: hot and cold water pressure washers and hoses. We hook up to your water.
- Dry clean first, by us or by you as agreed: scrape and sweep out soil and crop debris before any water goes on.
- Wash from the top down: ceilings, walls and ducts, then floors, so dirt doesn’t land on clean surfaces.
- Set the pressure for the surface: lower on insulation, panel seams and door seals.
- Keep water off electrical panels, controls, sensors and motors.
- Wash bins where you choose, and leave them to drain and dry.
- If you want a disinfectant after the wash, it's applied by you or your licensed applicator, used to its label.
- Open things up to dry, and leave refrigeration and controlled-atmosphere equipment to your contractor.
03 · References
Talk to a grower near you.
Most farmers hear about us from a neighbour. Tell us your county and your storage, and we’ll ask a produce customer nearby if they’re happy to take your call. No sales pitch from us.
- Tell us your county and your storage.
- We ask a produce customer nearby if they’re happy to talk.
- You get their name and number.
04 · Pricing
A price before we book.
Every storage is different, so we price yours after a few questions or photos. These are the things that change the price:
- Size of the storage and number of rooms
- Number of bins and pallet boxes
- Ducts and plenums, and how much of them we can reach
- Conveyors, pilers, graders and packing-line equipment
- Build-up: soil, crop residue or dust
- Whether the dry clean-out is already done
- Water supply at the site
05 · Questions
Straight answers.
Something else on your mind? Call or text — you’ll talk to the crew, not a call centre.
What does produce storage cleaning cover?
Your storage and packing shed, once the crop is out: floors, walls, ceilings and doors, ventilation ducts and plenums as far as we can reach, bulk bins and pallet boxes, and the outside of conveyors, pilers, graders and packing lines. We wash; we don’t service refrigeration or controlled-atmosphere equipment.
When should a potato or vegetable storage be washed?
Once it’s empty and before the new crop goes in, with time to dry in between. The Ontario Potato Board’s storage advice starts with a clean storage before the potatoes go in. Short notice? Call or text: if we have room, we’ll come.
Can you wash apple cold storage and controlled-atmosphere rooms?
Yes, once the room is empty and opened up. A controlled-atmosphere room has to be vented and the air checked before anyone goes in; that’s yours to do, and we wait until it’s done.
Do you wash bulk bins and pallet boxes?
Yes, wood or plastic, in the yard or wherever you choose. Soil and crop debris come off with hot or cold water. Wooden bins take longer to dry, so leave time before they’re filled.
Can you wash the ventilation ducts and plenums?
The outside surfaces, and inside as far as we can reach from the openings and access doors. If a job would need anyone inside a duct or plenum, we plan it with you first or we don’t go in.
Do you wash conveyors, graders and packing lines?
Yes, the outside surfaces, once the line is shut off and locked out. Water stays off motors, control panels and sensors. Show us anything you want kept dry.
Do you disinfect the storage?
No: disinfecting stays with you or your licensed applicator, used to its label. It goes on clean surfaces, after the soil and debris are washed off.
I’m on a food-safety program. Can you work to my cleaning schedule?
Yes. Growers on a program such as CanadaGAP note how and when each storage was cleaned before it’s used in a season. Tell us what your schedule calls for, and we’ll wash to it and go over the work with you before we pack up.
Do I need to supply the water?
Yes. Our rig carries hot and cold water pressure washers and hoses, not water. We hook up to your hydrant or tap. Tell us where the wash water should go.
How do you price it?
We quote by the job, once we know the storage, the bins and the equipment. Size, build-up and how much is already cleaned out all change it.
06 · More services
While the rig is in your yard.
Elevators · Grain dryers
Grain elevators
Grain elevators and dryers washed down once the grain is out, clearing the dust and fines of harvest.
Tractors · Skid steers · Combines
Farm equipment
Hot or cold water and degreaser where needed — mud, grease and manure off, ready for the shed, the shop or the sale.
Vegetable and flower greenhouses
Greenhouses
Vegetable and flower greenhouses washed down between crops, structure to floor.
- Book a mobile wash
Anything else?
If it’s on the farm and needs washing, ask.
We’ll tell you straight if it’s a job for us.
Ready when you are