Article 3. Numbers and Capacities
12VAC5-421-1450. Cooling, heating, and holding capacities.
Article 3
Numbers and Capacities
Equipment for cooling and heating food, and holding cold and hot food, shall be sufficient in number and capacity to provide food temperatures as specified under Part III (12VAC5-421-260 et seq.) of this chapter.Pf
Statutory Authority
§§ 35.1-11 and 35.1-14 of the Code of Virginia.
Historical Notes
Derived from Virginia Register Volume 18, Issue 10, eff. March 1, 2002; amended, Virginia Register Volume 32, Issue 22, eff. July 12, 2016.
12VAC5-421-1460. Manual warewashing, sink compartment requirements.
A. Except as specified in subsection C of this section, a sink with at least three compartments shall be provided for manually washing, rinsing, and sanitizing equipment and utensils.Pf
B. Sink compartments shall be large enough to accommodate immersion of the largest equipment and utensils. If equipment or utensils are too large for the warewashing sink, a warewashing machine or alternative equipment as specified in subsection C of this section shall be used.Pf
C. Alternative manual warewashing equipment may be used when there are special cleaning needs or constraints and its use is approved. Alternative manual warewashing equipment may include:
1. High-pressure detergent sprayers;
2. Low-pressure or line-pressure spray detergent foamers;
3. Other task-specific cleaning equipment;
4. Brushes or other implements;
5. Two-compartment sinks as specified under subsections D and E of this section; or
6. Receptacles that substitute for the compartments of a multicompartment sink.
D. Before a two-compartment sink is used:
1. The permit holder shall have its use approved; and
2. The permit holder shall limit the number of kitchenware items cleaned and sanitized in the two-compartment sink and shall limit warewashing to batch operations for cleaning kitchenware such as between cutting one type of raw meat and another or cleanup at the end of a shift, and shall:
a. (i) Make up the cleaning and sanitizing solutions immediately before use and drain them immediately after use, and (ii) use a detergent-sanitizer to sanitize and apply the detergent-sanitizer in accordance with the manufacturer's label instructions and as specified under 12VAC5-421-1710; or
b. A hot water sanitization immersion step shall be used as specified under subdivision 3 of 12VAC5-421-1860.
E. A two-compartment sink shall not be used for warewashing operations where cleaning and sanitizing solutions are used for a continuous or intermittent flow of kitchenware or tableware in an ongoing warewashing process.
Statutory Authority
§§ 35.1-11 and 35.1-14 of the Code of Virginia.
Historical Notes
Derived from Virginia Register Volume 18, Issue 10, eff. March 1, 2002; amended, Virginia Register Volume 24, Issue 2, eff. October 16, 2007; Volume 32, Issue 22, eff. July 12, 2016.
12VAC5-421-1470. Drainboards.
Drainboards, utensil racks, or tables large enough to accommodate all soiled and cleaned items that may accumulate during hours of operation shall be provided for necessary utensil holding before cleaning and after sanitizing.
Statutory Authority
§§ 35.1-11 and 35.1-14 of the Code of Virginia.
Historical Notes
Derived from Virginia Register Volume 18, Issue 10, eff. March 1, 2002.
12VAC5-421-1480. Ventilation hood systems, adequacy.
Ventilation hood systems and devices shall be sufficient in number and capacity to prevent grease or condensation from collecting on walls and ceilings.
Statutory Authority
§§ 35.1-11 and 35.1-14 of the Code of Virginia.
Historical Notes
Derived from Virginia Register Volume 18, Issue 10, eff. March 1, 2002.
12VAC5-421-1490. Clothes washers and dryers.
A. Except as specified in subsection B of this section, if work clothes or linens are laundered on the premises, a mechanical clothes washer and dryer shall be provided and used.
B. If on-premises laundering is limited to wiping cloths intended to be used moist, or wiping cloths are air-dried as specified under 12VAC5-421-1970, a mechanical clothes washer and dryer need not be provided.
Statutory Authority
§§ 35.1-11 and 35.1-14 of the Code of Virginia.
Historical Notes
Derived from Virginia Register Volume 18, Issue 10, eff. March 1, 2002.
12VAC5-421-1500. Utensils, consumer self-service.
A food dispensing utensil shall be available for each container displayed at a consumer self-service unit such as a buffet or salad bar.Pf
Statutory Authority
§§ 35.1-11 and 35.1-14 of the Code of Virginia.
Historical Notes
Derived from Virginia Register Volume 18, Issue 10, eff. March 1, 2002; amended, Virginia Register Volume 32, Issue 22, eff. July 12, 2016.
12VAC5-421-1510. Food temperature measuring devices.
A. Food temperature measuring devices shall be provided and readily accessible for use in ensuring attainment and maintenance of food temperatures as specified under Part III (12VAC5-421-260 et seq.) of this chapter.Pf
B. A temperature measuring device with a suitable small-diameter probe that is designed to measure the temperature of thin masses shall be provided and readily accessible to accurately measure the temperature in thin foods such as meat patties and fish fillets.Pf
Statutory Authority
§§ 35.1-11 and 35.1-14 of the Code of Virginia.
Historical Notes
Derived from Virginia Register Volume 18, Issue 10, eff. March 1, 2002; amended, Virginia Register Volume 24, Issue 2, eff. October 16, 2007; Volume 32, Issue 22, eff. July 12, 2016.
12VAC5-421-1520. Temperature measuring devices, manual and mechanical warewashing.
A. In manual warewashing operations, a temperature measuring device shall be provided and readily accessible for frequently measuring the washing and sanitizing temperatures.Pf
B. In hot water mechanical warewashing operations, an irreversible registering temperature indicator shall be provided and readily accessible for measuring the utensil surface temperature. Pf
Statutory Authority
§§ 35.1-11 and 35.1-14 of the Code of Virginia.
Historical Notes
Derived from Virginia Register Volume 18, Issue 10, eff. March 1, 2002; amended, Virginia Register Volume 24, Issue 2, eff. October 16, 2007; Volume 32, Issue 22, eff. July 12, 2016; Volume 37, Issue 18, eff. June 10, 2021.
12VAC5-421-1530. Sanitizing solutions, testing devices.
A test kit or other device that accurately measures the concentration in mg/L (ppm) of sanitizing solutions shall be provided and readily accessible for use.Pf
Statutory Authority
§§ 35.1-11 and 35.1-14 of the Code of Virginia.
Historical Notes
Derived from Virginia Register Volume 18, Issue 10, eff. March 1, 2002; amended, Virginia Register Volume 24, Issue 2, eff. October 16, 2007; Volume 32, Issue 22, eff. July 12, 2016.
12VAC5-421-1535. Cleaning agents and sanitizers, availability.
A. Cleaning agents that are used to clean equipment and utensils as specified under Article 6 (12VAC5-421-1770 et seq.) of this part shall be provided and available for use during all hours of operation.
B. Except for chemical sanitizers that are generated on site at the time of use, chemical sanitizers that are used to sanitize equipment and utensils as specified under Article 7 shall be provided and available for use during all hours of operation.
Statutory Authority
§§ 35.1-11 and 35.1-14 of the Code of Virginia.
Historical Notes
Derived from Virginia Register Volume 32, Issue 22, eff. July 12, 2016; amended, Virginia Register Volume 37, Issue 18, eff. June 10, 2021.