--- title: "Sub-Zero ice machine CLEAN light flashing: time to add cleaner" description: "What CLEAN flashing means on Sub-Zero ice machine CLEAN light flashing: time to add cleaners, what to check before booking, and when it is not a failure at all." url: "https://icemachinerepair.center/error-codes/sub-zero-clean-flashing/" --- # Sub-Zero ice machine CLEAN light flashing: time to add cleaner The CLEAN key starts a cleaning cycle that begins with a short harvest to clear the evaporator. ## What CLEAN flashing actually means. The CLEAN key starts a cleaning cycle that begins with a short harvest to clear the evaporator. About three minutes in, the green CLEAN light starts flashing; that is the machine asking for cleaner in the first pass and sanitizer in the second. When a pass finishes, the light goes out. Sub-Zero ice machine display · also shown as CLEAN light flashing green What to do when CLEAN flashing shows on the ice machine ### Kind of code Mode, not a failure Nothing is broken; the control is reporting a state someone chose or a routine it runs: a clean or sanitize reminder counting the hours since the last cycle, a delay of a few minutes after power returns before the pump and compressor start, a bin-full light while the bin control is satisfied, or a standby or off mode someone chose at the keypad. No part is needed; finishing the cycle the light asks for, waiting out the delay or the key sequence from the manual ends it. ### Usually leads to No repair Empty the ice from the bin before starting, as Sub-Zero's procedure asks. ### Shows up as Ice Machine Error Code or Flashing Light: What It Is Telling You An ice machine error code may show as a number on a small display, a pattern of blinking lights on the control board, a colored light on the front, or a machine that stops with one indicator flashing. ### Make Sub-Zero Sub-Zero ice machine calls in a home check the drain route and the water line with the same care as the ice itself. ### Source Sub-Zero UC-15I undercounter ice machine use and care guide Sub-Zero UC-15I and UC-15IP, indoor and outdoor, with the POWER, ICE, DELAY, CLEAN and REPLACE FILTER touch panel. The Designer DEU1550I guide could not be read, so it is not covered. ## Before you book, in this order. Each step comes from Sub-Zero's own guidance for CLEAN flashing on its ice machines. Follow it to the end: the last card says whether this is a visit. 01 Empty the ice from the bin before starting, as Sub-Zero's procedure asks. 02 When CLEAN flashes, lift the water shutters and pour in only the Sub-Zero ice machine cleaner, or the sanitizer on the second pass, in the amount the guide gives. 03 Let the machine finish its cleaning and rinse cycles; each pass takes about 30 minutes, and a power cut means starting the pass again. 04 If CLEAN keeps flashing long after cleaner has been added, book a visit. ### Cleared? The light or code is gone, and the machine fills, freezes and drops a full batch of cubes into the bin with no new part. If it returns within a week, or the clean light comes back straight after a cleaning cycle, mention that in the booking. ### What not to do A flashing CLEAN light is a step in a cycle you started, not a warning that the machine is dirty. Sub-Zero asks for cleaning every six months either way, and more often on poor water. ## What you may notice with it. The ice machine problems CLEAN flashing tends to arrive with. Answer these at the ice machine before anyone is booked. [All problems](https://icemachinerepair.center/problems/) Before you call ### [Ice Machine Error Code or Flashing Light: What It Is Telling You](https://icemachinerepair.center/problems/ice-machine-error-code/) [All 7 causes, cheapest first](https://icemachinerepair.center/problems/ice-machine-error-code/) It also comes with - [**Slime or Mold Growing in the Ice Machine Bin**](https://icemachinerepair.center/problems/ice-machine-slime-or-mold-in-bin/) - [**Ice From the Ice Machine Tastes Stale, Chemical or Musty**](https://icemachinerepair.center/problems/ice-machine-ice-bad-taste-or-smell/) Problem ### Ice Machine Error Code or Flashing Light: What It Is Telling You 7 causes, cheapest first No repair indicated ## Nothing to repair. Nothing is broken; the control is reporting a state someone chose or a routine it runs: a clean or sanitize reminder counting the hours since the last cycle, a delay of a few minutes after power returns before the pump and compressor start, a bin-full light while the bin control is satisfied, or a standby or off mode someone chose at the keypad. No part is needed; finishing the cycle the light asks for, waiting out the delay or the key sequence from the manual ends it. [How to read what your ice machine is telling you](https://icemachinerepair.center/problems/ice-machine-error-code/) ## Sub-Zero ice machines. Sub-Zero ice machine calls in a home check the drain route and the water line with the same care as the ice itself. [Sub-Zero ice machine repair](https://icemachinerepair.center/brands/sub-zero/) More Sub-Zero codes [ICE flashing](https://icemachinerepair.center/error-codes/sub-zero-ice-flashing/) [REPLACE FILTER](https://icemachinerepair.center/error-codes/sub-zero-replace-filter/) Mode, not a failure on other makes [Atosa FUL](https://icemachinerepair.center/error-codes/atosa-ful/) [Follett TIME DELAY](https://icemachinerepair.center/error-codes/follett-time-delay/) [Ice-O-Matic Slow blue flash](https://icemachinerepair.center/error-codes/ice-o-matic-slow-blue-flash/) [KitchenAid Clean light blinking](https://icemachinerepair.center/error-codes/kitchenaid-clean-light-blinking/) [Manitowoc E28](https://icemachinerepair.center/error-codes/manitowoc-e28/) [Marvel DOOR flashing](https://icemachinerepair.center/error-codes/marvel-door-flashing/) [Maxx Ice Bin Full](https://icemachinerepair.center/error-codes/maxx-ice-bin-full/) [Monogram Time to Clean](https://icemachinerepair.center/error-codes/monogram-time-to-clean/) [All 35 codes of this kind](https://icemachinerepair.center/error-codes/#family-mode) Sub-Zero builds this ### Undercounter ice machine A self-contained ice machine that makes and stores its own ice under a bar, a service counter or a kitchen island, from commercial units to clear-ice models in large homes. ## In Sub-Zero's own words > “CLEAN” will illuminate green during the cleaning cycle and will flash to signal time to add cleaner and sanitizer. [Sub-Zero UC-15I undercounter ice machine use and care guide](https://www.subzero-wolf.com/-/media/files/united-states/product-downloads/sub-zero-wolf/use-and-care/sub-zero/uc-15i-ucg.ashx) [Sub-Zero UC-15I undercounter ice machine use and care guide](https://www.subzero-wolf.com/-/media/files/united-states/product-downloads/sub-zero-wolf/use-and-care/sub-zero/uc-15i-ucg.ashx) [Sub-Zero UC-15I undercounter ice machine use and care guide](https://www.subzero-wolf.com/-/media/files/united-states/product-downloads/sub-zero-wolf/use-and-care/sub-zero/uc-15i-ucg.ashx) Every code on this site is taken from the manufacturer's documentation, never from a forum or a parts listing. Sub-Zero UC-15I and UC-15IP, indoor and outdoor, with the POWER, ICE, DELAY, CLEAN and REPLACE FILTER touch panel. The Designer DEU1550I guide could not be read, so it is not covered. ## Sub-Zero CLEAN flashing ice machine repair, where we come out. The same visit in every metro below: the code, the model number, and a diagnosis before any part is ordered. 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Empty the ice from the bin before starting, as Sub-Zero's procedure asks. ### How much cleaner goes into a Sub-Zero ice machine when CLEAN flashes? The UC-15I guide gives 4 ounces of undiluted cleaner for the cleaning pass and 1 tablespoon of undiluted sanitizer for the sanitizing pass, poured into the spray area. ### Can I use vinegar when my Sub-Zero asks for cleaner? No. Sub-Zero warns against vinegar and alcohol-based cleaners inside the unit and asks for its own cleaner and sanitizer. ### Why did my Sub-Zero cleaning cycle start over? If power is lost during a pass, the pass must be repeated. Start it again with the CLEAN key once power is back. --- **[Read on the site: Sub-Zero ice machine CLEAN light flashing: time to add cleaner](https://icemachinerepair.center/error-codes/sub-zero-clean-flashing/)** **[Book a visit with IceMachineRepair.center](https://icemachinerepair.center/schedule/)**