When you have a water delivery service bring water into your home, you will be responsible for cleaning and maintaining your water cooler. Fortunately, this is easy to do and you do not need special equipment. All you need to do is follow these steps.

Preparing Your Sanitizing Solution

You will want to clean your water cooler every six months or after every water change, whichever comes first. Begin by filling a bucket with a gallon of water. Then, add one tablespoon of bleach to the bucket.

Preparing the Water Cooler

Make sure the water cooler is always unplugged before cleaning it. If your water cooler also provides hot water, you will need to stop the opening of the hot water tank with a cork or plug. The hot water tank must not allow for the sanitizer to get inside because the heat will already kill all bacteria. A sanitizer is not necessary. Remove the bottle from the cooler. Then, drain all of the cold water using the faucet into a bucket. Throw the water away.

Removing the Water guard

Look for the water guard. This is a part of the water cooler that punctures the bottle cap so the water can be released. Not all water coolers have this. Those that do need to have the water guard removed before the water cooler can be cleaned. They can usually be removed with a twisting motion.

Wiping Down the Cooler and Rinsing

Wipe down the inner surface of the water cooler with a sponge and the bleach solution. Let the bleach sit on the inside of the water cooler for at least five minutes. Then, drain the bleach solution. The walls on the interior of the water cooler will likely have build-up. Scrub away the build-up. Then, remove any removable parts and place them in containers that are filled with the bleach solution or in a container with dish detergent and water. Fill the interior reservoir with water to rinse it out. 

Use the sponge and bleach solution to wipe down the water bottle to clean it as well, focusing on both the inside and outside. Rinse and empty out the cooler and water bottle until the water does not have a bleach taste.

Replace the water guard. Then, you are ready to place the water bottle back on top of the water cooler. Take out the drip tray and screen. Place these in bleach solution to sanitize them. Then, rinse them with clean water and place them back inside the water cooler. When plugging the water cooler back in, allow 30 minutes for the water to return to the appropriate temperature.