In Pennsylvania, the answer is you. If you hold the liquor license, clean draft lines are your job. The rules also limit who you can hand that job to.
The License Holder Is Responsible
Section 5.54 says the licensee has sole responsibility for keeping draft equipment clean and sanitary. 40 Pa. Code § 5.51 says the licensee cleans the system at its own expense. If an officer finds a dirty faucet, the citation goes to your license. That's true even if someone else was supposed to clean it.
Who Can Do the Cleaning
Section 5.51 says one licensee may not clean a draft system for another licensee. Section 5.52 says the same thing from the other side: an outside cleaner has to be someone other than another licensee.
Beer distributors and breweries hold PLCB licenses. That leaves two options:
- Your own staff. You buy the pump, the chemicals, and the parts. Someone on your team does the work every 14 days and writes it down.
- An outside cleaning service that does not hold a liquor license. They bring the equipment and leave a certificate.
Some owners have had a rep offer to "take care of the lines." If that happens, check with the PLCB or your attorney before you say yes. Your license is the one on the line.
Doing It In-House
Plenty of bars clean their own lines. It can work if you set it up right. You need:
- A recirculating pump, or at least a pressurized cleaning pot
- Caustic line cleaner and acid cleaner, mixed to the maker's strength
- Faucet brushes, a coupler cleaning setup, and spare seals
- A trained person who shows up every 14 days, including holiday weeks
- A written record of each cleaning
The weak spot is usually the schedule. The person who knows how to do it quits, or a busy week pushes it back. Two missed dates and you are a month out.
Hiring a Service
A service takes the equipment, the training, and the calendar off your plate. The responsibility stays with you, so check their work. Ask how they clean, how long the cleaner stays in the lines, and whether they take faucets apart. Our post on how to choose a line cleaning service lists the questions.
Keep the Paper Either Way
An outside cleaner has to give you a certificate with the date, the person's name, and the method. If your staff does it, keep your own log with the same details. Store it at the bar. More on that in draft line cleaning records.
We hold no liquor license, we clean every 14 days, and every visit ends with a certificate for your file. Call (267) 282-1002.
This is a plain-language summary of Pennsylvania regulations, not legal advice. For questions about your license, contact the PLCB or an attorney.