The sanitation crew comes in after the last shift. Conveyors, kettles and drains are coated in grease and product, and the plant won't allow a propane burner on the floor. A cold water pressure washer just moves the grease around. The Therma-Kleen Ultra 600E is the electric answer: a 21 kW heater and a 600 PSI pump push 1.5 gallons a minute of near-boiling water and steam through a 25-foot hose.
There's no burner, so there are no exhaust fumes, and Therma-Kleen says that makes its electric models USDA allowable. Think of it as an electric hot water pressure washer built for indoor sanitation: hook up a garden hose, plug into 3-phase power, and it's ready to clean in about two to three minutes.
The video is one of the application clips Therma-Kleen shows on its Ultra 600E page.
Therma-Kleen builds two kinds of steam cleaners, and picking the wrong one is the most common mistake we see.
High-pressure wet steam (the Ultra series, like this Ultra 600E) pumps water through a heater at hundreds of PSI. It blasts grease, product residue and grime off equipment, floors and drains, and it flushes the soil away with the water. Expect water on the floor, so you want a drain or a washdown area. See all our high-pressure steam cleaners.
Dry vapor (Therma-Steem) heats water in a sealed boiler until it leaves as vapor with very little liquid. It sanitizes indoors without flooding the area: kitchens, restrooms, upholstery and machinery with electrical parts nearby. Models like the Therma-Steem #10 plug into a regular outlet, and the Industrial XL series runs on 3-phase power like this machine.
Electric or propane Ultra? The propane Ultra 250, Ultra 600 and Ultra 1300 run hotter and need nothing more than a household outlet for the pump, but the burner makes exhaust, so they belong outdoors or in strong ventilation. The electric Ultras make no fumes and work indoors, in food plants and below deck, as long as you have 3-phase power. Not sure? Call (855) 601-5678 and tell us what you're cleaning.
Both electric Ultras share the same 21 kW heater, body and 3-phase power. The difference is the pump.
|
Ultra 600E |
Ultra 250E |
| Pressure |
600 PSI (41 bar) |
250 PSI (17 bar) |
| Water flow |
1.5 GPM |
1.5 GPM standard; 0.5 or 1.0 GPM pump on request |
| Max temperature (brochure) |
250°F (121°C) |
255°F (124°C) |
| Heater |
21 kW |
21 kW |
| Pump motor |
1/2 hp |
1/3 hp, 3-phase (rotation checked at install) |
| Power |
208, 220/240 or 480 V 3-phase |
208, 220/240 or 480 V 3-phase |
| Price (blue body) |
$8,595 |
$7,995 |
The 600E costs $600 more, and for that you get more than twice the pressure. Therma-Kleen says the result is faster cleaning action, and that's what you notice on caked grease, dried product and floors.
Choose the Ultra 250E when the work is mostly sanitizing: rinsing mixers, molds and racks, or cleaning surfaces where 600 PSI could drive water past seals or chip paint. For degreasing equipment, conveyors, drains and floors, the 600E finishes the job sooner.
Therma-Kleen's brochure lists 250°F (121°C) at the nozzle, and its website lists 255 to 275°F. The operator manual explains the gap: the heater raises the water about 115 to 135°F above whatever comes in from the garden hose, and the inlet can take water up to 140°F. So the top numbers assume a hot water feed.
By the manual's own figures, 60°F tap water comes out somewhere around 175 to 195°F. That still cuts grease far better than cold water, but if you want the full temperature, connect the inlet to a hot water tap. Never feed it water hotter than 140°F; that damages the pump seals.
Therma-Kleen built the electric Ultras for the places a burner can't go. Its brochure lists food and bakery equipment, seafood processors, commercial kitchens, hospitals, schools, shopping malls, airline facilities and government agencies, plus US Navy submarines and other shipboard use. It's also used on industrial machinery and to prep surfaces for paint.
In a food plant, the hot water and steam cut fats and sugars that cold water smears, and the low 1.5 GPM flow means less water to squeegee to the drain than a big pressure washer. Use the fan nozzle on belts, guards and anything that can be damaged, and save the blast nozzle for hard, stuck-on soil.
This is a compact machine for what it does. It's only about 10 inches wide and 35 inches long, so it fits through doorways and down production aisles, and it rolls on two swivel casters and two rigid wheels. The steam hose, the power cord and the wand each have their own holder, so it's tidy to move between areas.
The control side is simple: an on/off switch and a combistat, a temperature gauge with an adjustable high limit. Turn the red line up past the black line and the heater comes on; it cycles off when the water reaches the temperature you set, and it shuts off whenever you release the trigger.
The catch is power. It needs 3-phase, and the cord comes without a plug, so budget for an electrician to fit the plug and confirm the circuit. If you only have single-phase power, this isn't your machine; read the box at the top of the page.
No fumes, no fuel. A 21 kW electric heater instead of a burner, so it works indoors, in food plants and below deck.
600 PSI with hot water. More than twice the pressure of the 250E for faster degreasing.
Only 1.5 GPM. Hot, high-pressure cleaning with far less runoff to squeegee and drain.
Ready in minutes. Water heats as it flows, so it's cleaning about two to three minutes after start-up.
Built-in protection. High temperature limit, pressure relief valve and a flow switch that shuts the heater off when water stops.
Made in Michigan. Built to order by Therma-Kleen in Au Gres, in blue powder coat or stainless steel.
25 ft high-pressure steam hose (wire braided) on its own hose holder. 50 ft and 100 ft hoses are available, but a longer hose costs you some pressure.
4 ft deluxe wand with trigger gun. A 2.5 ft wand and a snub nose wand are optional for tight spots.
Blast nozzle and fan nozzle. Use the fan for general cleaning, grout and anything delicate, and the zero degree blast for stubborn soil on hard surfaces.
Inlet water filter that keeps grit out of the pump.
25 ft power cord with a cord holder and a wand holder, plus the operator manual and instructional DVD.
No plug comes on the cord. Your electrician fits the plug that matches your 3-phase receptacle, which is normal for equipment this size.
The Ultra 600E comes in Therma-Kleen's blue powder coat or a stainless steel body for $1,000 more. The pump, heater and controls are identical, so both clean the same.
Choose stainless if the machine lives in a washdown area, a food plant with strict sanitation audits, or around salt air on a ship or dock, where a painted finish chips and rusts over the years. If it works in a maintenance shop or a utility room, the blue body is the better value.
Match the voltage. Pick the build that matches your building: 480 V is common in plants and warehouses, 208 V in many commercial buildings, 220/240 V in older industrial sites. Have your electrician confirm before you order, because the heater is wired for one voltage.
Size the circuit. Therma-Kleen calls for a 60 A 3-phase outlet at 208 to 240 V and a 30 A outlet at 480 V. The unit draws about 52 A and 28 A.
Keep the 25 ft cord. The manual says not to lengthen it. Put the receptacle where the machine will work.
Water. A garden hose with the faucet fully open, hot or cold, never above 140°F. If your water is hard, add a water softener; the manual warns that scale on the heater shortens its life and interferes with the temperature controls.
Start each day by running water through with the heater off and purging the air: close the trigger for 15 seconds, open it, repeat. At the end, turn the temperature dial down and let the pump run until the gauge reads 100°F or less, so the hose is cool when you coil it.
Don't leave the trigger closed for more than 2 minutes while the pump runs, and don't click it on and off all day; both wear the pump seals and the flow switch. Clean the inlet filter and check the nozzles now and then. Drain the machine before storage and never let it freeze. Freeze damage isn't covered.
The 600E's pump has a rebuildable head. If pressure drops, a valve is usually the cause, and Therma-Kleen sells a valve and seal kit and a plunger and seal kit. Its pump rebuild video for the Ultra 600E walks through the job step by step.
Therma-Kleen (Vertim Inc.) has built steam cleaners in Au Gres, Michigan for over 30 years, and it builds each electric Ultra to order. The Ultra 600E carries a 1-year parts warranty counted from the factory ship date. Warranty and repair work goes through Therma-Kleen or its authorized service centers, and we help you open the claim. We're an authorized Therma-Kleen dealer, and the Ultra 600E ships free to the lower 48 states.
Want a second opinion first? Tell us what you clean, how often and what power you have, or call (855) 601-5678, and we'll tell you which machine fits, including when it's a cheaper one. You can also compare every model in our commercial steam cleaners.
