ARTICLE 3. Location and Installation [114153. - 114172.]

Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC 3.
in effect

Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 114153. Section 114153.

Equipment for cooling and heating food and for holding cold and hot food shall be sufficient in number and capacity to ensure proper food temperature control during transportation and operation as specified in Section 113996.

Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 114157. Section 114157.

(a) A thermometer shall be provided for each refrigeration unit. (b) The thermometer shall be located to indicate the air temperature in the warmest part of the unit and, except for vending machines, shall be affixed to be readily visible. (c) Except as specified in subdivision (d), cold or hot holding equipment used for potentially hazardous food shall be designed to include and shall be equipped with at least one integral or permanently affixed temperature measuring device that is located to allow easy viewing of the device’s temperature display. Alternative hot or cold holding equipment can be equipped with approved product mimicking sensors placed in devices located in the warmest part of the mechanically refrigerated unit in lieu of an ambient air sensor. (d) Subdivision (c) shall not apply to equipment for which the placement of a temperature measuring device is not a practical means for measuring the ambient air surrounding the food because of the design, type, and use of the equipment, such as calrod units, heat lamps, cold plates, bainmaries, steam tables, insulated food transport containers, and salad bars. (e) Temperature measuring devices shall be easily readable and have a numerical scale, printed record, or digital readout in increments no greater than 2°F or over the intended range of use.

Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 114159. Section 114159.

(a) Except for vending machines, an accurate, easily readable, metal probe thermometer suitable for measuring the temperature of food shall be readily available on the premises of each food facility holding potentially hazardous food. (b) A food 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. (c) Food temperature measuring devices that are scaled only in Fahrenheit shall be accurate to ±2°F in the intended range of use. Food temperature measuring devices that are scaled only in Celsius or dually scaled in Celsius and Fahrenheit shall be accurate to ±1°C in the intended range of use. (d) Food temperature measuring devices shall not have sensors or stems constructed of glass, except that thermometers with glass sensors or stems that are encased in a shatterproof coating, such as candy thermometers, may be used. (e) Food temperature measuring devices shall be calibrated in accordance with manufacturer’s specifications as necessary to ensure their accuracy.

Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 114161. Section 114161.

(a) Except as specified in subdivision (b), equipment, a cabinet used for the storage of food, or a cabinet that is used to store cleaned and sanitized equipment, utensils, laundered linens, and single-use articles shall not be in any of the following locations: (1) In locker rooms. (2) In toilet rooms. (3) In refuse rooms. (4) In mechanical rooms. (5) Under sewer lines that are not shielded to intercept potential drips. (6) Under leaking water lines, including leaking automatic fire sprinkler heads, or under lines on which water has condensed. (7) Under open stairwells. (8) Under other sources of contamination. (b) If a mechanical clothes washer or dryer is provided, it shall be located so that the washer or dryer is protected from contamination and located only where there is no exposed food, clean equipment, utensils, and linens, and unwrapped single-use articles.

Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 114163. Section 114163.

(a) Except as specified in subdivision (b), all permanent food facilities that wash, rinse, soak, thaw, or similarly prepare foods shall be provided with a food preparation sink. (1) The food preparation sink shall have a minimum dimension of 18 inches by 18 inches in length and width and 12 inches in depth with an integral drainboard or adjacent table at least 18 inches by 18 inches in length and width. (2) The food preparation sink shall be located in the food preparation area, provided exclusively for food preparation, and accessible at all times. (3) The sink shall be equipped with an adequate supply of hot and cold running water through a mixing valve. (b) (1) Food facilities that were approved for operation without a food preparation sink prior to January 1, 2007, need not provide a food preparation sink unless the food facility makes a menu change or changes their method of operation. (2) The enforcement officer may approve other methods where the installation of a food preparation sink would not be readily feasible.

Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 114165. Section 114165.

Dollies, pallets, racks, and skids used to store and transport large quantities of prepackaged foods received from a supplier in a cased or overwrapped lot shall be designed to be moved by hand or by conveniently available hand trucks or forklifts.

Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 114167. Section 114167.

Beverage tubing and cold-plate beverage cooling devices shall not be installed in contact with stored ice intended to be used for food or beverages. This section shall not apply to cold plates that are constructed integrally with an ice storage bin.

Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 114169. Section 114169.

(a) Equipment that is fixed because it is not easily movable shall be installed so that it is: (1) Spaced to allow access for cleaning along the sides, behind, and above the equipment. (2) Spaced from adjoining equipment, walls, and ceilings a distance of not more than one millimeter or one thirty-second inch. (3) Sealed to adjoining equipment or walls, if the equipment is exposed to spillage or seepage. (b) Except as specified in subdivisions (c) and (d), floor-mounted equipment that is not easily movable shall be sealed to the floor or elevated on legs that provide at least a six-inch clearance between the floor and the equipment. (c) Notwithstanding subdivision (b), this section shall not apply to display shelving units, display refrigeration units, and display freezer units located in the consumer shopping areas of a food facility if the floor under the units is maintained clean. (d) Table-mounted equipment that is not easily movable shall be installed to allow cleaning of the equipment and areas underneath and around the equipment by being sealed to the table or elevated on legs that provide at least a four-inch clearance between the table and the equipment.
Source: CA Legislative Counsel Bulk DataURL: https://downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/pubinfo_2025.zipFetched: 6/27/2026

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