A Story From the Field: A Factory That Sells Cleanliness Has to Start Again From Mud

Khun Charoen owns a small factory producing bottled drinking water and tube ice in Ban Pho district, Chachoengsao province, not far from the Bang Pakong River. His main customers are neighborhood shops, restaurants and coffee shops across several sub-districts. The factory has a water treatment room, a bottle filling room, a store for empty bottles and caps, an ice-making room, an ice storage room and a warehouse for finished goods. During the 2026 floods, water rose into the factory to about a hand-span deep and stayed for several days. Khun Charoen had to stop production immediately, cut the power and tell his customers he could not deliver.

When the water receded, he walked the site with his staff. A thin film of mud covered the floor of the filling room. Shrink-wrapped packs of empty bottles on the lowest pallets had been soaked. Cardboard boxes of bottle caps had swollen and smelled musty. The lower walls of the ice storage room carried a cloudy tide mark. The warehouse smelled of damp and mud, and there were signs that rats had been running along the walls.

Regular customers called every day to ask when deliveries would restart. Khun Charoen wanted the line running again as soon as possible, but he also knew that what he sells is something people drink and put in their glasses every day. A single hygiene problem could wipe out years of trust, and could also affect inspections by the authorities that regulate his licence.

This is an illustrative scenario based on the kinds of problems commonly found after floods. It does not describe any specific factory. Information in this article is general; specific production standards and requirements should be confirmed directly with the relevant authorities.

Why Drinking Water and Ice Factories Need More Careful Recovery Than Ordinary Factories

Drinking water and ice are foods that consumers do not heat before consuming. Any germs that contaminate them reach the consumer directly. Floodwater carries bacteria from drains, sewage and soil into buildings, so before production resumes the owner must be confident about the building, the storage areas and the production system itself.

1. Risks to consumers and staff

Bacteria such as E. coli and the wider coliform group are indicators of fecal contamination. If they remain on filling-room surfaces, bottles, caps or ice bags, they could contribute to cases of diarrhea in the community. Staff who clear mud also need to watch out for leptospirosis, especially in factories where there are signs of rats. Rubber gloves and boots should be worn at all times, and anyone who develops a fever or muscle pain after clean-up should see a doctor.

2. Production standards and official inspections

Drinking water and ice factories that hold a Thai FDA registration number are already required to maintain hygienic production conditions. After a flood it is even more important to keep clear records of cleaning and disinfection, to have the water treatment system checked, and to send water samples for laboratory analysis before selling again. Specific requirements should be confirmed with the Provincial Public Health Office or the Food and Drug Administration directly.

3. Customers who cannot wait

Shops and restaurants need drinking water and ice every single day. If a factory stays closed for long, customers have no choice but to switch to another supplier, and some may never come back. A structured recovery plan lets the factory restart quickly without taking risks with product safety.

4. Packaging materials that absorb water

Cardboard boxes, rolls of plastic film, labels and caps stored in boxes are all materials that absorb water or have gaps where dirty water can get in. Any packaging that came into contact with floodwater should be discarded and never used for product, even if it now looks dry.

5. Ice storage rooms and delivery vehicles

Ice storage rooms are cold and humid at all times. When the power was off for a long period during the flood, ice melted and water pooled in corners and around door seals, creating spots where germs and slime build up. Delivery trucks that were parked in flooded areas also need cleaning and disinfecting before use, because the truck bed is the last surface the product touches before it reaches the customer.

What Many Factories Try, and Why It Leaves Gaps

• Hosing the floor and restarting production straight away: The floor looks clean, but germs remain in floor joints, on table legs, under conveyors and on the lower parts of walls.
• Pouring concentrated chlorine everywhere: Strong chlorine can corrode stainless steel and rubber parts, its fumes build up in closed rooms, and it can leave an odor that transfers to packaging.
• Drying boxes of caps and using them anyway: Materials that were soaked in floodwater should not be used, even after drying, because their cleanliness cannot be verified.
• Running fans in the warehouse to dry it out: This helps surfaces dry, but does not reduce mold or the musty smell trapped in wooden pallets and walls.
• Skipping the water treatment system check: If floodwater reached raw-water tanks or filters, a technician must inspect and service them according to the system manufacturer's instructions before anything else.

What is missing in these approaches is a recovery plan that clearly separates which tasks belong to the production-system technician, which belong to building-area disinfection, and which water-quality tests must be passed before sales resume.

The Solution: Building-Area Disinfection Fogging and Warehouse Ozone Treatment, by World Health Disinfection

The World Health Disinfection (WHD) team takes care of the building and storage areas. Our disinfection fogging service uses Chemgene HLD4H applied through ULV (ultra-low volume) foggers on floors, lower walls, tables, shelving, walkways, staff changing rooms and toilets. For the finished-goods warehouse, the empty-bottle store and material rooms that can be sealed, we add our ozone treatment service. Ozone is a gas that spreads throughout the room, helping to reduce mold spores and break down the musty odor trapped in pallets and walls.

It is important to be clear about scope. WHD's work is disinfection of building areas and surfaces. It does not replace cleaning and sanitizing inside the water treatment system, storage tanks, water pipes or ice machines, which must follow the system manufacturer's instructions and be carried out by qualified technicians. Nor does it replace sending water and ice samples to a laboratory for analysis. A clear division of responsibilities protects the factory and its customers.

Step-by-step process

1. Site survey: We check how high the water rose and divide the site into zones: water treatment, filling, materials store, ice rooms and warehouse, marking which items need separate attention from system technicians.
2. Preparation advice: Remove mud, discard packaging and product that touched floodwater, empty old ice from the storage room, and switch off and cover machinery, control panels and filling heads.
3. Disinfection fogging with Chemgene HLD4H: We fog floors, lower walls, table legs, shelving, drainage channels, changing rooms and toilets.
4. Ozone treatment for enclosed rooms: The warehouse, the empty-bottle store after damaged stock is removed, and material rooms are sealed, with concentration and duration set to suit each room.
5. Ventilation: Doors are opened and extraction fans run for the time our team specifies.
6. Rinse product-contact surfaces and re-check: Surfaces that touch bottles, caps or ice directly are rinsed with clean water in line with the product directions and the factory's own procedures, then odor and cleanliness are assessed again.

Safety first: High concentrations of ozone irritate the respiratory system. During treatment there must be no staff, animals or plants in the area, and the space must be ventilated thoroughly before anyone returns. Ozone is never applied to drinking water or ice intended for sale. Electrical control panels, sensors and ozone-sensitive rubber parts on machinery are switched off and covered, or kept out of the treated room altogether, and our team keeps the ozone dose no higher than necessary.

A Zone-by-Zone Recovery Map for a Small Water and Ice Plant

Every plant has its own layout, but most small drinking water and ice factories in Chachoengsao share similar zones. Thinking zone by zone helps owners coordinate technicians, staff and the disinfection team without gaps or overlaps.

Water treatment room

This zone belongs first to the system technician. Pumps, raw-water tanks, filter housings, membranes and in-line disinfection units should be inspected, cleaned and serviced according to the manufacturer's guidance, with filter media replaced where needed. Once the equipment work is done, WHD can fog the floor, walls and drains of the room itself, keeping clear of open tanks and system components.

Filling room

The filling room is the most hygiene-critical building space. After mud removal and washing, floors, wall bases, table legs, drainage channels and the undersides of conveyors are fogged. Filling heads and product-contact parts stay covered during fogging and are cleaned using the factory's own sanitation procedure. Air curtains, door strips and hand-wash stations at the entrance are included in the fogging plan because staff pass through them every shift.

Empty-bottle and cap store

Everything that touched floodwater is removed first. The room, shelving and pallets are then fogged, and the sealed room is treated with ozone to tackle mold and musty odor before new packaging is delivered. This prevents fresh stock from picking up a smell from the room.

Ice-making and ice storage rooms

Old ice is discarded and the rooms are drained and cleaned. Floors, wall bases, door seals and drain points are fogged. The ice machines themselves are serviced by technicians. Ice storage rooms should be dry and clean before the refrigeration is switched back on.

Warehouse and loading bay

Wooden pallets that sat in floodwater often hold mold and odor. Badly damaged pallets are best replaced. The warehouse is fogged and, where it can be sealed, treated with ozone. Delivery trucks and crates are washed and disinfected before the first delivery run.

Staff areas

Changing rooms, toilets and break rooms are often forgotten, but staff hygiene starts there. Fogging these rooms supports the factory's personal hygiene rules from the moment staff arrive for their shift.

Records, Communication and Trust

For a food business, what you can show matters almost as much as what you did. A simple recovery file makes it easier to answer questions from inspectors, customers and your own staff. Many small factories keep a folder or a shared online document with the following: photographs of flood damage taken on the first day back; a list of packaging and stock that was discarded; dates and notes from technician visits to the water treatment system and ice machines; the date and scope of the disinfection fogging and ozone treatment, including which rooms were covered; and copies of laboratory results for water and ice samples taken before sales resumed.

When customers call, a short and honest explanation goes a long way. Telling a shop owner that the plant was cleaned zone by zone, that damaged packaging was thrown away, that the water system was serviced, and that deliveries will restart once the laboratory results come back, reassures them that you are putting their customers' safety first. Many owners find that this openness strengthens relationships rather than weakening them.

Staff also need to hear the plan. Workers who understand why certain stock was discarded, why the filling heads stayed covered, and why the restart waited for test results are more likely to follow hygiene rules carefully in the weeks that follow, when the pressure to catch up on orders is highest.

Preparing for the Next Flood Season

Ban Pho sits in the low-lying Bang Pakong river basin, and many factories in the area know that high water can return in future years. A few changes made during recovery can reduce damage next time. Store packaging and caps on higher racks rather than on floor-level pallets. Keep a stock of plastic sheeting and tape to cover machinery quickly. Raise electrical control boxes where possible. Agree in advance with your system technician and disinfection provider who will be called, and in what order, once the water drops. And keep your recovery file from 2026 as a template, so the next restart can follow a plan that has already been proven.

It is also worth reviewing drainage around the site. Clearing the yard drains, checking that floor drains inside the plant have working traps, and sealing gaps under doors where muddy water entered can all reduce how much contamination reaches production areas if the river rises again. Small investments made now, while the lessons of this flood are fresh, often pay for themselves the very next rainy season.

10 Reasons Water and Ice Factories in Ban Pho Choose WHD

1. A clear division of work: building-area disinfection, kept separate from production-system work that needs specialist technicians.
2. Two methods working together: surface disinfection fogging plus ozone treatment for warehouses and material stores.
3. ULV fine-droplet fogging reaches under filling tables, shelving legs and floor joints.
4. A disinfectant our team uses every day: Chemgene HLD4H, designed for surface disinfection work.
5. Musty odor removed from warehouses so it does not transfer to new packaging. Learn more about ozone odor removal.
6. Care for machinery: control panels, sensors and rubber parts are switched off and covered before work begins.
7. Practical advice on packaging, including discarding anything that touched floodwater to reduce contamination risk.
8. Information for your cleaning records, noting what was done, where and when, for the factory's own documentation.
9. Complete follow-up options such as a mosquito spraying service around the building and the delivery yard.
10. Easy to reach. Call 065-556-6294 or LINE @whd268 to book a survey in Ban Pho and across Chachoengsao.

Customer Voices (Illustrative Scenarios)

"The team helped us see which jobs belonged to the water-system technician and which were building disinfection, so we planned it properly. The filling room was fogged and the warehouse treated with ozone in one visit while we waited for the water test results."
— Khun Charoen, drinking water and ice factory owner, Ban Pho

"I appreciated that they always had us cover the control panels and sensors first. The machines started up normally afterwards."
— Production supervisor at an ice plant in Chachoengsao

Checklist Before Restarting Drinking Water and Ice Production

• Have technicians inspect electrical systems, pumps, raw-water tanks and the treatment system according to the manufacturer's guidance.
• Replace filter media and service in-line disinfection units on the schedule your technician recommends.
• Discard bottles, caps, bags, labels and boxes that touched floodwater.
• Clean and disinfect the ice storage room before storing new ice.
• Send drinking water and ice samples to a laboratory for analysis before selling again.
• Record the date, time and steps of every cleaning in the factory's documentation.
• Set traps or call a pest control service, and seal gaps where animals can get in.
• Brief all staff on hand hygiene, protective clothing and the restart procedure before the first shift.

Working through a list like this, step by step, turns a stressful restart into a controlled process that customers and inspectors can understand.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Can we restart production right after disinfection?
A: Disinfection fogging and ozone treatment restore the building areas. Before production restarts, technicians still need to check the production system, product-contact surfaces must be cleaned using the factory's procedures, and water must be tested before sale.

Q: Do you spray disinfectant into water tanks or the filtration system?
A: No. Our team does not spray into the water system, storage tanks or ice machines. Those must be serviced according to the system manufacturer's instructions by qualified technicians.

Q: Can ozone be used in a room that contains filling machines?
A: Yes, once machines are switched off and control panels, sensors and rubber parts are covered. We control the dose, or treat only rooms that do not contain ozone-sensitive machinery.

Q: Can empty bottles still sealed in packs be used?
A: If the pack touched floodwater, discard it. Packs stored high above the water line should be inspected and handled according to the factory's own procedures before use.

Q: How long will the factory need to stop?
A: Fogging and ozone treatment are usually completed in one visit, depending on area. The overall downtime depends on production-system repairs and water test results.

Q: Can you help with our delivery trucks too?
A: Yes. Truck beds and crates can be included in the fogging plan after they have been washed, so the last surface your product touches before delivery is clean.

Q: Which areas do you serve?
A: Ban Pho, Mueang Chachoengsao, Bang Pakong, Bang Khla, Plaeng Yao and nearby provinces. Contact us on LINE @whd268.

Get Back to Producing Clean Water for Your Community, With Confidence

Book a site survey for your drinking water and ice factory in Ban Pho and across Chachoengsao.

See Disinfection Service – Click Here

Book Ozone Treatment – Click Here

Call 065-556-6294 · LINE @whd268 · Email worldhealthdisinfection@gmail.com

Related Links

• Chemgene HLD4H disinfectant
• Master Ozone Generator
• Ozone odor and chemical residue removal
• All articles

Health reference: World Health Organization (WHO): Floods · Department of Health, Thailand