The short answer
| Schedule | When | Which units | What it involves |
|---|---|---|---|
| After each patron | Between every patron | Every whirlpool, foot spa or spa (any basin using circulating water); pipeless units after each use (s) | The water drained and the debris out; the basin filled and either dishwashing powder and ¼ cup of 5.25% bleach a gallon, or soap with an EPA-registered disinfectant, circulated ten minutes; drained, rinsed and wiped dry (p). A pipeless unit sanitized and disinfected with an EPA-registered disinfectant per its label (s) |
| End of each day | Closing, on every spa that saw patrons | Every whirlpool, foot spa or spa | The screen out and the debris behind it removed; screen and inlet washed; the screen immersed ten minutes in ¼ cup of 5.25% bleach a gallon or an EPA-registered disinfectant; the inlet and the area behind the screen brushed; the system flushed with soap and warm water at least ten minutes, rinsed and drained (q) |
| Every week | After that day’s end-of-day cleaning | Every whirlpool, foot spa or spa | The basin filled completely with water and ¼ cup of 5.25% bleach for each gallon; the system flushed with the solution for 10 minutes and allowed to sit for 6 to 10 hours; drained and flushed with water before use by a patron (r) |
Each end-of-day and weekly cleaning is its own row in the record, labeled daily or weekly. On the weekly night the record shows both the End of Day row and the Weekly row.
Which equipment the schedules cover
The rule defines its scope in (a): “whirlpool, foot spa, or spa” means “any basin using circulating water”. A whirlpool chair and a pipe-less spa both circulate water, and (s) adds that pipeless units are sanitized and disinfected after each use, so both take all three schedules. A plain basin with no circulation is outside the definition; Bar 302.07(m) has the surfaces of a pedicure basin, like everything that touches a client’s skin, sanitized after each service, with no record asked for. ReadyPedi sets each New Hampshire unit as Whirlpool or Pipe-less, and both take all three procedures; it offers no basin kind for New Hampshire, because the rule’s record is for circulating units.
After each patron
The one that happens all day. (p): “After each patron, each whirlpool, foot spa, or spa shall be cleaned and disinfected as follows”: the water drained and the debris removed; the basin filled with water and one of two solutions circulated through the unit for ten minutes, either automatic dishwashing powder with ¼ cup of 5.25% chlorine bleach a gallon, or surfactant or enzymatic soap with an EPA-registered disinfectant used per its label; then drained, rinsed with clean water and wiped dry with a clean towel. Our guide to how to clean a pedicure foot spa in New Hampshire carries the steps in the rule’s own words. For a pipeless unit, (s): “sanitized and disinfected after each use with an EPA-registered disinfectant according to manufacturers’ instructions”. The record clause (t) names the end-of-day and weekly cleanings and not this one, so an After Each Client row is good practice rather than the rule’s requirement; ReadyPedi logs it so the day reads whole.
End of each day
(q): “At the end of each day, each whirlpool, foot spa, or spa shall be cleaned and disinfected as follows”: the screen out and the debris trapped behind it removed; the screen and the inlet washed with soap or detergent and rinsed; the screen totally immersed for ten minutes in ¼ cup of 5.25% chlorine bleach a gallon or in an EPA-registered disinfectant; the inlet and the area behind the screen brushed clean; and the system flushed with low-sudsing soap and warm water for at least ten minutes, then rinsed and drained. Two words matter. “Each day”: this is in addition to the after-patron cleanings, not instead of the last one; the last patron’s row is written, and then the end-of-day cleaning is its own row, the record’s “daily” cleaning. A spa that had no patron that day has no “end of each day” cleaning in any useful sense, and the rule asks for no note saying it sat idle; ReadyPedi’s New Hampshire record has no not-used row.
Every week
The rule’s words, (r): “Every week, after cleaning and disinfecting pursuant to (q) and (r) above each whirlpool, foot spa, or spa shall be cleaned and disinfected in the following manner: (1) The whirlpool, foot spa, or spa basin shall be filled completely with water and ¼ cup of 5.25% bleach for each one gallon of water; (2) The whirlpool, foot spa, or spa system shall be flushed with the bleach and water solution pursuant to (r) (3), above, for 10 minutes and allowed to sit for 6 to 10 hours; and (3) Whirlpool, foot spa, or spa system shall be drained and flushed with water before use by a patron.”
Three things to notice. It is bleach, at a stated strength and a stated measure, a quarter cup of 5.25% per gallon, so you need to know how many gallons the basin holds. It sits six to ten hours, so it is an overnight job. And it comes “after cleaning and disinfecting pursuant to (q)”: the end of day first, then the weekly. (The rule’s own cross-references read “(q) and (r)” and “(r) (3)”, which point at the weekly itself; this guide quotes them as printed and does not correct the rule.) “Every week” is all the rule says about the interval; it does not define the week. Pick a fixed night and keep to it. A record that shows the Weekly row at regular seven-day intervals reads as a routine.
The weekly night has two rows
(r) makes the end-of-day cleaning a condition of the weekly (“after cleaning and disinfecting pursuant to (q)”), and (t) records “each cleaning and disinfecting as required by (q) and (r)”. Two cleanings, two times, two rows: End of Day, labeled daily, then Weekly, labeled weekly. This is the point owners who ran a shop in Texas get wrong, since there the two-week soak takes the place of that night’s End of Day row. ReadyPedi logs it New Hampshire’s way: a Weekly row does not close the day, the app still expects that night’s End of Day, and the screen says so if a tech tries to log the Weekly on its own: “A Weekly cleaning is its own entry in New Hampshire, logged after that night's End of Day.” Both rows print.
If you ran a shop in Texas
Four differences. Texas asks for its deep clean every two weeks; New Hampshire asks for it every week. In Texas the two-week soak stands in for that night’s End of Day row; in New Hampshire the weekly comes after the end of day, and both rows are written. Texas has a Not Used row for an idle day; New Hampshire’s rule asks for nothing on an idle day. Texas mandates its form; New Hampshire has none, so the record is whatever sheet holds the date, the time and daily-or-weekly (our guide to the printable New Hampshire pedicure cleaning log).
Where it is logged
The end-of-day and weekly cleanings go in the same record: the date and time of each, labeled daily or weekly, shown on request to a patron or an inspector. There is no state form; the printable-log guide linked above covers what the record must show and offers a blank. ReadyPedi logs each cleaning at the chair in three taps, with the time stamped and the tech’s name beside it, and prints the record for any spa and any month. The rule next to the app is on the New Hampshire page.
Frequently asked questions
Does the weekly cleaning replace that day’s end-of-day cleaning?
No. The weekly comes “after cleaning and disinfecting pursuant to (q)”, the end of day, and the record covers each cleaning under (q) and (r), so both are done and both are written: an End of Day row, then a Weekly row.
Does a pipe-less foot spa take the same schedule?
Yes. The rule defines a foot spa as any basin using circulating water, and (s) adds that pipeless units are sanitized and disinfected after each use. Set the chair as Pipe-less and it takes all three.
What about a plain basin without jets?
It is outside the rule’s definition of a foot spa. Bar 302.07(m) has the surfaces of a pedicure basin, like everything that touches a client’s skin, sanitized after each service, with no record asked for. ReadyPedi offers the two circulating kinds for New Hampshire.
What if a spa had no patrons today?
The end-of-day cleaning is of a spa that was used, and the rule asks for no note on an idle day. That spa’s record is simply empty for the day. Write “no patrons” in the margin if you like.
How long does the weekly bleach solution sit?
Six to ten hours, after a ten-minute flush, and the system is drained and flushed with water before a patron uses it.
Does “every week” mean any day of the calendar week?
The rule says “every week” and does not define it. Pick a fixed night and keep to it, so the record shows the Weekly row at regular intervals.
This guide explains New Hampshire’s foot spa cleaning schedules in plain language and is not legal advice. The New Hampshire Board of Barbering, Cosmetology and Esthetics’ rules are the authority on New Hampshire foot spa cleaning and recordkeeping requirements.