Tag Archives: commercial refrigeration

What To Consider When Purchasing Your Commercial Refrigeration Walk-In

Commercial Refrigeration Basics

When picking out your commercial refrigeration equipment, you need to have an idea about how much food you are going to need space for and how much food you are going to keep in your commercial refrigeration system at all times. Commercial refrigeration units come in a wide variety of storage capacities, and if you purchase a unit that is too big you will end up wasting money by keeping a larger space cold than you need.  With your operating margins probably very thin, it is important to buy a commercial refrigeration unit that is just big enough.  If the unit you purchase is too small, then you’ll just have to buy another commercial refrigeration unit to store all of your perishable food items.

Commercial Refrigeration Walk-ins

commercial refrigerationA walk-in commercial refrigeration unit is just what its name implies: a refrigerator big enough to walk into. It can be as small as a closet or as large as a good-size room, but its primary purpose is to provide refrigerated storage for large quantities of food in a central area. Experts recommend that your operation needs a commercial refrigeration walk-in when its cold storage needs exceed 80 cubic feet, or if you serve more than 250 meals per day. Once again, you’ll need to determine how much you need to store, what sizes of containers the commercial refrigeration storage space must accommodate, and the maximum quantity of goods you’ll want to have on hand at any time.

The most economical way to use a commercial refrigeration walk-in is to equip it with shelves, organized in sections. Exactly how much cold storage area do you need? The easiest formula is to calculate 1 to 1.5 cubic feet of commercial refrigeration walk-in storage for every meal you serve per day.  To determine the cubic feet of storage area determine how much liner footage you have of shelf space (measure along the front), multiply this by the number of shelves and the depth of the shelves, then measure how much vertical space there is between each shelf.  When you multiply all these numbers together you’ll have the cubic feet of commercial refrigeration storage available in your walk-in.

How Many Commercial Refrigeration Units Do You Need?

commercial refrigerationFor some food service operations you might also need more than one commercial refrigeration unit if you need to store perishable items at various temperatures.  For instance, you’ll need one for produce (41 degrees Fahrenheit), one for meats and fish (33 to 38 degrees Fahrenheit), and one for dairy products (32 to 41 degrees Fahrenheit). If this is your situation, then determining the commercial refrigeration storage you need is a bit more complex, but nothing that can’t be determined with a little planning.

Modern commercial refrigeration walk-ins sometimes offer a frozen-food section in addition to the regular cooler space. There are pros and cons to this concept. It may ease the load on the freezer, because it’s already located inside a chilled airspace; but it also can’t help but reduce overall usable space, because it requires a separate door. You can also order your walk-in with a separate, reach-in section that has its own door and shelves. Although this may save the cost of purchasing a separate reach-in, some critics claim that a walk-in is not designed to do a reach-in job, such as storing uncovered desserts. Do you really want them in the same environment as cartons of lettuce and other bulk storage items? There may be cleanliness or food quality factors to consider.

Smart Features of Commercial Refrigeration

Other smart features to consider besides the size of your commercial refrigeration walk-include the following: a thermometer, a monitoring and recording system that keeps a printout of refrigeration temperature or downloads to a computer, and heavy-duty plastic strip curtains inside the door.  By using technology to monitor and control your commercial refrigeration unit, you’ll end up saving money in the long run because you won’t be constantly manually adjusting the commercial refrigeration equipment.

Contact Sacramento Refrigeration to discuss your options for your walk-in cold storage and all of your commercial refrigeration needs.

The Importance Of Commercial Refrigeration Service

Commercial Refrigeration Walk-In Scheduled Maintenance

Most commercial refrigeration walk-ins seem indestructible, but you can extend their life by following the manufacturer’s safety tips and maintenance schedule.  Walk-in coolers and freezers are made for storing larger quantities of food.  If there is lots of in and out traffic in your commercial refrigeration walk-in then there are important maintenance procedures to follow.

Some Maintenance Tricks for Commercial Refrigeration

The door gaskets are usually made of rubber.  So they can break down quicker and easier if they are not cleaned regularly and get caked with food or grease.  This leads to leaks in the door seals which will result in the operating efficiency of your commercial refrigeration walk-in being reduced and your energy costs going up.  Door seals can be easily cleaned to extend their life with baking soda and warm water.  It’s suggested that you don’t use harsh chemical cleansers as this will dry out the rubber.

commercial refrigerationDoor hinges for your commercial refrigeration walk-in can be rubbed with petroleum jelly to make sure they continue to work well.  If these develop a build-up of grease or grime, then their operation will not remain smooth.  This means they will begin to stick resulting in your doors not closing automatically and the cold air escaping.  Again this will result in lower efficiency for your commercial refrigeration walk-in and higher energy costs.

Dirty coils on the refrigeration unit will also make the commercial refrigeration walk-in run less efficiently as the transfer of heat through the coils doesn’t occur as effectively as for clean coils.  This makes the compressor work overtime to maintain the desired temperature of your perishable food items which means the service life of the compressor motor will be reduced.  By frequently cleaning the dust and grime off of your commercial refrigeration coils you’ll reduce the time your compressor needs to run and thereby help your commercial refrigeration run more efficiently.

Cleanliness in Your Commercial Refrigeration Unit is Important

The floors of your commercial refrigeration walk-in should also be kept clean.  This is for safety reasons as well as for health concerns.  If there is lots of foot traffic in and out of the unit, food and other stored items can get dropped.  If they are not cleaned out regularly they can build up causing trip hazards as well as slippery floors.  Not only that, they could begin to rot and develop a bacteria issue.  Walk-in floors should be damp-mopped, but never hosed out.  Excessive water can get into the seals between the floor panels and damage the insulation.  Without proper insulation, your commercial refrigeration will not run as efficiently as it could.

Proper maintenance of your commercial refrigeration walk-in can extend its service life and reduce the operating costs.  Following a regular maintenance schedule will help you keep your commercial refrigeration operating properly and keep your operating costs down.

Various Types Of Commercial Refrigeration

Commercial Refrigeration Basics

commercial refrigerationWhenever most of us think about refrigeration all we know about is the refrigerator we have in our home.  We usually don’t consider the fact that the restaurants and grocery stores we patronize use commercial refrigeration to keep the food we buy from them preserved and fresh with commercial refrigeration.  Commercial refrigeration differs from the cooling appliances we have in our homes mostly by size.  There are other differences in commercial refrigeration such as the method by which the air is cooled.  The choice for the restaurant owner or grocery store owner as to which type and size of commercial refrigeration they choose come down to the needs of their business.

Types Of Commercial Refrigeration

The first type of commercial refrigeration that we are going to discuss is blast chillers. There are a number of different types of blast chillers available for your commercial refrigeration needs, but the main purpose behind them is to get the food down to a low temperature as soon as possible. Most of commercial blast chillers available claim to be able to drop food from a temperature of about 70°F down to below 3°F within 90 minutes. For many restaurants and grocery stores that need to store food at certain temperatures to meet health code standards this is especially important.  In the commercial refrigeration world, there are plenty of choices available for blast chillers.  So make an informed decision by working with an experienced commercial refrigeration professional to evaluate your needs and choose the blast chiller that best them.

Other types of commercial refrigeration that you might need include display freezers and display refrigerators. These are typically the ones that you would find in a grocery store or perhaps a convenience store.  They are great for displaying items while keeping them cool and allowing the customer to see what is on the inside without opening the doors. Some of commercial display refrigerators don’t have doors on the front to limit access. These can be found in a variety food stores and only allow access by employees behind the commercial refrigerator. Much like commercial blast chillers, display freezers and display refrigerators come in a wide variety of sizes.  So depending on your needs you can find the one that works best for you.

What Type Of Commercial Refrigeration Is Right For Your Needs?

While there are many off the shelf and standalone units available for blast chillers and display refrigerators and freezers, you might be better suited talking to a commercial refrigeration professional about having your location fitted with something more custom.  The upfront costs may be higher, but in the long run your total costs may be lower due to better operating efficiency.  Speak to your commercial refrigeration professional about your specific case.

Contact us to discuss your commercial refrigeration equipment.