Tag Archives: commercial

The Importance Of Commercial Refrigeration Service

Commercial Refrigeration Service

commercial refrigeration serviceBeing a restauranteur or retail grocer, you probably understand how important commercial refrigeration is to your business.  Commercial refrigeration equipment would include any free standing or built-in unit(s) that provide cold storage for your company’s perishable goods.  Commercial refrigeration includes both refrigerators and freezers which are available in a wide variety of configurations including walk-ins, reach-ins, and commercial refrigeration display cases.

Why Is Commercial Refrigeration Service So Important?

Because perishable goods are an important part of the revenue and profits for your company, it is important to keep your commercial refrigeration operating properly through scheduled commercial refrigeration service.  You know what happens when your commercial refrigeration breaks down suddenly.  You are scrambling to find some way to get it running again before thousands of dollars of product goes bad and can’t be sold to customers.  Of course you can rely on emergency commercial refrigeration service, but this is much more costly than scheduled maintenance and the availability of emergency commercial refrigeration service when you need it most is a big unknown.

The other reason you need to keep your refrigeration equipment in top operating condition through regular commercial refrigeration service is because of the energy costs related to operating it.  For most restaurants and small grocers, the energy costs related to operating their commercial refrigeration equipment make up a large part of their overhead.  When your equipment is operating inefficiently due to lack of proper commercial refrigeration service, then your energy costs can go up significantly.

The Peace Of Mind Provided By Commercial Refrigeration Service

commercial refrigeration serviceProperly maintained commercial refrigeration equipment provides peace of mind to restaurant owners and retail grocers.  Quite a bit of your working capital is invested in the perishable goods that regular commercial refrigeration service helps keep at the proper temperature.  When you rely on emergency commercial refrigeration service, then you are playing a risky game of chance which could cost you thousands.

Being incredibly user friendly due to the variety of sizes and types, commercial refrigeration units offer safe food storage options when commercial refrigeration service is done on a regular basis.  Your refrigeration equipment was a large investment for you when you started your company, so when you take care of it like you would a fancy car or custom built home with regular commercial refrigeration service it provides you with a reliable solution for your cold storage needs.

Whether your refrigeration equipment is new or old, a good commercial refrigeration service company can provide you the maintenance needed to keep it in top working order.

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 Value Of Commercial Display Refrigerators And Freezers

Lower Costs With Commercial Display Refrigerators And Freezers

Commercial display refrigerators and freezers provide a practical and attractive way to showcase perishable or frozen items and improve the possibility of a customer making a purchase. They are an invaluable method of keeping retail food items at the proper temperature and essential for any retailer offering perishable or frozen goods for sale. They are several different types of commercial display refrigerators and freezers, and each one suitable for a particular purpose.

Types Of Commercial Display Refrigerators And Freezers

display refrigeratorsCounter top display units are great for getting customers to make impulse purchases. They are most effective when placed at checkouts and pay points. So when people are lining up to pay, they are enticed to make a last minute purchase by the food items on display in the commercial display refrigerator or freezer. This is a proven fact and is a method employed by all major food retailers. By placing a counter top display refrigerator or freezer in this location, you are improving the chances of a sale being made. By placing high impulse goods such as ice cream and other treats inside the display unit, you are even further increasing the likelihood of a sale being made.

Commercial ice cream display freezers are a great way to improve a store’s profitability. If you have been thinking about selling ice cream, installing one of these is a great way to make extra money. Think of your usual ice cream retailer and how they display their products.  It’s always in a commercial display freezer.  Ice cream freshly scooped will sell more than boxed ice cream, but if you sell food items in a retail outlet then pre-package ice cream is obviously the only available solution. The visual impact of being able to see the ice cream in the containers increases the sales rate. The commercial display freezers come in a variety of sizes, and you do not need a large store to install them.

Glass door and chest display refrigerators and freezers traditionally hold boxed and bagged perishable or frozen items. These types of commercial display units have a high storage capacity and individual compartments so that each food type can be separated.  To ensure energy efficiency of these types of display refrigerators and freezers the doors are almost always self-closing.  This prevents the cold air from escaping unnecessarily after a customer has chosen the item they wish to purchase.  Because the doors of the commercial display refrigerator or freezer are glass, the customer can also shop for their item before they even open the door.  This makes for even more energy savings and prevents damage to the food being stored.

Overall, any retailer who sells food items that need to be kept cold can greatly enhance their profits by adding one or more commercial display refrigerators or freezers to their store’s cooling equipment.

Contact us to discuss installing or servicing your commercial display refrigerator or freezer.

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.