Whether you run a fast food restaurant, a convenience store, or a school, ColdLogic commercial refrigeration Melbourne is a crucial part of your business. It helps keep foods fresh and safe while preserving flavours.
You must take proactive maintenance steps to keep your refrigeration equipment running smoothly. Here are a few tips to help you get started.
Undercounter Refrigeration
Undercounter refrigeration is an excellent addition to your commercial kitchen or bar, keeping frequently used ingredients within reach. These units tuck neatly under standard counters and are available in ADA-height models to accommodate smaller spaces.
The best under-counter refrigerators can hold various items, from beverages and condiments to frozen foods and pre-made entrees. They can also store dry goods such as flour, sugar, and spices. In addition, they come in various sizes to meet your needs, and some even feature doors.
These small but intelligent refrigerators are perfect for busy bars, restaurants, food trucks, and catering businesses. They keep your ingredients and other essentials at a safe temperature, allowing you to serve customers quickly and efficiently.
Depending on your space, you can select from models with one or two doors; some even have drawers to make your inventory more accessible. If you cannot fit an under-counter refrigerator, a worktop refrigerator or chef base can be an alternative.
Another option for your restaurant or bar is a dual temp under-counter refrigerator freezer combo, which offers the convenience of a fridge and freezer in one compact unit. This type of refrigerator can increase productivity by making it easier for your staff to prepare food without much back-and-forth movement between freezers and prep stations.
Choosing the right under-counter refrigerator is essential to ensure your commercial food business has the equipment to stay profitable and successful. First, when shopping for a unit, determine your budget and the space you must work with. Next, decide if you’ll use the unit as a fridge or freezer and which door style you prefer. Glass doors are ideal for self-service establishments, while solid doors are a better choice for back-of-house operations.
Reach-In Refrigeration
A reach-in refrigerator is an excellent option for busy commercial kitchens. This unit can help you manage your inventory better, keep food products at their optimal temperature, and speed up service times. It also allows you to store prepared bulk items like seasoned meats, fish, sauces, and dressings.
Reach-ins come in various sizes, including one-door, two doors, and three doors, typically around 23 cubic feet. They are generally available in both glass and solid door options.
Glass models provide extra visibility, so staff or customers can locate what they need quickly. They also tend to be more energy efficient than solid door models.
A half-door model is another choice, which provides a mix of both. It allows you to have a glass door on top of the unit for display storage and a solid door for storage on the bottom. It’s a good option for operations with open wood-burning ovens since this design prevents cold air from escaping.
Choosing the right reach-in is vital to your business’s success. Your selected unit should be built well, have durable doors, and have a reliable compressor.
The construction quality of a reach-in can range from economy to premium (sometimes called a “Spec Series”). Economic models are usually made of aluminium, while premium units use stainless steel on the exterior and interior.
In addition to the build quality, look for a warranty that covers parts and labour. For example, higher-end units typically have three or 5-year compressor warranties.
To ensure your reach-in refrigerator works appropriately, ensure the area is level and free of dusty or humid conditions. It can clog up the compressor and slow down its operation.
Walk-In Refrigeration
Walk-in ColdLogic commercial refrigeration Melbourne is an effective way to store food and other items for long periods without spoiling. In addition to keeping products safe and fresh, walk-in refrigerators are also energy efficient.
They’re an excellent option for restaurants and other food service operations with limited real estate. These units can be customised into existing buildings to fit your needed space.
There are several types of walk-ins, including self-contained and remote condensing units. Each of these has a different cooling system configuration and various options.
Self-contained walk-ins have the evaporator and condenser unit packaged in one unit, similar to an A/C window unit. These are typically the best choice for restaurants with low ceilings.
These systems require less floor space and are usually easier to install than custom built-in units. They’re also less expensive and can quickly be shipped as custom units.
They’re also much more energy-efficient than standard top-mount or side-mount units. It is because the evaporator coil is not hanging from the ceiling, which can reduce interior shelf space.
A curtain also helps keep the outside air out of the cold room, saving energy costs. These can be either strip curtains, made of thick plastic sheets hung in front of the door or air curtains, which use an overhead fan to blast air directly from above the doors.
Commercial Freezers
Whether you operate a restaurant, coffee shop, hotel, or other food service business, commercial freezers are essential to your cold foods and help preserve them for later use. They also provide valuable storage space for larger, frozen products more extensive to be stored on shelves.
ColdLogic commercial refrigeration Melbourne is more potent than residential refrigerators and designed for higher-volume use. Their interiors are crafted from commercial-grade materials that resist bacteria and maintain their temperature for long periods. In addition, they’re with multiple sensors that trigger automatic defrost functions to keep the freezer at the optimal temperature 24/7 and alert staff when doors are left open to prevent spoilage.
Most commercial freezers are crafted from stainless steel and polished glass, which resists increased wear-and-tear damage and corrosion. More powerful compressors also back them to provide more excellent cooling and storage abilities that are essential for the demands of a busy commercial kitchen.
Upright Freezers: These appliances have one or two outside doors and three to seven shelves for storing food, like home refrigerators. They have a smaller footprint than other freezers and lose less cold air each time they’re opened, but they require more floor space and may cost more to operate.
Chest Freezers: These freezers have more floor space than uprights but are less expensive to buy and operate. They lose less cold air each time they’re open but require more floor space and may need to be moved frequently for maintenance or repairs.
Roll-in & Rack: These freezers differ from traditional uprights because they allow you to directly roll entire sheet pan racks into the freezer rather than relying on shelves. It makes them ideal for bakeries, hotels, and large institutions that need to store several similar foods at once.
No matter what type of commercial freezer you choose, look for features that will benefit your business. The most important ones are size, capacity, and energy efficiency.
