Refrigerated Under bench cabinets are typically used in most commercial kitchens and have the greatest demands of performance expected from them.

However, their relatively small refrigerated space, combined with large doors means that a lot of cold air can be lost in peak operational times when your commercial kitchen is pumping out meal after meal.

Therefore, it is essential that the systems are kept in the best condition possible.

 

Condenser cleaning on under bench fridges

With the proximity of these fridges to the cooking areas, plenty of grease and grime accumulates onto the condenser coil and it can’t be simply wiped off. In fact, wiping a coil can actually push the dirt further inside making matters worse. At Allen Air and Refrigeration, we can spray a chemical cleaner onto your coil, allowing the foam to work which pulls out the grease. It is the sure fired way to keep your under-bench fridge running economically and may also save you a compressor failure.

Cabinet coolers, fans and ice blocks!

Inside your under-bench cabinet you will have a typical cabinet cooler like this one shown. The cold air is drawn into the fan and discharges out the evaporator coil, then into your fridge. If you hear a ticking start, it is a sign that it is perhaps icing up and is hitting the fan blades. It pays to have it looked at promptly as the blades are only made of plastic and can snap off. Occasionally the shaft can slip in the sticking blade and the hub of the plastic fan can be damaged also.

If you aren’t sure of it has iced up, make sure the fan is protected by the finger guard. Sometimes these are removed for cleaning and are lost forever. Once you have confirmed the cabinet cooler finger guard is in place, reach behind and feel the coil for ice. It’s easy enough, but just takes a little effort. If you do have ice built up it could be a “one off” if you have just loaded it or cleaned it. Or maybe the door was left open? In that case, empty the fridge and adjust the thermostat as warm as it will go so the compressor doesn’t run and leave it off for a couple of hours. Check the ice has gone and then set the t’stat for your underbench cabinet back to a recommended 3 degrees.

Note; if it is an old dial thermostat (not an electronic model) it pays to mark it with a pen before you make any changes, so you can put it right back where you started. We recommend you monitor the temp the next day, just in case it was set too cold by accident and ruined your products.

Door seals and hinges.

These are perhaps the items that require replacing the most. If you think about how many times the doors of the underbench fridge get opened and closed, you may suddenly realise a little maintenance can go a long way.

Seals come in many different profiles and sizes. Whilst we wish we could have them all in stock the truth is that there are just too many of them! We order your seals in for you so its always a good idea to plan ahead, just in case the health inspector comes snooping around!

 

Electronic controllers and Thermostats

Strangely enough, the main reason we see electronic controllers fail is due to water damage. During the Kitchen’s busy clean up schedule it seems that staff can be a little too liberal and it can find its way down into the controller. The replacement of these electronic thermostats will cost you several hundred dollars. Take a moment to look at the location of your Carel or Dixel branded electronic thermostat and consider what you can do to minimize risk of damage.

What temperature should I set my fridge at?

Typically, we set every fridge with food in it at 3 deg C. Any colder can actually start to damage some food products like lettuce, so we don’t see any benefit in going colder. For “Back Bar’ cabinets with drinks, we occasionally set them a little colder at 1.5 to 2 deg C, so that the patrons appreciate the refreshing drink and want to come back for more! Care must be taken when setting a thermostat. If it is set too close to 0 deg C, there is a significant chance of creating an ice up condition. If you are not sure how to adjust your thermostat

 

Contact Allen Air & Refrigeration for all your Commercial Kitchen needs!

 

 

 

 

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