How Do Commercial Freezers Differ from Regular Ones?

Why should you spend more on a commercial freezer if regular freezers perform more or less the same function? Well, the short answer is that they don’t. Commercial freezers are specially designed to cater to a variety of functions that simply wouldn’t be possible for normal freezers. Here’s a breakdown of how commercial freezers differ from regular ones.

Can Your Company Save Money by Purchasing a Residential Freezer?

As a company owner or manager, you may be tempted to pass on a commercial freezer and purchase a much cheaper option. Residential freezers will keep your goods cold, but you will forego many other benefits that are specifically designed to accommodate a restaurant, retail store, or medical establishment.

In the long run, it is better to choose from the range of commercial freezers available on the market. Features such as storage space, temperature-specific technologies, durability, self-cleaning, and professional maintenance are all reasons to consider your selection more carefully. Here’s more specific information on these features.

Features to Consider When Comparing Freezers

Storage Capacity

Any restaurant, retail store, or medical facility that’s aiming to grow in the future should consider the storage space commercial freezers offer. While residential freezers offer as much as 17 cubic feet of space, commercial freezers are much, much larger.

In terms of cubic feet, you can choose more or less how much space you want (as much as 400,000 cubic feet, but also much less depending on your requirements). Not only will you have more space, but access and organisation on commercial freezers are superior too. Many of these freezers have walk-in designs and allow for shelf installation, product-specific storage, and easy access for staff.

Temperature Regulation

Not all products require the same measure of temperature control. Commercial freezers allow for variable temperature control to a finer margin compared to residential freezers. This is perfect for maintaining the quality of retail goods, and is essential for medical supplies that require a very specific cooling temperature.

Reliability and Durability

Yes, it’s true: commercial freezers last longer than regular ones. Because of the strenuous nature of commercial cooling, residential freezers are likely to break after a while, leaving you with an emergency where you have to frantically relocate all of your products.

Choosing to equip your company with a commercial freezer will ensure years—even decades—of reliable service. While it’s true that commercial freezers do require regular maintenance (see below), this invariably saves you money in the long run.

Self-Cleaning Technology

Condensers in residential (and some industrial) freezers often collect a fair amount of dust over time. This prevents the components from properly performing their function of freezing. Fortunately, many commercial freezers also come with self-cleaning technology that perpetually maintains the hygiene of the freezer’s components, allowing it to consistently maintain an exact temperature throughout its lifetime.

Temperature Consistency

If you’ve ever owned a regular freezer at home, you know that it can super-freeze everything inside for a long time. What you may not know is that whatever minus temperature your contents are experiencing, it’s never 100% consistent.

Residential freezers lack in two important ways when it comes to temperature consistency. First, they have weaker insulation than commercial freezers. Secondly, they possess inferior compressors. Both these factors will result in slight temperature changes throughout the day; which can compromise your goods.

Maintenance Schedule

HVAC/R technicians are experts who check the components of commercial freezers on a set schedule. A team will visit your establishment and check every aspect of your commercial freezer to ensure that:

• The temperature regulator (thermostat) is working and maintaining the exact correct temperature.
• The insulation has not been compromised in any way.
• The compressor is functioning properly.
• The freezing unit isn’t consuming more power than it should.

For a small fee every few months, you will have a commercial freezer that is being maintained for the purpose of lasting you many more years to come. Commercial freezers should be seen as an investment, and maintaining them professionally is essential to receiving a decent return on that investment.

Power Consumption

Based on your freezing space, size, and temperature regulation, commercial freezers may cost you more on your utility bill. However, these freezers also have smart thermostats that regulate the power usage to save you money—comparatively speaking. If we look at the big picture, the benefits far outweigh this increase in cost because of the multiple benefits enjoyed by owning a commercial freezer.

Wrapping Up

As you can see from these points above, selecting a commercial freezer that’s specifically designed for your retail needs is essential to maintaining a high level of quality and professionalism. Again, this is an investment worth making, so choose wisely before settling for a standard model that in many ways will be inferior to commercial freezers.