Walk-In Freezer Cleaning Guide

Keeping a walk-in freezer clean and maintained helps it run efficiently and effectively. If you have a business that relies on a commercial walk-in freezer, you need to look after it so that you do not experience any breakdowns or need urgent walk-in cooler repairs. Let’s take a look at how you can clean your walk-in freezer.

Prepare Yourself

The first thing that you need to do is prepare yourself. What this means is that you need to gather all the essential items and tools needed to clean the walk-in freezer. At the same time, cover yourself by wearing gloves and goggles to reduce any chances of injury.

Next, turn off the freezer and begin cleaning. If you are cleaning the freezer after a while, you might come across stubborn accumulation that will need a bit of effort and time to remove. On the other hand, if your freezer has been receiving regular cleaning, you can simply wipe and clean using special cleaning products.

Clean The Interior And Exterior

Walk-in freezers consist of shelving units, freezer walls, and floors where ice buildup usually occurs. Before you begin cleaning such areas, allow the ice to melt. Then, remove the water and clean the interior using microfiber cloths, brushes, and chemicals.

Once you are done cleaning the interior, move onto the exterior. Make sure that you wiped down all door gaskets because that is where mold and mildew are found. Next, clean the evaporator and condenser coils and fans to eliminate dirt and oxidation. Upon removing them, it will enable your freezer to run more efficiently.

For Optimal Walk-In Freezer Performance

Doors

To ensure that your walk-in freezer always offers optimal performance, keep the doors shut. If the doors are even slightly open, cool air will sneak out, forcing the freezer to work harder, ultimately increasing the energy costs.

If the doors do not shut properly, inspect the door sweeps and gaskets to see if they need replacement. This is a common occurrence amongst old freezers.

Floors

Once you are done cleaning the doors, move towards ensuring that the floors are clean as well to prevent pest attraction. You wouldn’t want someone to walk in and come across pests and flies feeding on the leftover food on the floor. Additionally, spillovers can quickly freeze leading to slip-ups and accidents.

Fans And Condensers

Fans and condensers are perhaps the most important components of a walk-in freezer. If either of the two is faulty, the freezer will not perform at its optimum. At the same time, these components are quite expensive to repair and replace, therefore, you would want to make sure that they are away from trash, plant growth, or anything that impedes their airflow.

Furthermore, check the suction or insulation lines between the condensing unit and evaporator coils. Coils might also need regular cleaning, so you need to clean them as well. Examine the fan motors to see whether they are running at optimal speeds.

Electrical

Sometimes, loose wires and faulty connections can also damage the walk-in freezer. Initially, you might not be able to detect electrical issues since the entire network is located inside. However, if you smell something burning, you should turn the freezer immediately off.

Detecting electrical problems beforehand significantly helps in reducing expensive damages. If you observe something unusual, you should ask a professional to thoroughly inspect the appliance.

Drain Lines

It is quite often that drain lines of commercial walk-in freezers are overlooked. This can pose harm to the health and performance of the freezer. Drain lines are designed for water and other leftovers to exit. With time, these drain lines will become clogged. Therefore, you need to ensure that the drain lines are free from any blockages and the water does not back up and finds its way inside the freezer, contaminating the items stored inside.

Final Word

Walk-in freezers are not that difficult to clean and maintain. To make the process easy, simply create a maintenance schedule and follow it. This will keep the freezer in top-notch condition and allow you to detect problems beforehand, prolonging the life of the unit. Only use reputable commercial appliances repair Alexandria services for inspecting and repairing the freezer.

How To Improve The Energy Efficiency Of Your Commercial HVAC

HVAC units are designed to be efficient. However, some people complain of high energy costs, which mostly relates to their usage. Since heating and cooling is one of the biggest expenses, it is important that you keep a check on the HVAC system and frequently carry out commercial air conditioning repair to make it as energy efficient as possible. Let’s take a look at some tips that will improve the efficiency of your HVAC unit.

 

Proper HVAC Maintenance

You might have heard this before but you need to start taking it seriously. HVAC units like many other appliances in your house need to be maintained. Since they are dealing with dust, dirt and debris on a daily basis, the filters can become clogged reducing the overall performance and efficiency.

Luckily, maintaining the air filters is not that difficult. It is something that you can do on your own as well but when it is time for the annual maintenance. You should only consult professionals. HVAC units also comprise several components. A thorough AC inspection allows the professionals to spot potential problems and repairs. This prevents you from splashing a huge amount of money on expensive repairs or replacements down the road.

Cleaning The Condenser And Evaporator Coils

Apart from the air filters, the condenser and evaporator coils also play a huge role in the unit’s efficiency. In fact, these components do most of the work. If the condenser or evaporator coils are covered with dust and dirt, it will lead to overheating. An excessively heated component will either break down or simply fail to perform at its optimum capability.

Evaporator coils are designed to absorb humidity and heat from the air while the condenser coils expel that heat outside of your building. When the coils are covered with dust, it is not possible for them to efficiently dispel heat. Therefore, the unit heats up, the performance decreases and the energy costs rise because the unit has to work harder.

Cleaning The Air Filters

Although we have covered this point recently, we need to stress on it as well. The reason being that air filters act as the lungs of an HVAC unit. If they are clogged, the unit will find it comparatively difficult to distribute cool air. As a result, it will have to work harder than usual, increasing the energy costs.

Air filters are neither difficult to clean nor expensive to replace. However, if ignored, they can bring the entire unit down. Therefore, you should never neglect or ignore their cleaning and maintenance. Furthermore, if your HVAC unit requires new air filters, you should only opt for the original factory filters. Installing other types of filters is also another reason behind reduction in efficiency.

Consider Economizers

Economizers have been around for a while and are becoming popular with each passing day. The economizer is basically a damper vent that is designed to reduce energy consumption and offer much needed relaxation to your HVAC unit.

These dampers feature sensors that read the outside temperature and humidity in the air. If the air is the right temperature, the damper vents open and allow outside air to come in. As a result, the usage of your HVAC unit is reduced. However, if the air outside is of not the right temperature, the dampers remain closed. People who have installed economizers have shared significant differences in their monthly bills.

Programmable Thermostats

Programmable thermostats are one of the most popular energy efficient solutions. With a programmable thermostat at your disposal, you do not have to adjust the temperature multiple times during the day. However, when it comes to installing a programmable thermostat, you should ensure that it is properly calibrated. Otherwise, instead of reducing your energy costs, you will end up with higher monthly bills.

Final Word

Concluding, the above-mentioned tips are tried and tested in terms of making your HVAC unit more energy efficient. You should make sure that it receives annual maintenance by expert commercial HVAC companies ronkonkoma and install economizers or programmable thermostats if required. While commercial HVAC units are engineered to be as efficient as possible, other factors rely on you as your responsibility to ensure maximum efficiency and save your business some money.