When correctly installed they are not only efficient and practical, they are also safe to use. Employers have a responsibility to ensure that their workforce is kept as safe as possible while carrying out their duties. When it comes to cold room use there are a few safety considerations that it can be helpful to bear in mind.

Correct installation and maintenance

Perhaps the single most important safety practice with a cold room is ensuring that it’s properly installed and maintained. This is a baseline of cold room safety and if you have any doubts about how your cold room is operating you should call Enviro Chill immediately for a thorough assessment.

Monitor the temperature

The workload should be planned by monitoring the air movement and temperature in all cold work areas. The heavier workloads should be scheduled during the warmer parts of the day. The amount of time that people spend in the coldest parts of the cold room should be limited to what’s strictly necessary.

Equipment and clothing

The appropriate equipment and clothing should be worn by anyone who is working in cold environments. The body should be covered with at least three layers to provide the correct layers of insulation. Ideally, this should include a synthetic base layer next to their skin, a wool or cotton material in the middle, and then a waterproof layer for their outer clothing.

This combination should provide excellent levels of insulation. On their head, they should wear a wool knit cap perhaps under a hard hat to help provide protection and help to reduce heat loss.

Eye and face protection should also be worn. This should be separate from the nose and mouth which should prevent fogging that can cause visibility problems. Gloves should be worn to prevent cold-related handling injuries and to help maintain dexterity.

Proper training and safety practices

Workers should be educated about the symptoms of cold room-related illnesses. Supervisors must also ensure an appropriate rest period for each working schedule. Safety measures can help everyone work more safely and efficiently reduce the risk of cold-related illnesses and other health threats.

Encourage healthy practices

Cold room workers should be encouraged to consume high-calorie food that helps them to maintain energy reserves and body heat. They should also drink warm fluids to raise their body temperature and to stay hydrated.

Flexible cold room installation

Enviro Chill are cold room and refrigeration service experts. We offer chiller and freezer cold room options, from small modular options to large cold room systems for warehouses. We have the expertise and know-how to install and maintain your cold room to the very highest standards of performance and safety.

Whatever your particular requirements we can find the perfect solution for you. For more information call our sales staff on 0151 268 1854 or contact us online.

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If you’ve decided that a cold room is right for your business the question then arises as to how you finance it. Is it cheaper to buy or hire a walk-in cold room?  If you’re just starting out and keen to keep upfront costs to a minimum you may be tempted by the option to hire rather than buy, but which is most cost-effective over time?

Hire prices on average

You should expect on average to pay around £250 on average for a couple of days of cold room hire. While this may be acceptable if you’re hiring a portable unit for use as part of an outside catering service, perhaps at a festival, wedding or other event, it’s not cost effective for permanent use.

The average cost of installing a small walk-in cold room is around £6,000. This figure would give you 48 days of cold room hire at a rate of £125 per day. Based on those figures, it would seem much more cost effective to buy a cold room rather than hire it.

That said, a permanent walk-in cold room is a large investment for many hospitality businesses, particularly when cash flow is tight and there’s a need to keep down overheads. It’s important therefore to properly consider if it’s the right choice for your business.

Why might someone choose to hire?

Cold room hire services are available and in some instances it’s an option that makes perfect sense. If you’re staging a temporary event and are looking for a cold room to assist with the catering operation, then hiring a cold room is the perfect solution.

Mobile cold rooms are also available that you can take from venue to venue. You can also purchase these, but if your business is seasonal and you perhaps only operate from April to October over long weekends, then a hire contract might be the most appropriate choice.

Maintenance costs

One consideration that sometimes tips people towards hiring rather than buying is the perceived ongoing maintenance costs of a cold room. It does take time and some outlay to ensure that a cold room keeps working as efficiently as possible, but maintenance contracts are actually cheaper than many people realise.

At Enviro Chill, our regular air conditioning and refrigeration maintenance agreements begin from as little as £50 a year. Our comprehensive breakdown policy ensures your cold room and other refrigeration equipment runs at maximum efficiency.

The affordability of regular maintenance is often something that isn’t reported by companies offering cold room hire which can lead to people opting for a hired option when buying a cold room would be more cost effective.

Permanent premises

If you operate a catering or hospitality business from permanent premises where you intend to stay for some time, then purchasing a cold room is always likely to be the most cost effective option. It really wouldn’t be practical or cost-effective to hire a cold room on a long term basis although it’s certainly possible to do so.

If you have a permanent premise and require significant storage space for perishable ingredients then you should try to budget for a walk-in cold room.

Affordable cold room installation

At Enviro Chill, we are cold room and refrigeration service experts. We offer both chiller and freezer cold room options, from small modular cold rooms to large cold room systems for warehouses. You can also choose from an extensive range of cold room shelving in order to make the most of your space.

Whatever your particular requirements we can find the perfect solution for you. For more information call our sales staff on 0151 268 1854 or contact us online.

The post Is it cheaper to buy or hire a walk-in cold room? appeared first on Enviro Chill.

While it’s important to know what motivates you, if you don’t get the nuts and bolts right then it’s likely your business will face unnecessary challenges going forward.

If you’re running a restaurant, bar, cafe, hotel or other food or hospitality operation, getting your refrigeration right is vital.

Commercial grade refrigeration will be one of your biggest outlays, so it’s important to get it right first time. A cold room is frequently the optimum solution for catering operations.

What are the benefits of a cold room?

Walk-in cold rooms can make life much easier for you and your staff, offering high levels of convenience and organisation. Locating food and drink on organised shelving is much easier than having to rummage through refrigerator drawers. In a busy kitchen environment that can make all the difference. They allow you to keep larger quantities of products at hand, reducing the need for ordering and deliveries.

Do you need a cold room?

 Whether or not your business needs a cold room, or can make do with a smaller refrigeration unit depends on the amount and type of the food you’ll be serving.  Larger businesses that use high quantities of refrigerated ingredients are likely to require the space and convenience that only a cool room can bring. Small catering operations, less so. Think about the amount of deliveries you have on a daily and weekly basis. If you’re filling up your refrigeration with fresh produce every day, which is then used quickly, then you might not need a cold room. If your deliveries are once or twice weekly, then a cold room might be a practical solution.

How much-refrigerated produce will you have in stock at any one time?

Do you have the space for a cold room?

 You may feel you need a cold room, but do you realistically have the space? The good news is, cold rooms now come in a variety of sizes from walk in closet size, to large rooms. This means a broader range of businesses can make use of them.  Getting the size right is key to keeping your cold room efficient. In smaller units, the goods inside are packed closer together reducing air flow. If your cold room is too large, you’ll be paying unnecessary running costs. At Enviro Chill we can custom make the ideal cold room for your business, finding the perfect balance between size and efficiency.

How do cold storage rooms?

The technology used in a cold oom is practically identical to that used in domestic refrigeration, but more complex and on a larger scale due to the demands of these types of unit.

What temperature do cold rooms run at?

There’s a range of temperature options available depending on your individual requirements. Refrigerated cold rooms typically run at a temperature range of between 0c and 10c, an optimum range for the chilled storage of diary and cooked meats.

For fresh fish and meat, lower temperatures are usually required, so a range of -2c to -5c, might be more appropriate. If you keep a large amount of frozen goods in stock, then walk-in freezers which have temperatures of around -15c to -25c might be the optimum choice.

Are cold room installations complicated?

Modular construction techniques have made the whole installation process much simpler, and they can be erected inside an existing building. They do need to be fitted by a qualified engineer, who will make a site visit to find out your exact requirements, and then advise you as to the best way to proceed.

Enviro Chill offer professional refrigeration services across the North West

Based in Liverpool, but operating across the North West, our qualified engineers provide a professional cold room installation service. We create bespoke cold rooms that meet the precise business requirements of our customers. From cold room systems for warehouses, to bespoke modular cold rooms for restaurants, we’re experienced at finding the right solution for the differing needs of our clients.

To find out more about our commercial refrigeration services, or to arrange a free site visit, call us on 0151 285 1818, or use our online contact form .

The post The ultimate guide for selecting and installing a cold room for your business appeared first on Enviro Chill.