LANG ELECTRIC 36" CHEESEMELTER

Lang Electric 36" Cheesemelter

A service call came in to our office from a customer stating that their electric cheesemelter was not heating at all. When our serviceman arrived he noticed one of the glass tube elements were broken and the coil on the inside of the glass tube was burnt in two. This particular machine has three elements, however, the way that its internally wired, when one element is burnt out none of them work. Therefore, no heat at all.

When he took off the brackets that hold the elements in place he noticed that one of the wires to an element was very frail and had burnt some of the insulation wrap from around it and left bare wire showing. These elements require special high temperature wire and ceramic wire nuts due to the extreme heat in the oven cavity.

With some new high temperature wire, ceramic wire nuts, and the new element he made his repair, reassembled the unit, and tested it.

NOTE: This particular piece of cooking equipment comes in either 208 volt or 240 volt ovens, therefore, you must purchase the correct elements that go to the specific oven. Also, the front and center elements are a different voltage rating than the rear element since the front and center ones are wired in series with one another.

CAUTION: Never use regular THHN or THW type electrical wire or plastic wire nuts in these units as they will melt and could cause an electrical short and/or fire.

For more information visit our website: Jeans Restaurant Supply

 866-618-4999

SERVICE CALL ON A VULCAN CONVECTION OVEN

We received a service call from a customer stating that they had a gas convection oven that wasn't heating up. When our technician arrived he was told that the oven sounds like everything is running but it just isn't heating. This convection oven is an electric ignition, gas operated oven. First thing he does is close the door and turn the controls to the on position. The blower motor starts but there was no ignition sound. This one is the type that has a spark igniter and he didn't hear it sparking. It's also the type that has an electronic temperature control with low volt sensor. The next thing he tried was to jumper the relay contacts to the temperature controller. This is a good test to see if there is a controller or sensor problem or possibly a spark ignition system problem in the igniter, flame switch, or spark ignition module.

Vulcan Convecction Oven

Once he jumped the relay on the temperature controller and turned the machine on he got spark ignition and the burner kicked on. This is a good test to quickly eliminate the ignition system. If it ignites and heats when the temperature controller relay contact is bypassed it usually indicates either a bad temperature controller or a bad temperature sensor. In either case the factory usually recommends if one of these parts go out to change both of them. Similar types of gas ignition systems are used on lots of different types of restaurant kitchen equipment including some gas fryers, griddles, tilt braisers, etc.

Our technician had to order these parts but when they came in he went back and replaced them and made another happy customer, especially since we had to expedite the parts to get them going just a few days before their Thanksgiving cooking.

Visit our website at: www.JeansRestaurantSupply.com
 866-618-4999

RESTAURANT WALK-IN FREEZER INSTALLATION

RESTAURANT WALK-IN FREEZER INSTALLATION

A local restaurant bought out an existing restaurant here in town and was remodeling the interior and exterior of the building to suit their needs. Part of our task was to install an indoor walk-in freezer in a back room of the restaurant next to an existing walk-in cooler.

Walk-in coolers and freezers

One of the most important factors in the installation of almost any piece of restaurant equipment that is sitting on the floor, especially a walk-in freezer,is to make sure the floor where it is going to sit is level. So, the first thing we do is put a laser leveling device on the floor and make sure we are dealing with a floor that is sufficiently level to install our box on. I say "sufficiently" level because ideally the floor should be perfectly level. However, few floors are ever perfectly level. If the floor is very badly off level it may have to be repaired first. If it is slightly off we may be able to use shims to level the box.

After checking this floor before installation we found it to be real close to perfect (which you don't see too often) so we had a good floor to begin our installation.

The existing walk-in cooler drain line and defrost timer were mounted on the side where we needed to butt the new unit up against so we had to disconnect and cut out the drain line on the old unit as well as remove the wiring and defrost timer. Both the drain and defrost timer had to be relocated so that the new walk-in could go next to the old one. We re-routed the drain line in a different manner to the floor drain and reinstalled the timer in a different location and rewired it to the electrical box and evaporator.

The installers then brought in the new walk-in which comes in panels that are positioned in place, installed and locked together to build the box. Once the box itself is completely built the installers hang the evaporator in the box and locate and mount the condensing unit on the roof above the walk-in. Once the condensing unit is mounted and secured a 4" hole is made in the roof for the penetration boot. The boot is then attached and sealed to the roof so the refrigeration copper line set can run from the evaporator up into the attic and out through the boot to the roof and connect to the condensing unit.

The installer then seals the perimeter of the walk-in box, removes all plastic wrap and labels, and cleans up the area.

At this point our refrigeration technician pipes the interconnecting piping from the evaporator to the condensing unit, installs any thermostat or TXV parts that may or may not be pre-installed, runs the drain line, installs the drain pipe heater on the drain line if required, vacuums the system to 500 microns, and wires the control wiring from the evaporator to the defrost timer.

When all is ready the technician will check the thermostat, defrost timer, and pressure controls for proper settings and perform a startup on the system. After the system gets down near operating temperature he then performs a superheat test to make sure it is operating at peak capacity.

Once the new freezer was operating and all checked out our tech proceeded to start up and test the old cooler since we had moved the timer and rewired it.

When our technician started testing the old cooler he found the left side evaporator fan motor was stiff and seized up (store had been closed and sitting for a while). After advising the owner the tech replaced the evaporator fan motor and got the unit up and running again. After a while he noticed it was struggling to cool down below 58-60 degrees F. Further checks found a lot of frost only on and near the expansion valve. After placing his refrigeration gauges on the unit he noticed the pressures were indicating what looked to be a restriction, which coincides with the frosty expansion valve that was noticed. Further superheat testing showed a high superheat number which is also an indicator of a possible restriction. He attempted to open up the expansion valve but no improvement was noticed. Therefore, he had to recover the refrigerant, replace the TXV (expansion valve), vacuum the system to 500 microns, and reinstall the charge. Since he replaced the expansion valve he had to perform superheat adjusts on the new valve until the unit had a good superheat setting. He set it at 8 degrees superheat. A good reading is typically between 6-10 degrees superheat.

Once these repairs were made the cooler cooled down properly and all problems seemed to be resolved.

Did you know we also do complete commercial kitchen design and consulting?

Visit our website at: Jean's Restaurant Supply
866-618-4999

VOLLRATH STRIP HEAT STRIP

Vollrath 48" Strip Heat Strips Service call

A customer of ours called and said one of their heat strips in the pass-thru window was hot heating up. When our technician arrived and found that it was not heating he turned off the breaker so he could get into the control box area where he could check component parts and look for any possible wiring issues. Once he had the control panel cover off he immediately saw two burnt wires that the plastic wire nut had melted off of. The wires feed out of the power switch and lead to the element.

He then checked continuity and resistance on the power switch and the element to make sure they were still good and they were. The electrician had used thhn wire for the power and it was overheating and melting the plastic off the wire and melting the plastic wire nuts inside the control box. Plastic nuts cannot be used in the control box because of the extreme heat of the equipment.

The electrical supply to the heating equipment was in a metal flex conduit to the unit and about 3 feet away on the nearby wall the metal flex lead to a j-box. To alleviate the problem of wires and wire nuts overheating our technician ran high temperature wiring from the control box back to the j-box that was on the wall nearby. He also used high temperature ceramic wire nuts in the control panel near the heat.

He then put all the panels back on and tested the unit for proper operation. Problem solved!

Visit us on our website at: Jeans Restaurant Supply
866-618-4999

RESTAURANT WALK-IN FREEZER INSTALLATION

RESTAURANT WALK-IN FREEZER INSTALLATION

A local restaurant bought out an existing restaurant here in town and was remodeling the interior and exterior of the building to suit their needs. Part of our task was to install an indoor walk-in freezer in a back room of the restaurant next to an existing walk-in cooler.

Walk-in coolers and freezers

One of the most important factors in the installation of almost any piece of restaurant equipment that is sitting on the floor, especially a walk-in freezer,is to make sure the floor where it is going to sit is level. So, the first thing we do is put a laser leveling device on the floor and make sure we are dealing with a floor that is sufficiently level to install our box on. I say "sufficiently" level because ideally the floor should be perfectly level. However, few floors are ever perfectly level. If the floor is very badly off level it may have to be repaired first. If it is slightly off we may be able to use shims to level the box.

After checking this floor before installation we found it to be real close to perfect (which you don't see too often) so we had a good floor to begin our installation.

The existing walk-in cooler drain line and defrost timer were mounted on the side where we needed to butt the new unit up against so we had to disconnect and cut out the drain line on the old unit as well as remove the wiring and defrost timer. Both the drain and defrost timer had to be relocated so that the new walk-in could go next to the old one. We re-routed the drain line in a different manner to the floor drain and reinstalled the timer in a different location and rewired it to the electrical box and evaporator.

The installers then brought in the new walk-in which comes in panels that are positioned in place, installed and locked together to build the box. Once the box itself is completely built the installers hang the evaporator in the box and locate and mount the condensing unit on the roof above the walk-in. Once the condensing unit is mounted and secured a 4" hole is made in the roof for the penetration boot. The boot is then attached and sealed to the roof so the refrigeration copper line set can run from the evaporator up into the attic and out through the boot to the roof and connect to the condensing unit.

The installer then seals the perimeter of the walk-in box, removes all plastic wrap and labels, and cleans up the area.

At this point our refrigeration technician pipes the interconnecting piping from the evaporator to the condensing unit, installs any thermostat or TXV parts that may or may not be pre-installed, runs the drain line, installs the drain pipe heater on the drain line if required, vacuums the system to 500 microns, and wires the control wiring from the evaporator to the defrost timer.

When all is ready the technician will check the thermostat, defrost timer, and pressure controls for proper settings and perform a startup on the system. After the system gets down near operating temperature he then performs a superheat test to make sure it is operating at peak capacity.

Once the new freezer was operating and all checked out our tech proceeded to start up and test the old cooler since we had moved the timer and rewired it.

When our technician started testing the old cooler he found the left side evaporator fan motor was stiff and seized up (store had been closed and sitting for a while). After advising the owner the tech replaced the evaporator fan motor and got the unit up and running again. After a while he noticed it was struggling to cool down below 58-60 degrees F. Further checks found a lot of frost only on and near the expansion valve. After placing his refrigeration gauges on the unit he noticed the pressures were indicating what looked to be a restriction, which coincides with the frosty expansion valve that was noticed. Further superheat testing showed a high superheat number which is also an indicator of a possible restriction. He attempted to open up the expansion valve but no improvement was noticed. Therefore, he had to recover the refrigerant, replace the TXV (expansion valve), vacuum the system to 500 microns, and reinstall the charge. Since he replaced the expansion valve he had to perform superheat adjusts on the new valve until the unit had a good superheat setting. He set it at 8 degrees superheat. A good reading is typically between 6-10 degrees superheat.

Once these repairs were made the cooler cooled down properly and all problems seemed to be resolved.

Did you know we also do complete commercial kitchen design and consulting?

Visit our website at: Jean's Restaurant Supply
866-618-4999

RESTAURANT VENTHOOD INSTALLATION

RESTAURANT VENTHOOD INSTALLATION

A local restaurant bought out an existing restaurant here in town and was remodeling the interior and exterior of the building to suit their needs. Part of our task was to install two new commercial kitchen ventilation hoods.

Here at Jeans Restaurant Supply we have our own in-house design team. We also have our own sheet metal fabrication shop that not only fabricates all the ductwork involved in the venthoods but we also design and manufacture our own UL approved hoods.

Once the contractor was able to remove any lighting, ceiling tiles, wiring, etc, that were going to be in the way of the new hoods our installation crew was able to come in and hang the hoods, make the necessary roof penetrations, install, seal, and insulate all ducting and exhaust and fresh air fans.
  
Once the hoods are all installed and properly ducted to the roof and the roof flashings are installed and sealed the fans can be installed. Once we've completed hanging the hoods and installing all necessary ducting and fans the electrician and the ansul fire protection system installers come in and install the electrical and fire safety equipment to the hoods. We work closely with these crews in consulting and advising as to what our equipment requires, i.e., voltage, phase, amperage draws, contactors, etc.

An integral part of the venthood is making sure that the equipment under it is spaced so that it fits within the limits under the hood. We also work closely with the plumbers in making sure that the right pipe size and number of cutoffs are supplied to match the equipment that is going under the hood.

Many municipalities, including our own here have new code requirements whereby duct and room sensors have to be included. A duct sensor in the hood and a room sensor mounted in the kitchen area sense heat when equipment under the hood comes on and starts heating up and will automatically turn the hood on. After equipment is off and cools down enough the hood will automatically turn off. You can also override the system and turn the hood on and off manually on the touch membrane pad if so desired.

We also install stainless steel panels on the walls under and on top of the hoods and other places needed or requested.

Once the installation is complete and the hoods are up and running we do an air balance test to make sure we have the proper balance of air to the hoods and make any final adjustments if necessary.

Visit our website at: www.jeansrestaurantsupply.com
 866-618-4999

COMMERCIAL ICE MACHINE INSTALLATION (REMOTE UNIT)

ICE MACHINE INSTALLATION

We at Jeans Restaurant Supply strive on superior sales and service and customer satisfaction.

We recently sold an ice machine to a car wash that has a drive-up ice and water dispenser vending machine next to his car wash. It has one ice machine and he wanted to add another one. His business was increasing and he need to step up his ice production. The building, the ice bin, and the remote unit framework where the outside condensing unit sits on the roof were originally designed and ready to accommodate two ice machines. Therefore, we sold him another ice machine to sit on the bin directly next to the other machine. The units were both Manitowoc CVD remote 2000 lb per day ice machines.

First we had to get the new condensing unit on the roof which involved a three man crew and our manual material lift to hoist the machine onto the roof, then secure it to the angle iron frame it sits in. While on the roof we noticed that the electrician had already ran us the new 240 volt, 30 amp, 3 phase circuit with disconnect placed close to our unit.

Upon examining the inside of the building we found that it was very tight with limited space beings it was full of a large filtration system and conveyors to filter and transfer the ice to the dispenser outside where it fills bags of ice automatically.

As we were attempting to install the new unit we found that they will both sit so tight next to each other and almost against the wall on the right side of the room that we weren't going to be able to get into the right side panel to open the shutoff valves to release the charge on the new unit once we got our pipes soldered and the unit properly vacuumed out. Since the building is so small (about 10' X 12') we had to recover the refrigerant out of the old unit, disconnect the plumbing, and remove the ice machine head from the building so we could place the new unit in the left position where the old unit was.

Once we had the old ice machine head out we were able to install our new one in place on the left side and complete our installation. This involves piping the remote line set, vacuuming the lines and the outside condensing unit, running the low voltage wires along with the line set to the remote unit and wiring them into the control panel. Once this is all done we open the valves in the inside unit to release the refrigerant into the system. Once we opened the valves we were able put the panel on and be done on that side so that we could go ahead and reinstall the old unit on the right hand side of the new one.

Since we moved the old unit to the right side we had to re-route the old units line set. Once the line set was reconnected we had to run a 4 point, 500 micron vacuum and recharge it. The inlet water lines and drain lines had to be reworked to accommodate both units. The inside units both operate off a regular 15amp, 120 volt power source with a standard power cord on them. Once we completed the plumbing we removed all the shipping materials from the new unit and started both units up.

Once started you must wait through a typical ice making cycle to make sure they make properly and in the specified time. Some ice machines require an initial adjustment of the ice thickness by the installer so we check the thickness after the first drop of ice. The cycle time on these models are approximately 12-15 minutes. Both ice machines dropped in the prescribed time but our new one had cubes that were a little hollow so we had to adjust the thickness control for a slightly longer freeze time. The second cycle put out a proper size cube and everything seemed to be good.

However, during the third freeze cycle the new unit cut off in the middle of the cycle and the control board had a fault code that said HPCO fault. This code means "high pressure cutout". When this code shows up it is because the refrigerant pressure got so high the unit cut out on high pressure. This can be due to a condenser fan failure, dirty condenser, blocked air flow at the condenser, bad fan pressure control, etc. In this case we have a brand new unit so we know the condenser is clean.

I proceeded to the roof to check the condensing unit. Once it cooled down I restarted the unit and found the fan would not come on. Further inspection found that the fan had a run capacitor mounted on its body and the factory had apparently left the capacitor mounting bracket loose so it allowed the metal capacitor cover cap to vibrate and shift and  rub against the wire terminal and short circuit. Upon testing the capacitor we found it to still be good but the motor windings were damaged in the short. By this time it was late into the evening so we had to leave the new unit off until we could get a replacement motor.

The following day we checked and the parts distributor had the motor in stock so we were able to go and replace the motor under the manufacturers warranty and get it up and running.

Problem solved. Another happy customer!

Visit us at: Jeans Restaurant Supply
 866-618-4999

Restaurant Vent Hood - Commercial Kitchen Ventilation Education

KITCHEN VENTILATION 102

Ventilation is the single most important factor in the design, construction, and operation of a commercial kitchen.

An exhaust hood is an air intake device connected to a fan that removes smoke, cooking vapors, grease, steam, heat, and odors that are made by cooking and ware washing equipment.

There are several different types of vent hood systems on the market, the most popular being the Type I Canopy hood. A canopy hood is basically a hood that is hung from the ceiling and covers all of the cooking equipment under it. None of the equipment can extend outside of the hood and there should be a minimum of 6" clearances to spare on each end of the hood. Canopy hoods used for cooking equipment will also have a "compensating hood", or fresh-air make-up hood around the perimeter of the canopy hood to bring fresh outside air back in to replace the exhaust air going out. Therefore, there are two integrated components to a kitchen ventilator hood - exhaust air and make-up air.

A kitchen ventilation system also works interdependently with the buildings HVAC system to produce a properly balanced flow of air to the building. A very slight negative air pressure is preferred in a commercial kitchen in order to keep the heat and odors of a kitchen from migrating back into the dining area or other parts of the building.

There are many factors involved in determining the size and type of kitchen vent hood required . A lot depends on the type and amount of cooking equipment that will be going under the hood. #1 the equipment must physically fit under the hood and have at least 6" overhang left on each end, not extend out in front of the hood, and be matched to the proper size fans (air flow requirements) for the particular equipment.

There are four classes of cooking appliances that require different cfm or air flow requirements. These are referred to as light duty, medium duty, heavy duty, and extra heavy duty. By this we mean the heavier duty equipment expends more heat, smoke and grease and hence requires a higher volume of air flow to remove more smoke and heat. Just a few examples are as follows:

• light duty - ovens, kettles, and other non-grease producing appliances
• medium duty - fryers, grills, griddles
• heavy duty - electric broilers and char broilers
• extra heave duty - gas char broilers, woks, mesquite burning broilers

Ducting is another major component to a ventilation hood. The ducting must be installed in compliance with local and national building and fire codes. Ducting should have the shortest and most direct path to exiting the building. It is also important that all duct sizing be properly calculated according to the amount of air flow and velocities required for proper performance of the hood while keeping the balance of air in the building at a proper level as talked about previously. Exhaust fan ducts must be welded water tight and wrapped with approved fire wrap insulation. Bends and elbows in the ducting should be kept to a minimum so as to allow for better air movement. Horizontal runs should have a slight slope downward (approximately 1/4" per foot) back toward the hood so that grease and water vapor can run back to the grease catcher or water drain.

A certified fire control system will also need to be installed in all commercial kitchen ventilation hoods that have cooking equipment under them.

Visit our website at: www.JeansRestaurantSupply.com

Contact Jean's Restaurant Supply if you have any questions about commercial kitchen vent hoods. 1-866-618-4999

COMMERCIAL VENT HOODS - AIR BALANCE

                                                         Restaurant Vent Hood - Air Balance

 Call us @ 1-866-618-4999 if you have any questions about commercial restaurant hoods or air balance in a kitchen. www.jeansrestaurantsupply.com

Below is from an actual service call:

I was dispatched out to do an air balance on a new vent hood at a new restaurant. The contractor bought the new vent hood from us but he had the installation done by someone else. Upon arrival we unpacked our electronic micro manometer instrument (which measures air flow in cfm's) and set it up to take our air flow readings. Readings are taken at each filter of the exhaust and at numerous locations across the make-up air to measure cfm's of each fan and measure the balance across the length of the hood. Several measurements are taken at each location and averaged together to get a more accurate average. Once the final figures are all put together we can analyze the air flow to see if both the exhaust air and the make-up air is actually balanced and flowing as it should.

After finding the results of the air balance test we can determine if the unit is functioning as it should or if any adjustments need to be done to either the exhaust fan or the make-up air fan. Each fan can be sped up or slowed down if needed to make any required adjustments in the balance of the air flow if need be.

To slow a motor down and decrease air flow to the commercial vent hood you need to decrease the size of the variable motor pulley and then make a readjustment to the belt. To speed up a motor and increase air flow you need to increase the size of the variable motor pulley and then readjust the belt tension. When you increase the size of the pulley you are increasing the speed of the motor and you must check amperage draw of the motor to be sure you don't speed the motor to a point to where its amperage draw is more than the listed motor amp draw rating that is listed on its nameplate.

You can also increase or decrease speed by adjusting the pulley on the blower wheel, however, the opposite rule applies to adjusting the blower wheel. Instead of increasing pulley size to increase speed, it would actually decrease speed if you increase pulley size don the blower wheel pulley. So you see, increase motor pulley size, increase speed, increase blower wheel pulley size, decrease speed of rotation.

Instances where some of the smaller fans use direct drive motors the speed cannot be changed unless it has a variable speed control mounted on it as many of the direct drive fans have. Then you simply turn the control up or down to increase or decrease speed.

Once the motor speeds have been altered a new air balance test would need to be performed to analyze the results and see if the hood has been properly balanced.

If you have questions about vent hoods or air balance on restaurant vent hoods please visit us online at: Jean's Restaurant Supply or give us a call at 1-866-618-4999

Commercial Vent Hoods - Jean's Restaurant Supply

                                                         Restaurant Vent Hood - Air Balance

 Call us @ 1-866-618-4999 if you have any questions about commercial restaurant hoods or air balance in a kitchen. www.jeansrestaurantsupply.com

Below is from an actual service call:

I was dispatched out to do an air balance on a new vent hood at a new restaurant. The contractor bought the new vent hood from us but he did the installation. Upon arrival we unpacked our electronic micro manometer instrument (which measures air flow in cfm's) and set it up to take our air flow readings. Readings are taken at each filter of the exhaust and at numerous locations across the make-up air to measure cfm's of each fan and measure the balance across the hood. Several measurements are taken at each location and averaged together to get a more accurate average. Once the final figures are all put together we can analyze the air flow to see if both the exhaust air and the make-up air is actually balanced and flowing as it should.

After finding the results of the air balance test we can determine if the unit is functioning as it should or if any adjustments need to be done to either the exhaust fan or the make-up air fan. Each fan can be sped up or slowed down if needed to make any required adjustments in the balance of the air flow if need be.

To slow a motor down and decrease air flow to the commercial vent hood you need to decrease the size of the variable motor pulley and then make a readjustment to the belt. To speed up a motor and increase air flow you need to increase the size of the variable motor pulley and then readjust the belt tension. When you increase the size of the pulley you are increasing the speed of the motor and you must check amperage draw of the motor to be sure you don't speed the motor to a point to where its amperage draw is more than the listed motor amp draw rating that is listed on its nameplate.

You can also increase or decrease speed by adjusting the pulley on the blower wheel, however, the opposite rule applies to adjusting the blower wheel. Instead of increasing

pulley size to increase speed, it would actually decrease speed if you increase pulley size don the blower wheel pulley. So you see, increase motor pulley size, increase speed, increase blower wheel pulley size, increase speed.

Instances where some of the smaller fans use direct drive motors the speed cannot be changed unless it has a variable speed control mounted on it. Then you simply turn the control up or down to increase or decrease speed.

Once the motor speeds have been altered a new air balance test would need to be performed to analyze the results and see if the hood has been properly balanced.

If you have questions about vent hoods or air balance on restaurant vent hoods please visit us online Jean's Restaurant Supply or give us a call at 1-866-618-4999

Jean's Restaurant Supply - Commercial Gas Griddle Service Call

GAS GRILL SERVICE CALL - SOOT BUILDING UP UNDER GRILL

We received a service call from a customer stating that they had a gas range that has a 24" grill on it that was making a lot of soot on the burners and the bottom side of the grill plate. The surface burners and oven was working fine. The only problem was with the commercial grill. Upon initial inspection I noticed the gas grill had three burners and the left and center burners were burning a pretty blue flame but the one on the right was burning big yellow flames which is what causes all of the soot build up.

I removed the grill plate and took the knobs and the front panel off the unit so I could gain access to the burners and burner valves. This particular problem can be caused by several things. Burner orifices may be clogged and dirty, burners may be clogged and dirty, or air shutter may be not be adjusted properly.

Further inspection found that the restaurant griddle burner orifice was partially clogged. I cleaned out all of the orifices with a small wire, rinsed off the burners, and adjusted all the air shutters and checked. All was burning clean so I proceeded to reassemble the unit and make a final test. All good!

For more information about gas griddles and maintenance please visit our website at:
Jean's Restaurant Supply
Or give us a call:  866-618-4999

COMMERCIAL REFRIGERATOR TRUE T-49 SERVICE CALL

REFRIGERATOR SERVICE CALL - EXCESSIVE CONDENSATION

Our office received a service call on a True T-49 2 door cooler that we had recently sold. He stated that the inside shelves were condensating a lot and dripping off of them. The unit was cooling fine but excessive interior moisture was the complaint.

Upon arrival at the job site I did an overall assessment of the environment it was in. It was installed in an air conditioned space that was temperature and humidity controlled so I immediately ruled out the possibility of the excessive humid conditions. Further inspection showed that the condensation was mostly on the top shelves and dripping down onto the other shelves and on to the interior floor of the machine.

Next I checked the drain line for clogs and found it draining just fine. Also, I checked the plastic drain hose that drains into the drain pan inside the bottom of the machine to make sure it had a proper trap on it so that heat or outside ambient air could not back up into the interior cabinet. It was properly trapped.

I then noticed that sometimes when I looked inside the reach in cooler the left door was not closing all the time (staying open a couple of inches). At this point I thought maybe that could be the issue because if the door stays open slightly ambient outside air would cause temperature differentials and condensation inside the cooler.

Since this unit is under warranty I immediately call the True technical service line for authorization to make the repairs. After talking to the technical service agent he agreed that it was probable that the door was getting left open sometimes so I adjusted both door tensions so the doors would close by themselves. He also wanted me to check to make sure the unit was level, and it was.

Two days later we received a call from the customer stating that the condensation problem had not gone away. A second service call was made and I again checked all the obvious things such as drain clogs, door seals, door closure, air migration, etc. Nothing unusual was noted so I called True technical service again and explained that we were back out on the same issue.

After going over all the obvious possibilities that I had already checked the True technician mentioned that it may have to do with the products being placed in it and the way the unit is being used. We talked about the product. The main usage for this commercial refrigeration unit is the customer is aging beef in it. Some of the beef was in vacuum sealed wrap and a few were just open and not covered. The True tech said he thought that maybe the moisture is being sucked out of the exposed beef by the blower system and ends up on the shelves in the unit. Therefore I instructed the customer to make sure that all the product was properly covered before placing in the refrigerator. And another thing that True wanted to do was extend the defrost time on the Lae controller and increase the evaporator fan operation time which we did.