4 Reasons Why Your Cooler or Fridge isn’t Staying Cold
Here’s a situation that you’re probably familiar with: you walk into your cooler and something doesn’t feel right. You check the temperature and, sure enough, it’s not running as cool as it should. What do you do?
You may feel compelled to adjust the thermostat cooler to get back to the proper temperature. But, this probably isn’t the best solution and could end up costing you and your business money in the long run.
In fact, if you decide to adjust your thermostat without resolving the underlying issue, you risk overstressing and burning out the compressor, which could lead to costly repairs. Thankfully, there are common solutions for fixing a cooler or fridge that’s having difficulty keeping its temperature.
4 reasons your fridge or cooler isn’t staying as cold as it should:
- The condenser coil is dirty – You should be cleaning your cooler’s condenser coils at least once a month. If it hasn’t been cleaned lately, this is the first thing you should be looking at. While each model fridge or cooler will have different cleaning instructions, for the most part you’ll need to clean the condenser coil with a nylon brush, a shop vacuum or a combination of the two.
- The cooler is too full – If your cooler is jammed with product there may not be enough air circulation for it to operate properly. Organize things properly and ensure that there’s plenty of room for air to reach all parts of the cooler. Look particularly against the back wall, you’ll usually need an inch or 2 inch between product and the wall to allow cold air to drop all the way to the floor.
- The gaskets or seals need to be replaced – Gaskets and seals are very important because they form a seal between the outside warm air and the inside cool air. Eventually, gaskets and seals will wear out, so be sure to regularly check the gaskets and seals for cracks or separation from the unit. If your cooler or fridge requires new gaskets or seals, contact us today for servicing.
- Staff tampering – If you try the above methods and find that your fridge or cooler still cannot hold its temperature, ensure that no other staff members are fidgeting with its thermostat. Rule the thermostat temperature with an iron fist! In the restaurant and food supply industry there are so many variables in play each day. Ensure that the temperature of your fridge or cooler isn’t one of them!
While there are legitimate reasons for lowering the temperature of your fridge or cooler – like repurposing it for different products – for the most part you should use a “set it and forget it” policy with your fridge or cooler’s thermostat.
If you’ve done all of the above and you’re still having difficulty with your fridge or cooler, contact us today for a service call.
Tags: coolers, freezers, refrigerators