Walk-in coolers are designed to keep perishable foods cold and fresh without freezing them. However, there are a lot of different ideas about what temperature is ideal for walk-in coolers. So, how cold should a walk-in cooler be in Eugene, OR? Keep reading to learn more about how to properly set the temperature of your walk-in cooler and how to handle problems with over-cooling and other temperature-related issues.
How cold should a walk-in cooler be in Eugene, OR?
If you’re wondering how cold your walk-in cooler should be in Eugene, OR, it depends on what you’re trying to keep cool. It’s important to consider what kind of products are in your cooler when determining how to calibrate your cooler. However, no matter what’s in your cooler, the temperature should be somewhere between 35 and 45°F. Anything below that range has the potential to freeze your products, and that can cause problems for some perishable items. Above that range, your cooler might not be able to keep your items sufficiently fresh.
Why it’s important to keep temperatures in the right range
A lot of people err on the cooler side of the temperature range to avoid causing perishable items to spoil, but it’s important to keep the temperature well above freezing. Allowing food in a cooler to freeze can cause a lot of quality problems. If dairy, vegetables or fruits are frozen while being stored in a walk-in cooler, they might not taste quite right after they’ve thawed. Freezing can also affect the texture of these foods. With that in mind, it’s best to avoid setting the temperature of your cooler any lower than 35°.
Dealing with a malfunctioning cooler
Even the best walk-in coolers are susceptible to mechanical problems. Sometimes, walk-in coolers have issues with their temperature sensors and controls that prevent users from effectively calibrating or controlling cooling temperatures. If something goes wrong with the thermometer or temperature control system in your cooler, you might be left with an over-freezing problem.
If your cooler is freezing its contents or there are other problems with your walk-in cooler, the best thing to do is contact a professional right away. A technician specializing in walk-in cooler repairs can provide the services necessary to get your equipment back up and running and prevent future problems with freezing and over-cooling. Even if there isn’t anything wrong with your cooler, it’s still a good idea to work with a technician for routine inspections and service appointments. Regular service will improve your cooler’s performance, longevity and efficiency.
Professional walk-in cooler repairs
If you’re looking for help with a malfunctioning walk-in cooler in Eugene, OR, reach out to American Refrigeration Inc. Since 1995, we have been providing comprehensive heating, cooling, ventilation and refrigeration services to commercial customers throughout our area. In addition to our standard repair and maintenance services, we also provide 24/7 emergency service to ensure you get the help you need, whenever you need it. Give us a call to schedule a service appointment and find out more about everything we have to offer.
Are you an aspiring winemaker? When you’re just getting started, you might not fully understand the importance and effects of temperature control in winemaking in Eugene, OR. When it comes to wine, taking it slow is the key to a great product. Alcohol ferments faster at higher temperatures, but for great flavor and finish, it’s best to ferment at lower temperatures. That’s where winery chillers come in—they allow the winemaker to precisely control the temperature inside the fermentation vessel so the product is consistent and delicious.
A winemaking overview
To understand the necessity of temperature control, it’s best to first understand how wine is made:
Harvesting: Obviously, to make wine you need grapes—and it’s important to harvest them at just the right time, so they have the appropriate amount of sugars, acids and tannins.
Pressing: Next, the grapes need to be crushed or pressed to release the juice and burst the grape skins, which will allow fermentation to take place. This is usually done with mechanical presses today.
Fermentation: Fermentation will naturally begin in around six to 12 hours after pressing, using the wild yeast in the air. However, most winemakers prefer to add their own yeast in precise amounts. They may decide to inoculate the grapes by killing off the natural yeast and adding their own. Once the yeast is under control, fermentation will begin converting all the natural sugars in the grapes to alcohol, and won’t stop until the process is complete. Fermentation can take as little as 10 days or continue for a longer period of time—the temperature has a big impact on the final product, alcohol content and flavor, as well as how long it takes to finish.
Clarification: Next, winemakers remove the sediment from the wine in a process called clarification. They may use a filter or add compounds like egg whites to help remove the waste product left behind.
Aging and bottling: Finally, the wine is left to age and bottle (and then perhaps age again, depending on the variety). Aging also requires certain temperatures, but rarely needs to be as precise as the fermentation process.
Why precise temperatures are necessary for great wine
Fermentation generates heat: Fermentation is an exothermic process. As the yeast feeds on the sugar and converts it to alcohol, heat is generated. As you know, the higher the temperature, the faster the process—but for superior flavor, most wines require temperature control during fermentation.
The ideal temperature varies by wine type: White wines need to be kept at 40 to 65 degrees Fahrenheit, while reds can ferment at 70 to 85 degrees Fahrenheit. This helps preserve the depth of flavor and body present in great wines.
Extracts better color and tannins: Temperature control in winemaking in Eugene, OR also affects how much color is extracted from the grape skins, and the tannins overall—the precise amounts can vary, depending on the wine type.
For winery chillers and all things refrigeration related, American Refrigeration Inc. has you covered. Call us today to learn more about our winery chillers or schedule service and repair.
Lots of businesses use walk-in coolers to keep perishable foods fresh and keep bottled beverages cool for customers. No matter what kind of walk-in cooler you have or what you use it for, it’s important to make sure it stays in the best condition possible. In addition to routine maintenance service and inspections, it’s crucial to be proactive about walk-in cooler repair in Eugene, OR to keep your equipment in good working order for years to come.
Why it’s important to have your cooler repaired
There are a lot of reasons why it’s important to get walk-in cooler repair in Eugene. One of the most important things to keep in mind is the fact that perishable items are highly sensitive to temperature fluctuations. If temperatures in your cooler rise too high, you might have to throw out your entire inventory of perishable items to avoid selling foods that have spoiled.
If your cooler is broken for too long, you might have to throw your inventory away, which means you could be wasting products and money. In addition, cooler repairs will keep your facility compliant. Keeping coolers running effectively is important for complying with health codes and making sure your facility meets all the relevant regulatory standards.
What to expect from walk-in cooler repair
Understanding what’s involved in an appointment for walk-in cooler repair in Eugene, OR can help you feel more prepared for this kind of service. At the beginning of your appointment, the technician will inspect your system and ask questions about its performance. This is the time to talk about any specific concerns you’re having with your cooler and point out any issues the technician should know about. After the inspection, your technician will give you more information about any problems with your walk-in cooler that must be repaired to get it working properly again.
Once your technician talks to you about the repairs required to fix your walk-in cooler, make sure you understand all the recommendations. Ask as many questions as you need to so you fully understand all the services the technician wants to perform to repair your cooler. Next, make sure to ask for a written quote to find out how much it will cost to get your cooler repaired.
Finally, don’t wait around to get walk-in cooler repairs. The longer you wait for repairs, the more likely it is that your products will go bad and the more difficult it will be for you to safely store your inventory.
Schedule walk-in cooler repair in Eugene, OR
For professional walk-in cooler repair in Eugene, OR, reach out to American Refrigeration Inc. We offer comprehensive services for commercial clients throughout the area, including HVAC and refrigerator maintenance, repairs and installation. If you’re concerned about the functionality of your cooler, our team will provide an in-depth inspection to assess its condition and make recommendations for maintenance and repair services. Give us a call today to find out more about what we have to offer and to schedule an appointment with our team.
Glycol chillers are widely used throughout the restaurant, bar, brewery and winery industries. They’re popular because they can help maintain precise and consistent temperatures while offering good energy efficiency. Any food or beverage process that requires fermentation can benefit from a glycol chiller, including brewing and winemaking.
Here’s an overview of what you need to know about glycol chillers in Eugene, OR:
They use glycol as a coolant: Glycol is a chemical coolant that can transfer heat more efficiently than just about any other type on the market. Glycol chillers use either propylene glycol (best for food applications) or ethylene glycol, and the precise temperature can be adjusted by adding more water or glycol to the system. They typically use about a 60/40 mixture of glycol to water, which allows rapid cooling while staying in a liquid state.
They use heat exchangers to refrigerate: Glycol chillers move the water and glycol solution to a chiller, where it gets very cold, then distributes the coolant to freezers, refrigerators, prep tables and more. The cool liquid refrigerates the fixture and is cycled back into the chiller when it gets warm.
You can adjust the temperature: As mentioned in the first point above, your refrigeration technician can help you come up with the right glycol/water solution to achieve the temperatures you need. That makes them a good option when your beer, wine or other products require precise refrigeration.
They’re durable and reliable: Glycol chillers are reliable enough to last for decades when properly maintained and regularly serviced. As with all restaurant and beverage equipment, partnering with a trusted service provider to maintain and repair your glycol chiller is going to be the best approach.
Better than water chillers: Glycol is a popular coolant choice because of its extremely low freezing temperature, which allows it to stay in a fluid state at much lower temperatures. Water, on the other hand, freezes at 32 degrees Fahrenheit, which limits the temperature range they can achieve. Compare that to a 60 percent glycol solution, which will only freeze at -63 degrees Fahrenheit.
In short, glycol chillers are the superior choice for the food and alcohol industry. Their rapid cooling abilities, energy efficiency, reliability and huge range of temperatures makes them a better option than water chillers. When using a glycol chiller, you’ll be able to quickly cool down hot liquids and adjust everything to the precise conditions you need for great results. Wine and beer making generate a lot of heat, so having a durable and reliable chiller is essential.
Are you interested in buying and installing your own glycol chiller for your winery or brewery? American Refrigeration Inc. has been supplying quality refrigeration products to the Eugene area for over 20 years. In addition to glycol chillers in Eugene, OR, we also offer cold storage rooms, walk-in freezers, heat pumps, HVAC equipment, ice machines and more. Whether you’re running a restaurant, winery, brewery or store, we have your refrigeration needs covered. Be sure to call us today to learn more about our products, or set up an appointment for chiller repair and maintenance.
If you own a distillery or brewery, you need a distillery chiller in Eugene, OR. Distillery chillers are crucial in cooling down your boiled wort so that the fermentation process can begin.
Depending on the size and type of your distillery, you can customize your distillery chillers for a number of different goals. However, they all have one thing in common: they use water, and often propylene glycol in a heat exchanger to cool down your liquids. How they accomplish this depends on the type you choose.
Why distillery chillers are so important
As you know, making any sort of alcohol depends on keeping liquids at specific temperatures. Once you’ve boiled your wort, fermentation can’t begin until the liquid is cooled down to the appropriate range. If you left giant vats of boiling liquid to cool down naturally, that could take hours or even days. Distillery chillers make it possible to cool the wort down quickly, allowing you to make multiple batches per day.
In addition to aiding in the boiling process, distillery chillers help maintain a consistent temperature during fermentation. Fermentation generates heat, so having a chiller monitor and maintain the proper temperature throughout is a way to ensure every batch comes out perfectly.
Distillery chillers are also good for the bottling process, which can also generate heat and affect the flavor of your final product.
Types of distillery chillers
Distillery chillers in Eugene, OR come with plenty of options, from the number of heat exchangers you install to how the water and glycol solution is circulated around the machine. Here are some of the basic types you can buy or customize:
Single-stage heat exchanger and cold liquor tank: This type of chiller uses one heat exchanger and a cold liquor tank, which is filled with water. The heat exchanger cools the water down to about 35 degrees Fahrenheit, and the water is then pumped through the wort to cool it down to the right temperature. At this point, the hot water is held in another tank for another batch.
Pre-chilling: If your city water is usually cold enough to cool down the wort without help, getting a pre-chilled city water heat exchanger can be a cost-effective solution.
Two-stage cooling: This type of distillery chiller first uses city water to cool down the wort, then sends the liquid through a propylene glycol heat exchanger. When the liquid leaves the heat exchanger, it’s already at the appropriate temperature for fermentation.
Three-stage chiller: This type of distillery chiller uses city water, propylene glycol and cold liquor to cool the wort. The bigger your brewery is, the more likely you’ll want to opt for a three-stage chiller—it will help increase capacity and handle any type of weather- or water-related cooling issue.
As with any piece of machinery, you need to make sure to stay on top of your chiller maintenance—pipes and tubing can become clogged, which will slow down production. If you’re interested in installing and maintaining a distillery chiller for your business in Eugene, OR, call the team at American Refrigeration Inc. today.
