The short answer
Heat makes refrigeration run longer and wear faster, so failures pile up in summer. Before the heat comes, get the condenser coils cleaned, clear the space around every unit, check the door gaskets and have the rooftop or outdoor units looked at. Watch your temperature logs closely once it's hot.
The system runs longer, so parts wear faster
A refrigeration system pulls heat out of the box and dumps it out at the condenser. The condenser needs cooler air around it to shed that heat.
On a hot day, the air around the condenser is already warm. The compressor runs longer and hotter to keep up. A part that was getting weak in spring often fails in July.
Walk-in condensers on the roof get it worst. A black roof in the sun can be much hotter than the air on the ground.
Five things
- Clean the condenser coils. A dirty coil can't shed heat, and summer turns a small problem into a failed compressor.
- Clear the space around every unit. Reach-ins and prep tables need room to breathe. Keep boxes, mops and supplies away from the vents.
- Check the door gaskets. Hot, wet kitchen air leaking into the box means more work and ice on the coil.
- Look at the rooftop and outdoor units. Debris, cottonwood fluff and leaves clog outdoor coils in late spring.
- Check the door closers. Summer means more trips in and out. A door that doesn't close on its own costs you all day.
Want the cold side checked before the heat?
Hot rooms make hot boxes
A reach-in next to a fryer or a charbroiler is fighting the line all shift. If you can, move refrigeration away from the hottest equipment, or make sure the hood and make-up air are pulling the heat out.
A kitchen that runs hot in summer is often an HVAC problem as much as a refrigeration one. If the rooftop unit can't keep up, every cooler in the room pays for it.
Never keep a reach-in or freezer in a space with no cooling, like a hot storage room or an outside shed. Most aren't built for it.
Watch the logs and listen
Keep writing down temperatures at the start and end of every shift. In summer, look at those numbers every day.
Watch for these signs:
- A reading that creeps up a degree or two on hot afternoons
- A compressor that never shuts off
- New noises: buzzing, rattling or clicking
- Ice on the coil or water on the floor
Any of them is worth a call before the weekend. A slow repair on a Tuesday beats an emergency on a Saturday night.
More guides for managers
Free guideThe cheapest repair is a clean coil
A dirty condenser coil makes your walk-in run hot and long until the compressor quits. How to spot it, clean it, and how often.
Read the guide
Free guideFive signs your walk-in is about to fail
Warm readings, water on the floor, ice on the coil, a box that never stops running: the signs a walk-in gives before it goes down.
Read the guide
Box running warm in the heat? Call before it goes down.
A walk-in that struggles on hot afternoons is close to the edge. Catch it early and it's a single visit.
See refrigeration repair for what we fix. If it's warm now, call (636) 327-8349. For an emergency, a technician is on site within four hours. And it stays fixed. 98% of our calls are completed in one trip.