A Common Problem – Fixing Commercial Refrigeration Seals
Your Commercial Refrigeration unit is critical to running a successful business and one of the most common problems is the seals.
Seals keep the cold air in. If a seal is broken or damaged, your refrigerator or freezer has to work harder to keep the air inside cool. This increases your energy bills, causes the cooling systems to wear out faster, and may even result in stock losses or unsafe food, which costs your business even more money.
How to Prevent Seal Damage
It’s always better to prevent damage than to have to repair or replace it later:
- Keep it clean. Regular cleaning of your door seals will keep them from becoming sticky and causing damage like tears.
- Do regular maintenance. This keeps your unit running at optimal performance and delays major repairs or even replacement.
As soon as you buy a commercial refrigerator or freezer, you should have a maintenance schedule put in place. Some maintenance can be done by you in between visits by a trained professional.
How to Detect a Damaged Seal
It’s not always easy to tell if you have a damaged fridge or freezer door. Other issues may be the cause, but look for:
- Mould or Cracks: Do a visual inspection of the seals. If you see mould, splits or cracks on your seals, you need to replace them.
- Ice Build Up: Ice around your fridge or freezer door could be a sign the seal is broken.
- Warm or Defrosted Food: If your food is not cold, then cold air could be leaking out through a cracked door seal.
- Rising Energy Bills: This might indicate an overworked cooling system.
What to Do About a Broken Seal
When a cool room or cold room door seal breaks, you should fix it as quickly as possible as this is the cheapest option.
Don’t try to fix it yourself. It can be tempting to want to fix a broken seal quickly yourself, but this will probably cost you more in the long run!
Don’t be fooled into thinking it will be a simple fix. An ill-fitted door seal on your fridge or freezer can be a costly mistake for a business to fix. A professional has the tools to fix it properly and permanently.
Risks of Fixing a Seal Yourself
Some of the risks of a DIY fix:
- An Ill-Fitting Seal: A badly fitted seal can leak just as much, or more, than a damaged seal.
- An Incorrect Diagnosis: You might think it’s a problem with the door seal, but you might be missing another problem.
- The Wrong Parts: Sometimes it can be hard to find the proper parts for seals or they take a long time to arrive. There are many imitation products that won’t last long.
You might remove one seal and then find the replacement is worse. The risk of stock loss just isn’t worth it the risk.
BM Refrigeration can check and replace the seals, but we will also inspect your refrigerator unit to properly diagnose the problem. From experience, this is a cheaper and faster option for a business.
