Working in the restaurant, grocery, and food production industry requires the best in refrigeration. Food standards plummet when product temperatures rise. Fortunately, modern businesses can count on refrigerated trailer rental and portable refrigeration to get products where they need to go without dropping in quality. But, how do you keep your ingredients fresh in the freezer if the power goes?
At Keep It Cold™, we specialize in temporary refrigeration and frozen food transfer, and we know a thing or two about keeping food frozen. If you find yourself in a situation where you are without a freezer in a pinch, here are some tips to Keep It Cold™.
Ice for the Win
You may have heard freezers referred to as “iceboxes” in the past. Before electric refrigeration, people used small cupboards stocked with ice to keep their food cold. Nowadays, we sometimes refer to coolers as iceboxes, but in the early 20th century, these devices were relied on to keep food fresh.
A large block of ice will help retain cold temperatures in a commercial freezer for up to 24-hours, but what you really want is dry ice. Dry ice holds an internal temperature of -109°F. A freezer needs to be at 0°F to maintain food safety standards.
Keep your dry ice on top to ensure the temperature is evenly distributed. Roughly 30lbs of dry ice will keep food frozen for the day.
Keep the Door Closed
It goes without saying, but every time you open your freezer, you let cold air out and warm air in. If the power goes, your best chance at preserving the food you have is to only open the refrigeration unit when necessary. If you can take out multiple items at once, make a list and ensure you get everything you need.
Another tip when opening the freezer is to only leave the door ajar while required. Quickly remove the products you need and close the door to maintain temperature.
Pack it Full
The way you organize your refrigeration unit also plays a role in maintaining the right temperature during an outage. A full freezer lasts stays frozen twice as long as a half-packed freezer. In fact, if you keep the door closed, you can maintain frozen products for up to 48 hours with a fully stocked unit, whereas a half-packed freezer will only stay frozen for a maximum of 24-hours without additional ice products.
Cover it Up
Insulation keeps warm things warm and cold things cold. So, it stands to reason if your refrigeration unit suddenly dies, or the power goes, you can prolong freezing temperatures with insulation.
Moving blankets are an excellent tool for insulating large commercial freezers. They come in an assortment of sizes and shapes and can be layered for additional insulation layers.
Having a few moving blankets in storage for a power outage could mean the difference between preserving your groceries or losing thousands on food products and sales revenue.
Have a Back-up Plan
Business owners should always have a backup plan for failed refrigeration. A great option is refrigerated trailer rental.
Portable refrigeration allows you to remove all the products from your store, restaurant, or warehouse, and place them in external freezers for protection. You can use the unit the same way you would your in-store freezers, removing and replacing food as needed until products can be transferred back into your original unit.
Refrigerated trailer rentals come in a variety of sizes for convenience. At Keep It Cold™, we offer units in sizes of:
- 5-feet
- 8-feet
- 12-feet
We also supply 12-feet dual temp freezers for products that need to be refrigerated or frozen. Our 16-foot dual temp unit will be available for rent soon.
Sometimes power outages are unavoidable. However, some power outages may be predicted. For example, if a storm is headed your way, and you don’t have a generator to keep your freezer running, booking ahead with a portable refrigeration company can save your food from spoilage.
Contact Keep It Cold™ Today
If you’re interested in portable refrigeration but are unsure which products are right for your business, we can help. Our team of experienced freezer suppliers work with companies of all sizes, over a wide range of industries.
Currently, Keep It Cold™ serves businesses across Austin, Corpus Christi, Dallas, Denver, Fort Worth, Houston, Los Angeles, and San Antonio. Interested in learning more about our portable refrigeration units? For information and reservations, call 1-877-432-COLD.
