What’s the difference between Commercial Refrigeration ‘Service vs. Maintenance’?

Recently, we were asked by one of our fabulous customers, “What’s the difference between commercial refrigeration service calls and maintenance calls?”

Generally, we receive commercial refrigeration service call outs as a result of the lack of proper scheduled maintenance. A service call occurs when a customer discovers a problem with the refrigeration unit. The problems with the refrigeration unit could be a range of different things, including:

• Refrigeration system not cooling (high temperatures).
• Refrigeration unit is freezing product (when it shouldn’t be).
• Refrigeration unit is tripping the power.
• Ice machine not producing enough ice.
• Refrigeration unit is leaking water.
• Strange noises coming for the fan.

These refrigeration unit failures require a technician to attend the site, fault find the problem for the refrigeration unit and correct that problem, this service call may include replacing a fan motors, a compressors, an evaporator coils or controllers. Replacing any part on a refrigeration unit can be costly, not just the cost of the replacement part but also the labour required by the technician. This is where schedule maintenance plays a vital role.

Maintenance of Refrigeration

Maintenance should be scheduled yearly (quarterly is best) to prevent refrigeration units from having significant breakdowns. An A2Z Commercial Refrigeration technician accesses the refrigeration unit providing a comprehensive condition and information report. Our team pick up on a possible problems that might require fixing, quote to replace refrigeration part, thus ensuring the unit avoids larger, more stressful and expansive problems. Basic maintenance should also occur from the refrigeration unit owner. This would require the owner to clean the door seals, condenser coils, check drainage line outlets and ensure the placement of the refrigeration equipment is able to ‘breath’. For more detailed steps of refrigeration owner maintenance, head over to our Spring-Cleaning for your commercial refrigeration equipment blog.

Ultimately a service call out is when our refrigeration technicians come out to diagnose an already existing problem. While maintenance of refrigeration units is to hopefully prevent a problem from occurring in the first place. Refrigeration equipment is an extremely important asset to businesses, without proper functioning units, many business could close. So it is essential to ensure your refrigeration units are well maintained. If you have any questions regarding maintenance or existing commercial refrigeration problems, please don’t hesitate in calling our A2Z Commercial Refrigeration team (07 3319 1516).