Chicago restaurants and those across the United States spend on average $2.90 per square foot (ft2) on electricity and another $0.85 per ft2 on natural gas annually.  In real dollars, that equals to about 3 to 5 percent of total operating costs that are typically spent on energy.  With the economy hurting, it’s important for restaurants to squeeze every available option to cut down on expenses.  At Northeast Cooling LLC, we take that challenge seriously and offer help to our clients where we can.

We’re a top Chicago commercial refrigeration and ice freezer maintenance, repair, and sales company…but part our success comes from helping our clients with their business, not simply with refrigeration and Chicago ice machine repair.  Because roughly 15 percent of energy dollars are spent on refrigeration, our education to our clients helps turn real energy savings into real dollar savings.

As another step to help Chicago restaurants and their green refrigeration and energy savings initiative, we’ve created a checklist Chicago restaurants can use to ensure high efficiency and refrigeration energy savings.

Chicago Restaurant Refrigeration Energy Checklist

1. _____ Install strip curtains—replace damaged strip curtains.

2. _____ Install door closers—repair or replace damaged door closers.

3. _____ Align refrigerator doors—ensure they close properly.

4. _____ Keep refrigerator doors, ice machine and prep table covers closed.

5. _____ Maintain good airflow around the evaporator—remove boxes from front and any objects (plastic bags) from rear.

6. _____ Replace and insulate faulty condensate drain line heater wire.

7. _____ Install an evaporator fan controller in walk- in.* Or install high efficiency ECM motors on evaporator and condenser fans.

8. _____ Clean condenser coils.

9. _____ Clean evaporator coils.

10. _____ Check defrost time clocks and set properly.

11. _____ Check evaporator for icing. (If ice is present, call a commercial refrigeration service company.)

12. _____ Check walk- in cooler and freezer temperatures. Adjust temperature to proper setting.

13. _____ Check refrigerant level and recharge if necessary—sight glass clear = full charge.*

14. _____ Turn off door heaters if no ice.*

15. _____ Purchase ENERGY STAR reach- in refrigerators and freezers.

We hope you can take this checklist to your restaurant and initiate some and eventually the entire list.  For any help or questions, please don’t hesitate to give us a call at 847-409-3332 and contact us.

For other tips on how your restaurant can save energy and money, be sure to follow Refrigeration on   Twitter, and Fan Northeast Cooling on Facebook.