How to Get the Most out of Your Commercial Kitchen Equipment
Whether you’re serving a few customers in an intimate coffee shop or running a 250-seat restaurant, maintaining your commercial kitchen equipment is crucial. Skipping regular maintenance not only poses the threat of decreasing the lifespan of your valuable kitchen equipment, but you also run the risk of serving your customers an inferior product. It’s a no-win situation.
Fortunately, maintaining your commercial kitchen equipment is likely easier than you think. Check out these quick and simple tips to help you get the most out of your commercial kitchen equipment.
Commercial Freezer
Behind every great food place is a great walk-in freezer. A freezer malfunction can lead to expensive breakdowns, spoiled foods, and can have implications for your customers’ safety. There are three routine things you can do to maintain your commercial freezer and extend its longevity.
- Regularly check air filters. As dust and grease build up in the filters, the freezer will struggle to get enough airflow through the filters to ensure proper ventilation. If you find debris in the filters, you can remove it with a shop vac and degreasing solutions. This helps restore proper ventilation and helps with energy efficiency.
- Clean drain pans and tubes. Drain pans and tubes are essential parts of walk-in coolers, freezers, and refrigerators. Debris from slime and sludge can freeze on the unit – causing breakdowns or (worse) mandating unit replacement. Regular cleaning of these crucial areas will help keep your freezer humming happily along.
- Keep an eye on door gaskets. Door gaskets keeps warm air out of your freezer, so cracks and tears spell trouble for the food inside and your freezer’s efficiency. Make sure to keep gaskets or moving parts clean and rip-free.
Commercial Refrigerator
The best way to deal with a refrigerator issue is to avoid it happening in the first place. Commercial refrigerators keep products cool and fresh, and breakdowns often have business consequences. Routine maintenance will go a long way to extending the longevity of your equipment. Exact maintenance requirements vary by model – refer to your user manual for exact instructions. Thankfully, there are a few routine checks you can do once a month to ensure your fridge is functioning efficiently. They’re fairly similar to the tasks for freezer maintenance, making it easy to remember to do both. You can:
- Inspect the condenser coils to make sure they’re clean. Most manufactures recommend cleaning the condenser and evaporator coils once every three months, but it varies by model.
- Check that airflow is being circulated properly through the refrigerator.
- Clean the gaskets
Commercial Restaurant Equipment Repair
Commercial freezers and refrigerators are important, but the food industry can’t run on refrigeration alone. Keep reading for more tips on maintaining your commercial kitchen equipment.
Cleaning Your Oven
Maintaining your commercial oven is an easy way to reduce the risk of fire and produce great food for your customers. Ovens should be cleaned daily and subjected to rigorous scrubbing once a month. For the daily clean, remove and wash racks and do a quick sweep for crumbs. This will keep away the obvious buildup. But it’s still worth it to do a monthly deep clean. Commercial ovens see a lot of use. A thorough scrubbing once a month, paired with less intensive daily cleanings, will keep your oven clean and safe.
How to Maintain Your Dishwasher
Commercial dishwashers are one of the biggest investments in a commercial kitchen. Regular maintenance will go a long way to ensure you get the most bang for your buck. Dishwashers are full of parts that get exposed to food particles on a daily basis: think sump heaters, floats, actuators, wash arms, strainers, etc. To effectively maintain your commercial dishwasher, it’s worth it to commit to regular cleanings of all the smaller parts. Making sure your dishwasher is clean will go a long way in preventing food and limescale buildup.
How to Clean Your Coffee Machine
Where would we be without our beloved coffee? Probably still in bed. If your establishment serves any kind of caffeinated beverages, keeping your coffee machine and grinder clean is a must. Styles vary by machine, but a good rule of thumb is to do a routine cleaning of your machine every day – usually after closing. The whole process takes about fifteen minutes, so it’s easy to make it a part of your closing checklist. The specifics of how to clean your machine’s make and model are detailed in your user manual. Not sure where the manual is? Google is your friend.
Commercial Kitchen Equipment Services in DelMarva
The equipment in your kitchen is an investment, and it’s important to take care of it. Want to get the most out of your commercial kitchen equipment? Quick Servant offers repair and maintenance services for all of your commercial kitchen equipment to keep them running efficiently and as long as possible. Our tradition of service and excellence has been built by more than 40 years of hard work and dedication to our customers. We offer preventative maintenance programs tailored to your unique business while keeping your schedule and budget in mind. If you are ready to get the most out of your commercial kitchen equipment and are located in the greater Maryland area, contact us today and we’ll work out a plan that makes the most sense for you!