Cold room failed? What to do in the first hour

It is a bad moment. You open the cold room and it is warm, or the alarm is beeping, or the display shows a temperature well above where it should be. Staff look at you. Deliveries are due. The next hour matters more than anything else, because stock that is moved quickly can often be saved, and a cold room that is left shut with a fault can lose thousands of rand of product.

Here is a simple order of actions. It is worth printing and sticking on the wall next to the door.

Minutes 0 to 10: protect the stock

• Check the temperature. Note the time and the reading. This is the start of your record.
• Keep the door closed as much as possible. The more it opens, the faster it warms.
• Decide what is most at risk: raw meat, poultry, fish, dairy, cooked food and cream-based items first.
• Move high-risk stock into any working fridge or freezer, even if it is a domestic unit in the back. Use cooler boxes with ice if you have them.
• Do not overload working units, as they will struggle and fail to keep the food cold.

Minutes 10 to 20: quick checks

A surprising number of failures turn out to be simple. Before you call anyone, check these in a couple of minutes:

• Is the power on? Look at the main isolator, the distribution board and any tripped breakers.
• Is the condensing unit running? Go and listen to it. A silent unit with a warm room points to a power or compressor problem.
• Is the evaporator fan running inside? A fan that has stopped can warm the room even if the compressor is working.
• Is the door closing and sealing? Check the gasket and that nothing is jamming the door open.
• Is the evaporator covered in ice? If it is a solid block, the defrost has failed. Note it for the technician.
• Has the controller been changed or set to defrost or off by mistake?

Minutes 20 to 30: call for help

If the room is still warm, call your refrigeration technician. Have the following ready so they can help quickly:

• The temperature now and when it started rising.
• What you have already checked.
• The make and model on the condensing unit data plate, and the refrigerant type if you can read it.
• Any noises, smells, error codes or alarms.
• Your address and access arrangements.

A call to a company that knows your system is much quicker than searching for a new one in an emergency. This is a good reason to have a service relationship before something breaks.

Minutes 30 to 60: keep the cold chain

• Keep recording the temperature every 15 minutes.
• Group the stock that you moved, and label what came from where and when.
• Use the time while waiting for the technician to arrange backup, such as cooler boxes, a hired cold trailer or help from a neighbouring business.
• Do not add more warm product to the failing room.

How long is food safe?

As a general rule, perishable food that has been above 5 degrees Celsius for more than about four hours should be thrown away. Frozen food that still contains ice crystals and is cold to the touch can usually be kept, though quality may suffer. When in doubt, follow your food safety procedure and your supplier's advice. It is better to discard a small amount than to risk customers' health.

What to do afterwards

• Get a written report from the technician on the cause and repair.
• Record the incident, the temperatures and what was discarded. Insurance claims and audits want this information.
• Ask what could prevent a repeat: maintenance, a temperature alarm, a surge protector or a backup plan.
• Review your plan with staff so that everyone knows what to do next time.

Prevent the next emergency

Most cold room failures give a warning. Rising temperatures, constant running, ice on the coil and strange noises are all signs. A scheduled maintenance plan catches them early, and a remote temperature alarm tells you before the stock is lost. Our cold room maintenance checklist and our servicing schedule guide are good places to start.

We repair and service cold rooms and freezer rooms across Durban and surrounding suburbs. If yours has failed, call 083 538 5106 and tell us what you can see. We will tell you what to do while we are on the way.