Cold Room vs Freezer Room: What are the differences?
The overall design and structure of the walk-in cold rooms and walk-in freezers are rather similar. As a result, it can be hard to differentiate them.
Luckily, there are some striking differences between walk-in cold rooms and walk-in freezers when it comes to their temperature ranges and applications.
Keep reading to get familiar with these differences. We hope this post can help you choose an ideal cold storage solution for your business.
Before looking at the differences between a walk-in cold room and a walk-in freezer, let’s get familiar with some basics
Walk-in Cold Rooms
Walk-in cold rooms generally operate in one of the following temperate ranges:
- Temperature range 1 in which the temperature is maintained between 2C and 12C. It is suitable to store products that are going to be used within a few days.
- Temperate range 2 in which the temperature is maintained between -2C and +5C. Such kind of temperature is suitable for products that are going to be used within a few weeks.
Walk-in Freezers
Walk-in freezers are capable of storing the products at much lower temperatures than a walk-in cold room. People use these freezers to ‘deep freeze’ the products at about -18C. As a result, you can use walk-in freezers to store products for a long period of time.
Differences Between a Walk-in Cold Room & Walk-in Freezer
Following are the differences between a walk-in cold and walk-in freezer in terms of the different features of their cold storage solutions:
1. Temperature
The temperature of a walk-in freezer must be lower than the temperature of a walk-in cold room. Generally, most of the walk-in cold rooms operate at a temperature range of 0°C and five °C. On the other hand, a walk-in freezer is capable of operating at much lower temperatures like -40°C.
Their exact temperature greatly varies on the basis of the manufacturer, so it is important that you work closely with a cold room specialist to set a suitable temperature.
2. Applications
The applications of a walk-in cold room are quite different from the applications of the walk-in freezer. The primary reason behind these differences is the temperature differences. The purpose of the walk-in cold rooms is to store the products at a low temperature above the freezing temperature.
It means you can easily use the products without defrosting. Products like fresh fruits, vegetables, medical supplies, and many other such products are stored in the walk-in cold room. You will have to contact an expert cold room panel manufacturer to install a suitable solution that will meet your specific requirement.
On the other hand, the purpose of a walk-in freezer is to preserve a wide range of products for a long period of time. Such extensive preservation is possible due to the extremely low temperatures that prevent the accumulation and multiplication of the microbes. As a result, the products are frozen in a walk-in freezer.
3. Storage Space
There is not much difference between a cold room and a walk-in freezer in terms of the storage space. Generally, both of them have about the same space.
However, you always have the option of maximizing the storage space by customization of the cold room panels and freezer room panels. Moreover, the manufacturers also provide the option of adding space-efficient shelving units for better organization.
4. Safety
It is important to consider the safety of the cold room and walk-in freezers because there are many products that must be protected from possible theft, such as medical supplies. Moreover, having a security system also makes sure that the products are properly secured, and no accidental contamination takes place.
Generally, you can find many cold room specialists who are willing to perform cold room installation in a safe and secure manner. Similarly, security solutions are available for freezer room panels as well. In this way, you will be able to ensure maximum security of your chosen cold storage solution.
Takeaways
In short, choosing a suitable cold storage solution is highly dependent on your requirements. Generally, if you want to store products at a low and moderate temperature for a short period of time, go for a walk-in cold room. On the other hand, a walk-in freezer is suitable to freeze products for an extended period.
Both walk-in cold rooms and walk-in freezers are highly important when it comes to food storage and preservation. By knowing the differences discussed above, you can easily make a smart choice and install suitable cold room panels or freezer room panels. For more information, feel free to get in touch with Teck Chuan, your professional cold room specialist.