If you are a restaurant owner, you want your restaurant to run smoothly and have no problems with the food, atmosphere, or customer experience. That includes offering a solid menu, fun drinks, top-notch service, and the right decor to fit the desired ambiance. While all of those aspects are essential to your success, there is one important area you do not want to neglect: your HVAC system.
While your HVAC system may not be something the customers specifically think about, it is arguably one of the most crucial aspects of the restaurant’s success. Without the proper HVAC system in place, there can be temperature complaints, health problems, and other disastrous consequences for your restaurant.
Here are 5 unfortunate scenarios that can happen without a properly maintained commercial HVAC system:
Air Conditioning Not Working — In the Middle of
In the middle of summer, your air conditioning may have to work overtime to keep up with the demand of such high temperatures. If your HVAC unit is not working effectively, or if you have the wrong system for your space, the result is that the dining area may feel like the inside of an oven. If this heat continues through the summer, you may likely lose many of your customers.
Summer
Summertime in Charleston can be a beautiful thing, but it is also the busiest season for restaurants. When it is summer, everyone wants to escape the heat and walk into a restaurant where they feel comfortable. So, when people venture into a restaurant, they expect decent temperatures so they can feel more relaxed. People do not want to feel as uncomfortable inside as they do outside due to excessive heat.
In the middle of summer, your air conditioning may have to work overtime to keep up with the demand of such high temperatures. If your HVAC unit is not working effectively, or if you have the wrong system for your space, the result is that the dining area may feel like the inside of an oven. If this heat continues through the summer, you may likely lose many of your customers.
One way to avoid this nightmare is to have your HVAC system checked regularly by the expert technicians at JAC Services. The techs at JAC Services can come to your restaurant and perform a complimentary check on your system to ensure you do not run into an air conditioning problem during those excruciatingly hot summer months.
Refrigerator or Freezer Malfunction
If the refrigeration system in a commercial kitchen suddenly stops working, the entire restaurant may have to shut down until it is fixed. Or, at the very least, the restaurant cannot serve food during that time when the fridge and freezer are not working. Not surprisingly, when restaurants cannot serve food, there is a hefty loss of income during that time. That loss of income, in turn, can have severe consequences for the business. Not to mention, the restaurant then has to throw out and waste hundreds of dollars worth of food.
Before your refrigeration system stops working, be proactive and ensure it is properly maintained so an accident doesn’t occur. JAC Services provides commercial refrigeration services, so they are a one-stop shop for restaurant maintenance and repair.
Further Reading: 7 Common Causes of Commercial Equipment Breakdown
Negative Pressure
The wrong size or type of exhaust fan can remove too much air in a kitchen and cause negative air pressure throughout the restaurant’s HVAC system. This pressure can be dangerous because it causes back-drafting of cooking appliances and can cause a build-up of deadly fumes, such as carbon monoxide. These fumes can cause a disaster in the kitchen if they are not quickly addressed.
Negative pressure can also cause leaky ducts, contributing to mold throughout the restaurant by the air ducts, ceiling, and under the flooring. Mold is a health concern and an expensive fix. If your leaky ducts cause visible mold, patrons may also think twice about eating there in the future.
Going through the process of getting rid of mold can cause your restaurant to shut down for several days or weeks. During this time, you are not only losing money by not being open but also spending an outrageous amount of money on ridding your restaurant of mold. Instead of treating the problem after the fact, JAC Services technicians can inspect your kitchen, exhaust fans, and other equipment to ensure there will not be a pressure issue in the future.
Humidity
Humidity can be one of the products of negative pressure, as mentioned above, or the result of a mismanaged HVAC system. Humidity can cause moisture to sit in the carpets or hardwood floors, which leads to buckling, odor, and mold. Humidity can also cause unpleasant odors and mildew to linger in the air and drive away customers.
The Charleston area is no stranger to humidity, which is why it is so imperative to ensure your restaurant is running with the right HVAC system. This is important so that humidity outside is not reflected on the inside. Things can quickly change if your system cannot handle your restaurant’s specific needs.
Grease Build-Up and Smokey Kitchen
Is your kitchen smokier than usual? Is more grease building up on kitchen surfaces? If your answer to either of these questions is ‘yes,’ these are signs that your exhaust hood and makeup air unit are not working correctly. Sometimes, restaurants can have with the wrong exhaust hood or HVAC system, which causes negative repercussions throughout the entire kitchen.
Thankfully, the expert technicians at JAC Services can give you a free consultation to check your systems to see if they are the right fit for your restaurant and provide recommendations on ways to better manage your kitchen system.
There may be similarities between different types of HVAC systems and equipment, but there is no one-size-fits-all solution for every restaurant and kitchen system. By working with an expert company such as JAC Services, their technicians can work with you and your specific needs to ensure your restaurant’s HVAC and refrigeration systems are properly set up the first time so that you do not run into any nightmare scenarios that can cost you thousands of dollars and ruin your restaurant’s reputation. Or, if your restaurant is already established in the community, JAC Services’ expert technicians can provide you with a second opinion about your current system and check for any potential red flags or problem areas.
Either way, JAC Services is the company that can help you with all of your restaurant HVAC and equipment needs.
