Reduce Your Restaurant’s Energy Usage by 30% With Efficient Refrigeration
Learn ways to save on energy, costs, and greenhouse gas emissions through your facility’s fridges.
Despite having many competing priorities, sustainability is slowly making its way onto the priority list for many restaurant owners, franchises, and chains. Sustainably grown or sourced menu items, food pantry donations, and composting programs are common sustainability starter measures that can attract eco-conscious customers and support the business case for additional operational investments.
In this article, we cover one back-of-house measure that can result in significant energy and cost savings: efficient refrigeration.
How Can Refrigeration Supercharge Restaurants’ Sustainability?
Did you know restaurants are widely considered the most energy intensive (i.e., highest energy usage per square foot) of all commercial buildings?
According to the Department of Energy’s Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey, the average restaurant in the US is 5,800 square feet and uses 43.5 kWh per square foot. Given the average commercial electricity rate in the US is 12.6 cents per kWh, this brings average electricity cost for a full service, 5,800-square-foot restaurant to around $31,790 per year.
When it comes to electric energy usage in restaurants and commercial kitchens, refrigeration accounts for almost half of all electricity costs. Walk-in coolers and freezers are typically the top two energy users among all restaurant equipment—making them a critical component of a restaurant facility’s plan to improve greenhouse gas emissions, manage refrigerants, and adopt an overall sustainable business mindset.
What Steps Can You Take to Reduce Refrigeration Energy Usage?
There are numerous low- and no-cost opportunities to cut down on costs and emissions from refrigeration equipment. Below are some initial steps your facility can take to promote long-term operational efficiency.
- Address common user misconducts, like leaving cooler or freezer doors open for extended periods, through management oversight and training.
- Implement low-cost upgrades with less than one-year payback, including strip curtains, automatic door closers, door-open alarms, LED lighting, high-efficiency evaporator fan motors, and demand defrost controls.
- Perform preventive maintenance to keep equipment running properly and efficiently.
- Replace existing equipment with more efficient models, with today’s commercial marketplace offering equipment 25–30% more efficient than the most-efficient equipment options from just a few years ago. Check out ENERGY STAR listed Advanced Adaptive and Solid-State commercial coolers and freezers for more details.
- Reassess your refrigerants, as self-contained refrigeration equipment using low-charge R290 (propane) refrigerant is highly efficient and boasts a very low global warming potential (i.e., GWP = 3) and zero ozone depletion potential.
Using a combination of these strategies, most restaurants can reduce energy use of refrigeration equipment by 20–30%.
How Can APTIM Help?
If you are looking for guidance to navigate your restaurant’s energy efficiency journey, APTIM is here to help! Our team can help you get started with an ASHRAE energy audit to identify cost-effective upgrades that can result in long-term savings, allowing you to reinvest in the things that matter most.
APTIM is a leading provider of climate impact services for the restaurant and hospitality industry, including energy efficiency, resilience, sustainability, and waste management. Our team of subject matter experts can help prioritize your investments, provide guidance on best practices, and develop a long-term energy reduction strategy that supports your business needs today and preserves them into the future.
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