LNEYA Industrial Chillers Manufacturer Supplier
commercial refrigerator vs industrial Freezer：
What’s the Difference?
Cooling equipment generally falls into two categories: commercial and industrial. But what’s the real difference between them? Which one suits your needs better? Can a commercial refrigerator be used in place of an industrial freezer? This article provides a detailed breakdown.
What is a commercial refrigerator？
Commercial refrigerators are designed to keep perishable food items fresh in retail or food service environments. Common beverage vending machines and ice cream display cabinets are commercial refrigerators. They come in various shapes, including horizontal freezers, vertical display cabinets, and back cabinets. Commercial refrigerators have large volumes and beautiful designs, making them very suitable for displaying goods.
What is an industrial freezer?
Industrial freezers are often used in industrial production and scientific research experiments. They are suitable for long-term storage of temperature-sensitive materials, samples, and small equipment. Industrial freezers are commonly used to freeze components like bearings and to store temperature-sensitive items such as vaccines and blood. They are widely used in the pharmaceutical, chemical, and research industries.
Learn why you need to freeze bearings.
The difference between commercial refrigerators and industrial freezers
Capacity
Commercial refrigerators are designed for frequent access, with goods constantly being taken out and restocked, so their capacity must meet daily use needs. It is generally designed to be between 100L and 1000L. Common single-door freezers are about 200L, and double-door display cabinets are about 400L or more. Most commercial refrigerators use standardized sizes for easy placement, parallel installation, or transportation.To facilitate inventory visibility and access, commercial units often feature multiple adjustable shelves, drawers, and sliding rails, maximizing internal space utilization.
The capacity range of industrial freezers is wider, with small desktop devices of dozens of liters and vertical or horizontal industrial boxes of thousands of liters. The items placed in the freezer are generally whole pieces of equipment or materials, so their capacity is customized according to the volume of the stored items. The internal design will also vary according to the capacity.
Cooling capacity
Commercial refrigerators are mainly used for low-temperature preservation. Users have low requirements for its cooling rate. It can meet the use requirements by reaching the set temperature within a few hours. Therefore, its cooling rate is slow, the temperature control accuracy is generally around±2℃, and there is no temperature gradient control function. Most commercial refrigerators use indirect cooling air circulation or direct cooling plate structure, and the temperature control range is within -18℃.
Applications that require industrial freezers have high requirements for cooling speed and temperature control accuracy. Therefore, it must achieve accurate and rapid cooling. Industrial freezers are categorized into low-temperature models (around-40℃) and ultra-low-temperature models (as low as -120℃). Its cooling speed is very fast. Most equipment only needs dozens of minutes to drop from room temperature to -80℃, and some high-performance equipment can achieve it within 1 minute.
It also performs better in temperature control accuracy, up to ±0.1℃~± 0.5℃. It generally uses forced air circulation, multi-point Pt100 sensors, and PID control, and the temperature in the entire box is very uniform.
Material
Commercial freezer’ exterior is usually made of powder-coated steel, while the inner lining is plastic or coated aluminum. The insulation layer is typically polyurethane foam. Most doors are glass or double-pane tempered glass for product visibility. Its structure is lighter, but its corrosion resistance and chemical resistance are weaker.
The outer shell and inner liner of the industrial freezer are made of SUS304 or SUS316 stainless steel, which is more corrosion-resistant. Its insulation layer is generally high-density polyurethane and multi-layer sealing, which has better insulation performance. The internal structure will be reinforced to ensure its load-bearing and earthquake-resistant capabilities. All components are industrial-grade standards to meet long-term, high-load operations.
Application
Commercial refrigerators are generally used in restaurants, supermarkets, and convenience stores to store beverages, ice cream, frozen foods, and meat.
Industrial freezers are commonly used for temperature cycling tests, low-temperature stress tests, and storage of temperature-sensitive substances in industries like electronics, pharmaceuticals, and materials science.
Energy consumption
Commercial refrigerators have small refrigeration capacity and low compressor power, so the energy consumption is low, generally 0.8kW ~ 1.8kW.
The energy consumption of industrial freezers varies greatly according to the temperature range, cooling capacity, cooling rate, etc., and is commonly 2kW~10kW or more. Many high-performance industrial freezers incorporate multi-stage compression systems and frequency-controlled compressors to reduce energy waste while maintaining performance.
Price
Commercial refrigerators are typically priced between $500 and $1,500, depending on their size, design, and energy efficiency rating. They are usually built for a lifespan of 3–5 years.
The price of an industrial freezer is generally $3000 ~ $30000+, and suppliers set prices based on temperature range, capacity, and other functions. It has a large initial investment, but the life cycle is generally about 10 years.
Learn the factors affecting the price of chillers.
Maintenance
The commercial freezer has a simple structure and is easy to maintain. Its main maintenance items are cleaning dust, defrosting, and checking seals. Its main vulnerable parts are fans, power boards, light strips, and thermostats. Since they lack fault alarms or diagnostic features, maintenance often relies on manual inspection and visual checks. Although it is easy to maintain, its service life is short.
The structure of the industrial freezer is relatively complex and requires professional personnel to maintain. Most freezers have functions such as automatic alarm, fault prompt, and historical log export, which can help shorten maintenance time.
How LNEYA Industrial Cooling System Can Help
With more than 15 years of experience in designing and manufacturing industrial refrigeration equipment, LNEYA’s products have been exported to more than 30 countries and regions around the world. We focus on high-precision, customized, and sustainable cooling solutions. Whether it is scientific research experiments, industrial testing, or large-scale manufacturing, we can tailor a suitable system for you.
Our chiller experts have designed cooling systems for almost every industry, and they can provide you with free selection guidance. All products enjoy free installation, commissioning, a one-year warranty, and free consultation at any time.
Contact us now to get free selection advice and customized solutions.
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