Thermo King Refrigeration Units Operations and How They Affect Expenses
Individuals who operate refrigerated trailers are often fairly knowledgeable about their businesses. However, even the most experienced individuals are the first to tell you that they don’t know everything when it comes to their reefers. As long as the reefers are doing their job and allowing companies to stay within their budgets, the majority of trailer users aren’t too concerned about the specifics of their refrigeration units. Thermo King offers a wide range of features to set themselves apart from the competition and give their users the best experience possible to increase productivity and ultimately, drive more sales. In most cases, proper operation of the refrigeration units can significantly reduce overall expenses.
Thermo King Refrigeration Units Running Modes
The running modes determine how much fuel is burned and the amount of maintenance that’s required for the refrigeration unit components. The running modes also control the consistency of the perishable items’ temperatures within the trailer. The age and condition of the refrigeration unit as well as ambient temperatures and the trailer’s insulation value affect the frequency and duration that the refrigeration unit runs.
Most commodities, such as paint, canned goods, beverages, and candy, hold up under 5 to 10-degree temperature swings in either direction. However, some commodities require steady temperatures, which means the refrigeration unit must run continuously. Drivers must negotiate the acceptable temperature range with each shipper to help keep operating expenses as low as possible.
Thermo King recommends that drivers document fuel use and running times for every shipper and every product. This information will come in handy when shippers want to negotiate rates or temperature ranges. Sometimes shippers don’t understand why they don’t need the reefers to run continuously. Supplying current data will help a driver make a case for a temperature range to save on operating expenses as well as wear and tear on the refrigeration unit.
Trailer Use and Care
Drop-and-hook operations save companies money by drastically reducing driver waiting times. However, when left unsupervised, you never know what customers will do with the refrigeration units. Telemetry enables remote, real-time monitoring and may reveal potential abuse of the reefers.
Running a reefer while the doors are open during a delivery or when the vehicle is parked elsewhere wastes energy. Many customers do so anyway because they don’t know better or because it’s simply convenient. If customers insist on running the reefer while the trailer is docked, make sure the engine runs at a lower RPM to reduce fuel usage.
Select the highest insulation value available while still allowing adequate cube in the refrigeration unit. The lower the value or UA figure, the better. A low UA may be issued to a trailer with three inches of insulation in the roof, floors, and walls. It may also allow a refrigeration unit to use just half of the fuel of a reefer with a high UA number because of the mere one inch of foam in the walls and two inches in the floor and roof. However, the low UA trailer will have six percent lower volume and may weigh an extra 200 pounds, resulting in the tractor burning extra fuel to pull it.
We look forward to working with you.
Amarillo Thermo King and West Texas Thermo King are located in Amarillo, Lubbock, and Odessa. We have highly skilled certified technicians ready to service your refrigeration trucks. From installing new components to repairing existing units, we have the skills, resources, and experience to provide the services you need. To learn more about our services or to schedule an appointment at a specific location, Contact Us Today (for Amarillo, call (806) 376-5837 or contact via email, for Lubbock, call (806) 763-6311 or contact via email, for Odessa, call (432) 561-9792) or contact via email). You can also visit one of our locations convenient located near you.
