Leisure Industry HVAC Chiller Restart Advice

During lockdown, the leisure sector was at a standstill, with many facilities potentially being left unattended for months. Now that the sector is starting to open again, it is important that businesses ensure that their industrial chiller is restarted safely – failing to do so could cause problems at the worst possible time.

Restarting your chiller poses additional challenges and risks compared to maintaining a planned preventative plan, this quick guide will take you through the most important things to look at.

For advice about your chiller maintenance plan or choosing an F-Gas qualified maintenance partner, call our technical team on 0800 774 7426.

Visual checks

Performing visual checks on your chiller can go a long way towards preventing a breakdown during the peak season. By performing checks that take less than two minutes, you could make a massive difference to your business and your unit’s health.

Before restarting your chiller, it is important to carry out a visual check of the unit and its surroundings. After long periods of inactivity, it’s possible that debris or dust build up could have formed, interfering with the operation of your chiller – be sure to clear any obvious blockages before restarting the unit.

It’s also important to check to see if you can see any loose mechanical parts on your unit, as these could have been damaged during the downtime.

When restarting your chiller unit, you should be checking for any unusual sounds or vibrations, investigating if the cause for the sound is not immediately apparent. If you receive any error codes, you should consult the unit’s manual to resolve them.

Glycol check

The glycol, (or anti-freeze) in your system may have degraded during the shutdown, meaning that your chiller is running on borrowed time – the water inside your unit could freeze and burst the pipework inside your system – even during warm weather.

Consult your dosage chart and ensure it’s at the right levels for your unit – and be sure to refill only with inhibited glycol – standard antifreeze isn’t designed to work inside industrial chillers and can cause serious damage to your pipework – in a matter of weeks, potentially leading to a breakdown

If you’re unsure about any of the advice in this post, please call our technical team on 0800 774 7426 and we’ll be happy to advise you on the best way to proceed.