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7 Things to Consider Before Buying a Restaurant Dishwasher
After the gradual growth of your catering business, piles of dirty dishes become a pressing problem. It goes without saying that a proper commercial restaurant dishwasher can bring a fast and safe cleaning experience to your kitchen, but there are many issues to consider before that happens. This article from Chefmax can help you in determining your needs and how to choose a unit.
Table of Contents
1. Are the commercial dishwashers worth it?
In addition to the many benefits of a dishwasher, you should want to compare the pros and cons of commercial dishwashers versus worker dishwashing, or their long-term costs and short-term benefits. This will help determine your need to choose between a dishwasher or laborer dishwashing.
Commercial restaurant dishwasher
Advantages
• Efficient and Fast: Commercial dishwashers are able to handle large quantities of dishes and utensils in a short amount of time, making them faster and more efficient than manual dishwashing. The most commonly used uncovered dishwashers, for example, can wash 40-55 standard racks of dishes per hour.
• Hygienic and Safe: Commercial dishwashers are able to effectively kill bacteria and germs through high temperature washing or chemical washing, ensuring that the dishes are hygienic and safe.
• Labor Cost Savings: Commercial dishwashers reduce labor costs by reducing reliance on manual dishwashing. Even the largest flight type dishwashers require only 1-2 people to operate the entire process and can wash 6,000-9,000 dishes per hour.
• Saving water and energy: Commercial dishwashers often have water and energy conservation features that reduce water and energy consumption, lowering operating costs.
• Consistent Dishwashing Quality: Commercial restaurant dishwasher provide consistent dishwashing quality, avoiding the problem of inconsistent dishwashing results due to individual differences when washing dishes manually.
Disadvantages
• High initial investment: Commercial dishwashers are relatively expensive to purchase and require an additional budget.
• Requires maintenance and upkeep: Commercial restaurant dishwasher require regular maintenance and servicing to ensure proper functioning and long-lasting use. This also includes replacement or repair of parts at a later stage, which again is a long-term expense.
Manual dishwashing
Advantages
• Flexibility and attention to detail: Manual dishwashing offers the flexibility to handle a variety of dishes and utensils as needed. Examples include knives, glasses, pots and pans, and placemats, and they can better handle details and hard-to-clean crevices to ensure a thorough wash.
• Lower initial investment: Compared to commercial dishwashers, manual dishwashing has a lower initial investment.
Disadvantages
• Time and labor intensive: Manual dishwashing requires a longer time and more labor-intensive investment, especially when dealing with large quantities of dishes and utensils. Manual dishwashing requires hiring dishwashers, which increases labor costs and management difficulties. If labor costs are high in your area, hiring a dishwasher can be a big expense.
• Need to pay attention to hygiene and dishwashing quality: The slightest stain on the dishes can be a huge blow to the customer experience. Manual dishwashing requires consistency in operator hygiene and dishwashing quality. This requires constant checking by the person in charge paired with training on dishwashing matters and strict adherence to dishwashing rules.
2. Capacity and size
Undercounter dishwashers are the right choice for operators who have a water bar in their bar or restaurant. They usually hold one standard rack and because of their small size have a modest cleaning capacity of around 30-45 racks per hour, which is good for washing glasses, ceramic cups or other small amounts of cutlery.
The Hood type dishwasher is the most commonly used type in the average restaurant, and it has enough cleaning capacity to handle the dishwashing needs of small to medium sized restaurants during peak traffic times. It is available not only in a model that can accommodate one standard rack, but also in an enlarged model and a model that can accommodate two racks.
For medium to large restaurants, hotels and cafeterias, the hood type dishwashers are difficult to meet the demand and require the conveyor type or the flight type, which has the highest cleaning capacity and consists of several modules, which have the advantage that there is no need for loading baskets and pre-washing, the dishes are simply placed on a conveyor belt.
There is another type——the ultrasonic dishwasher. It is not picky about the shape of the dishes and is able to use ultrasound to thoroughly clean every crevice. In commercial kitchens, it is often used to pre-wash dishes, clean various types of tools and pots, and wash hard vegetables.
3. Kitchen space and layout
When considering whether a restaurant dishwasher can function properly in your kitchen, you should not only look at the kitchen space and the size of the unit itself, but also consider the dishwasher ancillary equipment. For example, pre-wash sinks, clean and dirty dishwasher stations placed on both sides of the dishwasher.
Undercounter dishwashers are small enough to be placed under the kitchen counter or under the bar without the need for other ancillary equipment. For hood type dishwashers, the entire cleaning area can be placed in a “-” shape next to a wall or in an “L” shape in a corner for greater flexibility.
More often than not, the cleaning area follows this sequence: dirty dishes, pre-wash sink (ultrasonic dishwasher), dishwasher, dishwasher.
4. High or low temperature?
All things considered, more kitchens use high-temperature dishwashers than low-temperature dishwashers in commercial settings, where the advantages of high temperatures such as fast stain dissolution, sanitizing, and leaving no water damage are more practical. Of course, we’ve provided the pros and cons of both high-temperature and low-temperature dishwashers for your review.
High temp dishwashers
Advantages
• Disinfects and sterilizes: High-temperature water effectively kills bacteria and germs, providing a higher standard of hygiene.
• Rapid washing: High-temperature water quickly dissolves and cleans grease and food residue, saving dishwashing time.
• Leaves no water marks: High-temperature water evaporates quickly, and washed dishes dry quickly and can soon be put back into use. Increases the rotation rate of dishes.
Disadvantages
• High energy consumption: High temperature dishwashers need to heat water to a higher temperature, consuming more energy.
• High requirements for dishware materials: Certain special materials may not be able to withstand high temperature water washing and require special treatment. Examples include plastics, disposable aluminum, items with adhesives or labels, etc.
Low temp dishwashers
Advantages
• Energy efficient: Low-temperature dishwashers do not have an on-board heater, do not heat the water, and rely on detergent dissolved in room-temperature water to remove stains, which saves on long-term energy costs compared to high-temperature dishwashers.
• Wide range of applications: Low-temperature dishwashers can be used on a wide range of materials, including plastics and metals.
• Less risk of injury to personnel: Since low-temperature dishwashers do not use high-temperature water, there is less risk of injury to the operator.
Disadvantages
Longer wash times: Low-temperature water is slightly less effective than high-temperature water and may take longer to clean dishes.
Limited cleaning effect: For certain stubborn grease and hard-to-clean food residues, a low-temperature dishwasher may not be able to clean them thoroughly, and there may even be sanitizer and water residue left on the dishes.
5. Different features
Commercial restaurant dishwasher come in a range of configurations from low to high, with a gradual increase in additional features. The right features can add to the operation and cleaning experience, but most of the time, simple configurations are more popular in commercial kitchens.
Wash Programs: Commercial dishwashers usually have a variety of wash programs to choose from, such as quick wash, standard wash, power wash, etc., to accommodate different types of dishes and levels of staining.
Automatic Detergent Dispensing: Commercial restaurant dishwasher can be equipped with an automatic detergent dispensing function, which can automatically dispense detergent and rinse agent, reducing the workload of the operator.
Steam emission control: Some restaurant dishwashers have steam emission control to reduce steam emissions during the dishwashing process and improve the comfort of the work environment.
Water and energy saving features: Modern commercial dishwasher often have water and energy saving features, such as low water and low energy washing methods, to reduce running costs and environmental impact.
Automatic descaling and cleaning features: Some dishwashers have automatic descaling and cleaning features that can automatically clean the water system inside the dishwasher to keep the dishwasher in good working order.
6. How long do commercial dishwashers last?
Dishwashers can work for your kitchen for more than 10 years, and with good maintenance and repairs, that number increases to more than 15 years. The lifespan of a restaurant dishwasher is much longer than that of a domestic dishwasher, due to the high demands placed on the equipment by the commercial sector.
Nonetheless, improper use and maintenance can still drastically shorten the life of a dishwasher and increase the incidence of breakdowns.
Therefore, in order to prolong the service life and ensure normal operation, first of all, you should choose a reliable supplier to provide equipment and services, regular maintenance (follow the instructions to clean the filters, drains, regular replacement of wearing parts, etc.). At the same time, avoid overloading or idling during use.
7. Hidden costs
In addition to the direct purchase of equipment and service expenditures, the subsequent energy consumption, fault repair, maintenance, etc. will also consume funds, in order to reduce this part of the operating expenses, in the selection of dishwashers and the use of more aspects need to be considered.
Energy, detergent consumption
Water and electricity consumption from running a restaurant dishwasher is one of the most obvious of the long-term costs, and in areas where energy is expensive, this is a significant expense. So to reduce your energy consumption, you can either choose a unit with ENERGY STAR certification or compare the water and electricity consumption of different brands. Typically, 3-5 gallons of water are used to wash a standard rack of dishes.
The use of detergents, sanitizers, and other chemicals should also be taken into consideration. A low-temperature dishwasher will use more chemicals, and higher temperatures mean more power consumption.
Breakdown Repair Costs
Losses due to breakdowns that affect operations, repairs, and replacement parts can likewise increase hidden costs. To minimize the probability of these occurrences, you can choose a reliable and experienced supplier to provide equipment and services, and also confirm the proof of equipment quality, after-sales service and warranty.
Training costs
With the rapid evolution of technology, restaurant chains need to keep up with technological and digital trends, such as online ordering, mobile payments and data analytics. This requires investing and adapting to new technologies, and ensuring the security and reliability of systems.
Equipment Modernization
Training costs usually increase because dishwashers have complex, difficult-to-operate systems and panels, which can result in employees taking longer to learn until they are proficient in operating them, leading to increased costs and decreased efficiency.
So before purchasing a restaurant dishwasher, check to see if the equipment is ergonomic to operate and the systems are simple and easy to use.
Summary
A proper commercial restaurant dishwasher can make your kitchen more efficient and hygienic, and making the right choice is quite important and needs to be considered based on specifications, space, temperature and hidden costs.
Chefmax has specialized in the design and manufacture of commercial dishwashers for over 20 years. We have all styles and sizes of dishwashers, and we can provide you with the design of the dishwashing area layout and all the complementary products, such as the dishwashing station, faucets, shelves and so on. If you need more information, contact Chefmax and we will assist you in building a cleaner and more efficient kitchen.
