TKK Posted February 11, 2018 Share Posted February 11, 2018 Hey guys is it better buying a big true 3 compartment freezer to store the ice cream or is it better getting those energy efficient top open freezers from sams for under $200? Any tips on them? Ordering 12 of them for some schools, but they are expensive! $6300 a pop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Southeast Treats Posted February 11, 2018 Share Posted February 11, 2018 Are you getting the fastcorp vendors? I like them, I have an evolution model and a Z400, both good machines. For storage, the chest freezers do keep the cold better, especially if they are opened often. I have a large (about 19 cf) residential style upright for my storage. I like it because it is easier to organize and find product in, and it's not opened all that often so the temp stays good. It sounds like you are going to have much more of a storage issue than I do. I am able to get an ice cream delivery weekly if I need it, so I don't have to warehouse a lot of frozen product. You will probably be getting some big deliveries, so you will need capacity to handle that. Maybe 2 chest freezers? And have you worked out the transportation to the machines? I only do one at a time, so I can get away with coolers and running directly to the ice cream machine from the warehouse, but with that many units out, you probably need to add a freezer to one of your trucks.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AZVendor Posted February 11, 2018 Share Posted February 11, 2018 Always use chest freezers for ice cream. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TKK Posted February 12, 2018 Author Share Posted February 12, 2018 I was thinking having the trucks with a chest freezer, plugged in overnight, then when they run the route taking the ice cream to some of their places. Id probably schedule the 3 places first, but how long would they last unmelted in a freezer without power? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Southeast Treats Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 Ice cream freezers are kept at -20 F, so they should last a while. Take a cue from the ice cream vendors and install an inverter to keep the freezers going during the day, still plug them in at night to get a good cold soak. With that system you won't have to worry about changing the route order for your ice cream deliveries. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TKK Posted February 12, 2018 Author Share Posted February 12, 2018 Would the inverters be fine just off the battery? A while back i bought a huge inverter to try to add an 8k ac unit to my van lol and it would turn it on then shut off. What size inverter would you recommend? I would love for it to stay on Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Southeast Treats Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 I really don't know, the people to ask would be someone who builds the roving ice cream trucks. My thinking is that the inverter would only have to pull enough power to keep the cold during the day, but you don't want it killing your main battery. Is there an auto electric shop near you? They might be a good resource. Another way to go is a cold plate freezer for the truck, more expensive than a regular freezer, but built for the exact job - keeping the ice cream cold all day and being plugged in at night. Most of them will last 10 or 12 hours easily. They are pretty pricy tho, so you would want to look for a good used one: https://www.freezerplanet.com/Ice-Cream-Freezers-with-Cold-Plates-for-Trucks-and-Vans-s/281.htm?_ga=2.194946797.1906033555.1518472388-117389009.1518472388 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orsd Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 A lot of the ice cream guys round here run Honda gensets strapped to the bumper. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TKK Posted February 17, 2018 Author Share Posted February 17, 2018 Do any of you guys just run regular inverters or do you need extra batteries? I saw these zero gravity generators but they are a battery pack that i think.would work but they are 1000 bucks at costco a piece Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TKK Posted March 2, 2018 Author Share Posted March 2, 2018 Im buying 6 of these, i already have 2, they are light weight, super quiet, and dont use alot of electricity. What i was wondering is is one of those cigarette lighter inverters (450 watts) power one of these things? Theres also 750 watt ones but go direct on the battery, would those power it on, and not mess up the battery? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orsd Posted March 2, 2018 Share Posted March 2, 2018 I would not use the Cig lighter ones, while the inverter may be rated for 450 watts the cigarette lighter wiring in your truck is only rated to 120W. Get a good hardwire inverter and wire it in properly. (good, thick, flexible wire with automotive insulation and the proper gauge, routed properly to prevent damage, fused, and terminated with proper connectors.) Also, I would put in a relay, so that your drivers can shut it off at night to prevent parasitic load from draining the battery. Either connect that relay to a dash switch or wire the relay into a circuit that is only on when the truck key is in the run position. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TKK Posted March 3, 2018 Author Share Posted March 3, 2018 I was thinking plugging them into the walls at night, then in the day they plug them into the inverters. They say they use 27$ a year so i think an inverter should work. I bought 8 they were 40 off at sams for the 7.1 cub feet. Idk if i should have my reg guys do the ice cream and snack or hire a fulltimer just for the ice cream. They already go to those places tho so i think its better the route drivers doing it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AZVendor Posted March 3, 2018 Share Posted March 3, 2018 If you have enough ice cream machines to keep one guy busy then a dedicated route is the only way to go. That way you can get a specialized frozen truck for it and have a guy who eventually knows the machines inside and out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TKK Posted March 3, 2018 Author Share Posted March 3, 2018 Thats what i was thinking, its just i have these guys that go to those places every day so im thinking why buy a dedicated van when i can throw freezers in their vans and do the 12 locations daily. Its weird i tried the 750 watt inverter and it powered it well and only showed 25% capacity. Then i tried the 400 watt and said overload. Then back to the 750 and it would overload too. Fml Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngryChris Posted March 3, 2018 Share Posted March 3, 2018 And that's why you get one vehicle dedicated for ice cream. Think about it.. one freezer goes down.. just one.. and how much money are you out? What if something to stuck in the seal and the driver didn't notice? Then you'd really be saying FML because you tried to cut corners when dealing with something as fragile as ice cream. I know you like to be as cheap as possible, but you need to spend some money with ice cream. As a driver back in the day, even I didn't do ice cream. We often let the repair tech or the owner take care of the ice cream.. you literally go straight from the shop to the ice cream machines and then you move onto something else AFTER you have gotten rid of all of the ice cream you brought with you, or you head back to the shop to return any leftover ice cream. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arkhusker Posted March 3, 2018 Share Posted March 3, 2018 An off the shelf power inverter will NOT power a compressor. The problem isn't the wattage, its the start up amps. This is one of those things you can't do cheap. If you look for a cheap way to do this it will cost much more down the road. Check with companies like Equipment Innovators. If you want one on every truck, you need cold plate freezers. If you want them to run during the day, you can get them that will run off the truck's electrical system but you need high amp alternators. When it comes to ice cream, you don't want to mess around. First time a freezer goes down and it all melts, you'll wish you had spent the money to do it right. It's not just the product costs but the clean up because it will find every crack and crevice to get into then it will rot and mildew and mold and stink, etc. I've transported Ice Cream in just a rotomolded cooler with an Equipment Innovators ice pack on top and it'll do the small job but if I were doing Ice Cream every day, cold plate freezer with high amp alternator or a dedicated freezer truck.http://www.allstarcarts.com/delivery-freezers_ice-cream-truck-freezers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orlando vendor Posted March 3, 2018 Share Posted March 3, 2018 I have two locations that I sell Ice cream to and its growing. Before the emd of this year it should be at least a total of 7. Presently, I have a regular freezer that I bought from SAM'S in my box truck. At night I run an extension cord to it from my house to keep the power running, but during my route. I connect it to a YETI 1000 portable electric unit . Its a little expensive ( 1200 dollars ) and it wont last forever . I am hoping at least 18 months. At night , I charge the YETI by plugging it into an outlet. It works pretty good, but expensive . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orlando vendor Posted March 3, 2018 Share Posted March 3, 2018 On 2/12/2018 at 4:58 PM, Southeast Treats said: I really don't know, the people to ask would be someone who builds the roving ice cream trucks. My thinking is that the inverter would only have to pull enough power to keep the cold during the day, but you don't want it killing your main battery. Is there an auto electric shop near you? They might be a good resource. Another way to go is a cold plate freezer for the truck, more expensive than a regular freezer, but built for the exact job - keeping the ice cream cold all day and being plugged in at night. Most of them will last 10 or 12 hours easily. They are pretty pricy tho, so you would want to look for a good used one: https://www.freezerplanet.com/Ice-Cream-Freezers-with-Cold-Plates-for-Trucks-and-Vans-s/281.htm?_ga=2.194946797.1906033555.1518472388-117389009.1518472388 Cold plates look great but really expensive Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TKK Posted March 3, 2018 Author Share Posted March 3, 2018 Thats what im thinking. Each driver would do 6 locations with ice cream daily, which is 6 of their 13 locations they do. I was thinking they can do them early, maybe plug in the freezers over night with icepacks in there. Then they load their ice cream on the coolers, unplug them and put the icepack ontop of the ice cream boxes. Its not trying to be cheap im just thinking these guys hit the same places daily, it would take them maybe an extra 30min each per location. But im thinking getting a small transit connect, have it with like 4 of these coolers in it plugged over night and have them delivered daily. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TKK Posted March 3, 2018 Author Share Posted March 3, 2018 Have u guys seen those goal zero packs? They r like1k each but maybe power them Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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