Is energy optimization for your restaurant on your resolutions list?
February 8, 2019
It’s a new year. If you’re still running your restaurant, congratulations to you. Running a restaurant is not an easy task. If you’ve kept yours afloat into this new year, keep up the good work.
One of the biggest challenges facing restaurant owners is meeting the expenses of upkeep. The greatest expense for many restaurant owners is the energy bill. This is because restaurants consume nearly twice as much energy as other businesses.
You can likely attribute the high cost of your restaurant’s energy bill to commercial refrigeration, HVAC and lighting. Cutting the costs of your restaurant’s electric bill can be challenging because you cannot simply get rid of these applications. Instead, you can optimize them for a more energy-efficient performance.
Make this the year of energy optimization for your restaurant
As you’re entering the new year, you should consider new strategies for improving the energy efficiency of your restaurant. Some of these strategies are as simple as getting you and your staff in the habit of turning off unused equipment and regularly cleaning pipes, drains and anything else that can be clogged.
Energy optimization for your restaurant can reduce your energy bills by 30 percent. Here are a few ways you can reduce energy consumption in your restaurant:
- Use Energy Star equipment — Replacing your stoves, refrigerators, dishwashers and other appliances with Energy Star certified appliances plays a large role in lowering your energy costs. Think outside of the kitchen too. For example, you may want to replace the hand dryers in your restrooms with Energy Star certified hand dryers.
- Use better lighting — Light fixtures that use incandescent bulbs consume a lot of energy. Plus, incandescent bulbs go out fast and have to frequently be replaced. You should replace your incandescent bulbs with LEDs or fluorescent lights. These last longer than incandescent bulbs and require a fraction of the amount of energy to operate.
- Use low-flow pre-rinse valves — The pre-rinse valves in your dishwashers use a lot of energy. You can replace your standard pre-rinse valves with low-flow valves. These achieve the same goal of rinsing food off your dishes while using much less energy.
- Install strip curtains in your refrigerators — Many restaurant kitchens have walk-in refrigerators and freezers. These are convenient for storage and use, but inconvenient for your energy consumption. You can help seal the temperature of these units with strip curtains. This will help reduce the energy you waste in these units having to work harder than necessary to stay cool.
- Get an energy analysis — You can take a lot of steps on your own to save energy, but you cannot maximize your energy-saving efforts without the help of an energy professional. An energy professional from Energy Optimization can visit your restaurant for an energy analysis.
An energy analysis can help identify areas that are consuming more electricity than necessary. Your energy professional will develop solutions to resolve these issues and lower your energy costs.
Contact us today for more information or to schedule an energy analysis for your restaurant.
