Back bar

workhorses

Refrigeration units and glasswashers may not be the sexiest equipment in a pub, but when they go wrong the panic button is the first port of call. Graham Ridout reports

There's no doubting that much of the equipment that helps a pub run smoothly is taken for granted. Those that are top of the list have to be refrigeration units and glasswashers.

'There's not much you can say about back bar or upright coolers. They are pretty boring, but they are the workhorses that bar managers rely upon, says Simon Gordon, managing director of Food Fresh Refrigeration, which supplies a wide range of bar and catering equipment from its High Wycombe base.

He adds: 'They are generally so reliable that the only advice we can give is to make sure there is plenty of air circulating around the rear of the coolers and that the back is swept every now and then to remove any dust.

Coolers may be taken for granted, but once they go wrong, it is panic stations as licensees desperately seek repairs or a replacement before their takings start to dip. Gordon explains: 'Eighty per cent of the calls we get are from people who have had a cooler break down and want a replacement by the next morning.

Better manufacturing standards have led to the increased reliability of the coolers. Nevertheless Gordon advises licensees to make sure coolers come with a five-year warranty for the compressor, which is just about the only thing that can go wrong.

The other unsung workhorse is the glasswasher. Again, Gordon says most machines are highly reliable and he recommends models from Classic, Meiko and Winterhalter as good examples of modern technology. 'Most glasswashers and dishwashers have a cycle time of between two and four minutes, so it makes no sense trying to use a domestic dishwashing machine they take forever and aren't really built for heavy use.

There are a few notes of caution that he adds. 'If you live in a hard-water area, you may have to install a water softener. And, it is best to check the mains water pressure in your area. If it is low, you may need a pump to increase the pressure, and these cost around £80. Also, the majority of machines work on gravity drainage, so if you want to put the machine in a cellar, you will have to have a sump and a pump to get rid of the waste water.

Another of Gordon's tips is to regularly inspect the filters inside glasswashers and dishwashers. 'Quite often the machines won't work properly because the filter is clogged with something like a piece of lemon or lime, he explains.

The seemingly unstoppable trend towards colder drinks is also having an effect on sales of ice-makers. Gordon says his firm is selling thousands, not only because of the fad for cold drinks, but also because 'they have come down in price as the technology has improved.

The entry price for the smallest machines is around £200, excluding VAT. He says technology has made them much more reliable and a cheaper option than buying in ice cubes.

For an average sized pub, Gordon suggests an ice-maker with a capability of producing 35kg of ice over 24 hours and a storage capacity of 15kg is the ideal size. This will cost around £700 ex VAT. Larger outlets, particularly those serving lots of cocktails, can get ice-makers that can produce up to 155kg per day with storage of 65kg.

The breakdown blues

Brendan Whelan, licensee of the Black Bull Hotel in Folkestone, Kent, says: 'From my experience, the best thing to do is buy local rather than from a national company.

His advice stems from two rare instances of equipment failure. A couple of years ago, his microwave, bought via a national supplier, packed up and a service engineer had to be called in to replace a component.

A few months later, the microwave packed up again and another service engineer was summoned, who had to replace the same component.

Whelan says the component failed due to another cause, but that 'didn't stop them charging me around £140 each time and the company backtracking on what they said was the original problem.

Whelan's experience when his glasswasher failed was an entirely different matter. The machine, bought new from a local supplier, failed after just six months and coincided with a large event being staged at the Black Bull. 'The firm was very good. It immediately sent over 12 cases of glasses so that I could cope, and also arranged for the head technician from the manufacturer to repair the glasswasher.