Imagine arriving for the dinner rush and being told to close your doors—not because of the food, but because your restaurant does not have enough hot water.

A historical report from Vancouver Coastal Health identifies several restaurants that were temporarily closed for lack of hot water.

 

The report does not identify exactly why each establishment lost its hot-water supply. The cause could have been equipment failure, poor maintenance, a utility interruption or an improperly sized system. What it clearly demonstrates is the consequence:

No Hot Water. No Customers. No Revenue.

Consider a restaurant generating approximately $5,000 in sales per day:

  • One day closed places approximately $5,000 in revenue at risk
  • Three days closed places approximately $15,000 in revenue at risk
  • One week closed places approximately $35,000 in revenue at risk

That is before considering emergency repairs, wasted food, staff disruption, cancelled reservations, delivery-app interruptions and damage to the restaurant’s reputation.

Suddenly, saving a few thousand dollars by purchasing a smaller hot-water tank may not look like much of a saving.

Tank Volume Is Only Part of the Equation

A commercial hot-water system cannot be selected by tank size alone. Proper engineering must consider:

  • Peak demand in gallons per hour
  • Storage volume
  • Heating and recovery capacity
  • Required water temperatures
  • Kitchen equipment
  • Operating hours and peak service periods

Evolve Mechanical Solutions sizes commercial hot-water systems using recognized American Society of Plumbing Engineers methodology. If the operator can provide a reliable estimate of peak hot-water demand in gallons per hour, we can recalculate the system using the restaurant’s actual operating information.

A smaller or lower-capacity water heater may cost less initially. However, if it cannot keep up during the busiest period, that inexpensive tank could become one of the most expensive decisions made on the entire project.

View the historical Vancouver Coastal Health restaurant-closure report.

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Planning a restaurant, bakery or commercial kitchen? Contact Evolve Mechanical Solutions before purchasing the hot-water equipment.

James Hicks, P.Eng.
Evolve Mechanical Solutions Inc.
236-777-3487
www.evolvesolutions.ca

#CommercialPlumbing #RestaurantDesign #CommercialKitchen #HotWater #MechanicalEngineering