Building a walk in fridge/box- need help

[remington22mag]

I found a couple sites but am getting a bit confused as to what machinery I need- If anyone has some information to input, I'd be much obliged

I was thinking of building a 120 sq ft box - approx 16x24

So far here is what I think I need

Wood - for the walls
Styrofoam insulation boards
Vapor barrier
?Some type of refrigeration plates?

Here is where I get a bit confused

Machinery :
Fuse boxes for the machinery
Some type of condenser ? A low temp condenser?

I found this link which is somewhat of outline..but not sure if I need that freezer room...but it is a possibility

http://www.bae.lsu.edu/en/our_offic...ooler/Two+Temperature+Walkin+Refrigerator.htm

Well thanks!

 

[czeigler]

how cold do you need it to get? We built a walk in cooler for the fire company, approx. 12x12. It is basically like a 12x12 shed with a deck floor...the walls are double insulated with fiberglass batts (i think that is what you call the ones that fit in between your studs.) i forget what r-value though. Then on top of that we tacked the 1/2" styrofoam insulation on and taped the joints.

We just use a window A/C unit built into the walls as there are no windows. It keeps it pretty cold in there, but we only keep watermelon, cantelope, and fowers for our carnival and fundraising events.

 

[masterarbor]

i may be wrong, but this might be better suited for the off topic forum.

 

[sawyerDave]

You'll need to get a refrigeration unit, if you plan to do this for storing fruit, here's why: Fruit respires as it cools, getting it to a low temp requires lots of cooling. Large farms have a supercooler room to get the temp down rapidly, so the fruit doesn't spoil. After it cools down, its much easier to keep it cool, then you could go to the a/c type of cooling. The unit you will need will consist of a condenser, which turns the fluid to gas, pump, and evaporator tubing, which cools the clod area by turning the fluid into gas. Your most cost effective solution might be to find a small reefer body truck and buy the body off of it, lots of them have a small engine that runs the reefer when its driving down the road, and a 120 volt backup that runs the unit when parked. It would be a hell of a project to build one without someone who has some experience in HVAC.

 

[Ace12]

Take my word for it, you are much better off getting a Refrigeration company to install the equipment. If this is going to be a freezer, you need to use walls made for freezers. Wood walls will not work properly with low temp. What do you plan to keep in this box?

 

[JackD_ME]

A 16 X 24 is 384 square feet.
I like the idea of the refer box truck, just buying the box off the cab & chassis. It's already made for your intended use.

 

[Frank Boyer]

16' X 24' is an extremely large refer box. What are you going to use it for? I see used refer boxes on Craig's list regurlarly. Are you certified to recycle freon? The size of the box and load determine how big of a compressor/evaporator/ condenser/ and other components are needed. First determine your needs and then look around for a used unit.

 

[Ace12]

For a 16x24x8 box keeping 35 degrees you will need 18,500 BTU for light use and 23,200 BTU for heavy use. If your not going in and out of it alot go with the light use.

 

[BlueRidgeMark]

I don't mean to be disrespectful, but your questions look to me like someone who doesn't know how much he doesn't know. You are in WAY over your head. Hire someone.

 

[Freakingstang]

The refer box thing is a good idea, but all the ones I have worked on have been 208V 3 phase, or 480v 3 phase.

 

[masterarbor]

i don't know why it should, but an ongoing thread about refrigerators in an arborist forum just annoys me. too non sequiter for my taste, i suppose. i've never been too much of a british thermal unit buff anyway. oh well, stuff needs to be cooled, i suppose...

 

[sawyerDave]

i don't know why it should, but an ongoing thread about refrigerators in an arborist forum just annoys me. too non sequiter for my taste, i suppose. i've never been too much of a british thermal unit buff anyway. oh well, stuff needs to be cooled, i suppose...

I think you figured us out at last, we're all posting on it to annoy you!:hmm3grin2orange: :hmm3grin2orange:

 

[berryman70]

For years I had compleplated building a walk-in cooler for our farmstand, did a lot of research, went to a lot of auctions, my advice is to find a used walk-in in good condition & have a professional do the hook-ups for you. Putting the cooler box together is not that hard to do.
I bought a 10' x 10' cooler & a 10' x 10' freezer at a county surplus auction, all complete, both units in good condition for (get this) $100.00 they came out of the kitchen during remodeling at the county jail.
Don

I think you figured us out at last, we're all posting on it to annoy you!:hmm3grin2orange: :hmm3grin2orange:

Sorry Masterarbor, had to do it