The problem
Pepper Chef is a busy restaurant in the centre of Birmingham, and its air conditioning failed without warning. For a restaurant full of customers, that is not a minor fault. Comfort drops, service suffers and trade is lost with every hour the system is down.
We attended that evening and, on investigation, found a leak on the evaporator coil. The coil could not be repaired, which meant the old unit was beyond saving.
The decision
A new coil or replacement parts would have meant waiting for delivery, and with the number of customers the restaurant serves, waiting was not an option. We recommended replacing the unit rather than leaving the restaurant without cooling while parts arrived.
That decision turned a potential multi-day outage into an overnight replacement.
The work
- The failed unit was degassed, with the refrigerant recovered safely rather than released.
- The old unit was removed from site.
- A new 10kW MHI ceiling cassette was fitted, with the matching MHI outdoor unit on the plant side.
- The system was commissioned and handed back the next morning, before the restaurant opened.
The result
Pepper Chef was diagnosed in the evening and had a new MHI system running the next morning, before opening. The new equipment is backed by up to 10 years’ manufacturer warranty on qualifying systems.
Why Optimal
- Fast, honest diagnosis. We found the leak, confirmed the coil was beyond repair and said so, rather than recommending a repair that would not hold.
- A plan that fits the business. For a restaurant, waiting for parts was not an option, so we replaced instead.
- Properly done. REFCOM registered, with refrigerant recovered correctly and the new system installed to a high standard.
- 24/7 breakdown cover. Rated 4.9 from 126 Google reviews.
