Six Strategies to Reduce Consumption and Save Money on Electricity in Your Restaurant

If you run a restaurant, you likely spend a lot of money on your electrical bills every month. To cut down on costs, there are a number of things you can do. Try incorporating these energy-efficient tips into your eatery:

1. Turn Off Everything at Night

Make sure that all electronics are off at the end of the night. That includes kitchen appliances as well as office computers and point-of-sale systems. If you keep on lights in the evening to deter theft, make sure they are energy efficient and as dim as possible. For external landscaping lights, use solar-powered lights.

2. Separate Front of House and Kitchen Heating Ventilation and Cooling

The kitchen is often naturally much warmer than the front of the house where your bar and diners are at. As a result, these areas tend to need different levels of cooling and/or heating. If they are tied to the same HVAC system, you are most likely overcooling or overheating one side of your establishment, and racking up extra electrical costs as you go. Consider separating your HVAC systems.

3. Invest in Energy-Efficient Appliances

When it's time to upgrade your appliances, look for the most energy-efficient models you can get. You have to run fridges, freezers, boilers, fryers and countless other appliances, but you don't need to waste electricity on old, clunky models.

4. Look Into a Grey Water Heat Recovery Dishwasher

Washing dishes also takes up a lot of electricity in a restaurant, and much of the electrical cost is wrapped up in heating the water. A greywater heat recovery dishwasher takes the heat from the dirty dishwater as it drains. Then, it recycles that heat back into the next load of washing, reducing energy consumption and saving you money.

5. Don't Overrun Appliances

Whether they're energy efficient or not, appliances should not be run more than they need to be. So that your hood fan isn't running needlessly, instruct your kitchen staff to turn it off when it's not busy and the kitchen isn't full of fumes. Alternatively, install a smart sensor so that the fan only turns on as needed.

Similarly, start broilers and fryers close to the time of service. Make sure the staff aren't putting them on right away in the morning, hours before you open.

6. Upgrade Old Wiring

Old wiring can also add to inefficiencies. Consider having a commercial electrical contractor like Aardvark Electrics take a look at your existing wiring and updating or repairing as needed.