Cleaning Up With Natural Gas Booster Heater Technology
When the Blue Ribbon Diner in Burlington, North Carolina decided to get a dishwashing system worthy of its name, the operator had a clear choice to make -- either replace the old dishwasher with an electric booster water heater or install one with new natural gas water heating technology. For the restaurant operator, it was an easy decision -- once he called the sales pros at Piedmont Natural Gas in the Northern Region.

The call came to Mike Durham, Food Service Specialist - Northern Region, an experienced hand in the application of natural gas technology to the needs of foodservice operators. Mike works from the Greensboro business office and is responsible for promoting natural gas equipment to the foodservice market in the Northern Region.

When the old electric unit needed replacing, Mike got the call and, working with Jeff Eldredge, Commercial Sales Rep in Burlington, quickly decided the solution to the Blue Ribbon's problem of high operating costs was a new Jackson Tempstar GP, a dishwasher with an integrated natural gas booster heater. The unit was installed in June under a lease agreement between the customer and Piedmont Natural Gas.

According to Paul Kerns, the managing partner of the Blue Ribbon, "The new machine does everything I'm looking for -- it gets the dishes clean, they dry faster, and it saves money over what I was paying for a chemical drying agent. I love it." In addition, the natural gas booster heater holds a more constant rinse temperature than the electric booster it replaced. And, according to Mr. Kerns, "With gas, the temperature stays right on. I can't run it fast enough to use all the hot water."

So what's the difference between a restaurant dishwasher (or a "warewasher," as it is called in the trade) that uses natural gas and one that uses electricity for the high-temperature rinse that sanitizes the dishes, flatware, pots and glasses? Plenty.

Health regulations require restaurant operators to clean and sanitize the "ware" used for cooking and serving. A "rack-type" production dishwasher, pictured above, uses hot water at 130 ?F and a detergent to clean the contents of the racks, one rack at a time, as they're loaded into the unit. The door closes and a high-pressure spray, similar to the one in your home dishwasher, cleans the ware. Then the dishes are sanitized.

Here's where the difference comes in. Some restaurants use a low-temperature chemical rinse with a chlorine solution added to sanitize the dishes. Others, such as the Blue Ribbon, use a high-temperature rinse. The Blue Ribbon's old machine relied on an electric "booster" water heater to boost the temperature to 180 ?F -- the temperature required to sanitize the dishes. With the electric booster heater, a costly drying agent (a chemical that prevents spotting) is added.

With the new Jackson Tempstar GP machine, the natural gas booster is part of the dishwasher, so it hooks up easily without using valuable floor space. When the rinse cycle starts, the natural gas booster below the rack holder delivers the high-temperature rinse, without the need for a drying agent. It saves on the drying chemical and electricity costs -- and reduces the time needed to run racks through the machine. The new integrated, natural gas booster makes short work of the dishwashing chore. When you're washing 50 racks of dishes an hour, those cost and labor savings add up.

Mike Durham is convinced. "With natural gas booster technology, we offer something that no one else can -- clean, dry dishes without the cost of chemicals for drying or sanitizing - and a cost savings over low-temperature chemical rinses or electric-booster water heaters. Our leasing program makes it an easy decision for the operator to justify financially."

To learn how gas booster heaters can save money for you, please contact your local Piedmont Natural Gas office and ask for a Commercial Sales Representative or a Food Service Specialist.

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