Checklist: what to check before installing a refrigeration monitoring system
A refrigeration monitoring system is chosen once and stays with the business for years. Most disappointments aren't the result of a bad system, but of questions that weren't asked before installation: what exactly is measured, who sets the thresholds, what happens when there's no signal, and who gets the message at three in the morning. This checklist puts the questions in the order the work happens.
Part A · What you have: your list of units
1. How many refrigeration units you have, and what each one holds. Refrigerator, freezer, cold room, display case. Next to each unit: what's inside and what the stock is worth on a typical day. The unit with the most valuable stock isn't necessarily the one that's opened most often, and both matter.
2. Which units are split. An indoor unit only, or an indoor unit with an outdoor condensing unit (on the roof, in the yard). The difference determines how many controllers extended monitoring requires, and therefore the price as well. For details, see the article on basic vs. extended monitoring.
3. Which unit has a door that's opened a lot. That's the unit where a door sensor matters most. A unit without a door sensor has no door alert.
4. Who your refrigeration technician is, and their number. The system alerts. A technician fixes the refrigerator. It's worth having the number written down before the fault, not after.
Part B · What needs to be in place: infrastructure
| Requirement | What to check | What to do if it's missing |
|---|---|---|
| Electrical | A 230V outlet near the unit. An extension cord up to 10 m is fine | Arrange a power point before installation |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi or a network cable near the units | Wi-Fi isn't mandatory. You can order a router, or a cellular router with a SIM if there's no internet at all |
| Physical access | The unit, controller and sensors can be reached without moving equipment | Clear the space. Access is also needed after installation |
| Ambient temperature | The coldest unit | No limitation down to −25°C |
| What needs to stay in place | Continuous power to the controllers, and connectivity | Any change to location, power or network is coordinated with the supplier before it's made |
Part C · What to ask any monitoring supplier before you sign
These are the questions that separate a system whose alerts get acted on from a system that gets ignored.
5. What exactly does the sensor measure: air or product? An air sensor reacts to every door opening and produces false alarms. A sensor inside a glycerin bottle reacts at the pace of the stock. This is the most important question on the list.
6. Who sets the alert thresholds, and based on what? A good answer: the supplier, at the end of installation, based on the behavior observed in the unit itself, with the values recorded in a document you receive. A weaker answer: the same default value for every unit.
7. What happens when there's no signal from the unit? A power outage, a Wi-Fi dropout or a controller fault all look the same from the server: the unit has disappeared. Ask how long it takes for an alert about it to arrive, and where it goes. In the NITARTI system, the default is five minutes, to the same channels as the temperature alerts.
8. Are measurements saved when connectivity drops? In some systems, no. Better to know that beforehand.
9. What doesn't the system measure? A serious supplier will tell you. The NITARTI system has no refrigerant leak detection (extended monitoring measures the pressures, and a deviation in them may point to a leak), no defrost measurement, no humidity sensor and no fault prediction.
10. How accurate is the measurement? The NITARTI system meets the ±0.5°C accuracy requirement.
11. Who owns the hardware, and what's the warranty? With NITARTI, the hardware is sold to the customer and stays with them even after the engagement ends. Hardware warranty: 12 months from the installation date, subject to the terms of use.
12. What's the full monthly price, not just the per-unit price? Every system has a per-unit subscription plus an access and data-retention layer. Ask about both. NITARTI's full prices are listed on our Pricing page.
← Temperature monitoring for a commercial refrigerator: 8 questions to ask before you choose
Part D · Who gets the alert
13. Who gets alerts, and on which channel. SMS, email, app notification. You can set different recipients for each unit. The practical question: who answers at night and on weekends? If the answer is "nobody", the alert is worthless at exactly the hours it's needed.
14. Who in the business is authorized to request changes. Thresholds, recipients and channels are set at installation and changed by contacting the supplier. It's worth making one person responsible for this, not "whoever remembers".
Part E · What you receive when installation is complete
15. A written installation summary. Which units were installed and the monitoring type of each, the number of controllers, the thresholds set, the alert channels and recipients, and who was present on behalf of the business. This is the document you go back to with any question. If a supplier doesn't provide one, ask for it.
16. A short briefing for the staff. Three rules every employee needs to know: don't touch the controller, the sensors or the glycerin bottle · don't disconnect power or Wi-Fi · notify the supplier before replacing a unit, rearranging the shelves or changing the temperature range.
17. Instructions for the refrigeration technician. Before any hardware change, the technician contacts the monitoring supplier. With NITARTI, failing to coordinate voids the warranty. The technician should know this before the first visit.
What the checklist doesn't cover
The quality of the refrigeration itself. A monitoring system measures and alerts. It doesn't calibrate the refrigerator, repair it or prevent faults. If the refrigerator runs at a temperature that isn't right for the stock, the monitoring will show it. The fix is up to the technician.
The initial period. In the first two weeks, the same question almost always comes up: the system shows a higher temperature than the refrigerator's own display. That's not a bug. The refrigerator measures the air in the compartment, and the system measures the product, which always reacts more slowly. The solution: calibrate the refrigerator, or update the ranges after contacting the supplier.
Questions and answers
What are the requirements for installing a refrigeration monitoring system?
A 230V outlet near the unit (an extension cord up to 10 meters is fine), Wi-Fi or a network cable, and physical access to the unit. Wi-Fi isn't mandatory: if there's no connection, you can order a router or a cellular router.
How long does installation take?
It depends on the number of units and their configuration. The supplier can give an estimate after seeing the list of units from Part A.
Do I need to prepare anything before the installer arrives?
A list of units, physical access to each one, a power point and connectivity, and the names of the alert recipients with their phone numbers and email addresses.
Who sets the alert thresholds after installation?
At NITARTI, the supplier does, at the end of installation, based on the behavior observed in the unit. The values are recorded in the installation summary. The customer may change a threshold value in their account, and NITARTI records the value it set.
What happens if my refrigeration technician replaces a component without coordinating?
With NITARTI, the hardware warranty is voided. That's why the technician gets in touch before any hardware change, or, when working outside business hours, on the next business day.
Download the checklist as a PDF
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