Why Does My Coldroom Need a Strip Curtain?

Why Does My Coldroom Need a Strip Curtain?

It's one of those things that's easy to overlook. A strip curtain is just a few lengths of PVC hanging in a doorway. At around 2mm thick, it hardly looks like it's doing much. But take it away and you'll notice the difference quickly — in your energy bills, your stock temperatures, and the condition of your coldroom.

Here's why it matters more than most people realise.

What a strip curtain actually does

Every time a coldroom door opens, cold air drops out and warm air rushes in. Your refrigeration unit then has to work to pull the temperature back down. In a busy operation, that happens dozens of times a day.

A strip curtain doesn't stop people walking through, but it dramatically slows the air exchange. The coldroom stays closer to its set point throughout the day, and your refrigeration unit doesn't have to work nearly as hard to maintain it.

The impact on running costs

When your unit cycles less, your compressor runs for shorter periods. Over the course of a year, that's a meaningful reduction in electricity use. Strip curtains are one of the most cost-effective upgrades you can make to a coldroom. The outlay is small. The return is ongoing.

Stock temperature and product quality

Frequent temperature swings affect product quality and shelf life. For fresh produce, dairy, and meat, consistency matters. A strip curtain reduces the fluctuation that comes with high door traffic and helps keep conditions stable between door openings.

Frost and ice build-up

In freezer rooms especially, warm humid air entering through the door is the main cause of frost build-up. Without a curtain, that moisture gets into the room and settles on shelving, stock, and evaporator coils. A frosted evaporator is expensive to deal with. A strip curtain intercepts a large proportion of that humidity before it gets that far.

Why is my strip curtain covered in frost?

A frosted strip curtain is one of the most common things people flag as a problem. In most cases, it isn't one.

The usual causes are doors being left open by staff, even briefly, or faulty and missing door seals and sweeper gaskets allowing warm air to find its way in continuously.

When that warm, moist air hits the cold surface of the curtain, the moisture freezes on contact. That is exactly what should happen. The curtain is intercepting the humidity before it reaches the inside of the room. Without it, that frost would be forming on your shelving, your stock, and your evaporator instead.

The simple fix is to remove the curtain periodically and defrost it. It takes minutes and costs nothing.

The better fix is to address the root cause. Check your door seals and sweeper gaskets, and tighten up on doors being left open. The only real solution is reducing the amount of external humidity entering the room in the first place. Until that's under control, frost on the curtain is the best possible outcome. It means the curtain is doing its job so the rest of your coldroom doesn't have to pay the price.

Which strip curtain do you need?

For most coldrooms, a standard PVC strip curtain kit does the job well. Our Coldflex PVC Strip Curtain Kit is straightforward to fit and available in sizes to suit standard coldroom door openings.

Standard 200mm x 2mm PVC strip curtain with stainless steel hanging rail

If your door sees heavy traffic, or you're running a freezer room at lower temperatures, it's worth considering a thermal curtain kit. The Cold Stop Thermal Strip Curtain offers a higher level of insulation and better energy saving where the standard curtain is working hardest.

Coldstop thermal insualted curtain with 2-part aluminium hanging rail

Both are relatively inexpensive compared to the ongoing costs of running a coldroom without one.