Commercial Kitchen Equipment worked example

Refrigeration Load with refrigeration connected load of 3.25 kW: a worked example

Suppose refrigeration connected load falls to 3.25 kW. This page works the full calculation at that level so you can see exactly which result moves and by how much. Estimate refrigeration energy use and utility cost for walk-ins, prep tables, undercounter units, blast chillers, or refrigerated production equipment.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Refrigeration connected load (compressors + evaporator fans): 3.25 kW (the input this scenario stresses; the baseline uses 6.5)
  • Refrigeration runtime per operating period: 18 hr (held at the documented default)
  • Blended electricity cost: 0.16 $ / kWh (held at the documented default)
  • Meals, pans, or refrigerated units supported: 450 meals (held at the documented default)

Working through the calculation

  • The calculation starts from the formula this tool documents: Refrigeration Load energy used = refrigeration connected load × refrigeration runtime per operating period.
  • refrigeration load energy used works out to 58.5 kWh at these inputs, and this is the headline figure for the scenario.
  • total refrigeration load utility cost works out to 9.36 $ at these inputs.
  • refrigeration load utility cost per equipment unit works out to 0.02 $ / piece at these inputs.
  • hourly refrigeration load utility cost works out to 0.52 $ / hr at these inputs.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where refrigeration connected load sits at 6.5 kW and the headline result is 117 kWh, this scenario comes in 50% below the baseline at 58.5 kWh.
  • It computes the energy a refrigeration system consumes over an operating period, the resulting utility cost, and that cost spread across meals or refrigerated units served. When the numbers land here, the stressed input is the lever to work; the walkthrough above shows exactly how much each output recovers as it climbs back toward the baseline.

Results at a glance

  • refrigeration load energy used: 58.5 kWh (headline result)
  • total refrigeration load utility cost: 9.36 $
  • refrigeration load utility cost per equipment unit: 0.02 $ / piece
  • hourly refrigeration load utility cost: 0.52 $ / hr

Run it with your numbers

  • To rerun this with your own numbers, open the live Refrigeration Load calculator, set refrigeration connected load to your actual value, and adjust the remaining inputs to match your operation.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.