Do most ODs on here who do Fridge work ( if there are any ( Fridge work) have their own or Rent /Lease ?
which do you prefer ?
Whats the average price you would expect to pay in rental and what does it cover in terms of tyres/ repairs / damage?
what would be your preferred make , G&A, Lamberet, Chereau and what would you prefer in terms of Fridge Motor ? TK or Carrier ?
would you have single or dual comaprtment ? twin evap ?
in 2 minds whether to buy or rent / lease and the best one to get.
Im looking for reliability and endurance, not trailer flaps, and tonnes of lights.
your opinions would be most welcome.
When I had a fridge, I rented at first (expensive - about £200 to £230 ish) but went on to buy a good second hand Schmitz from TIP. I also had TK fridge units but the Carrier are supposed to be quieter & simpler to maintain as they have less working parts and/or drive belts!
I prefer G&A or Schmitz but the Lamberet & Chereau are supposed to be lighter as they dont have a chassis (think thats right!)
If your going to rent, you can go direct to G&A in Doncaster or Schmitz in Consett but you might not get as good a deal as at some rental companies! As an O/D a twin evap/dual comp would give you more options as to the jobs you can do but I’ve never bothered with this!
You could try HIll Hire, Cadwallader, TIP or as mentioned direct to Schmitz/G&A, I think Montracon do rental as well. I would get twin compartment if you’re doing ad hoc work as then you can work for the multi-temp co’s & supermarkets. You might get a pimped out Cherau from Cadwallader, i’d say the rest would provide run of the mill equipment. If you want bling you will probably have to buy.
Sorry to wander slightly ‘off-topic’ but what is, or how do you, ‘bling’ a fridge??
Do you mean side skirts, LED lights etc or are there ‘bling’ options with regard to the fridge motor (i.e. remote control from the cab, GPS-tracking, etc) etc etc??
marcus, theres all of that ‘normal’ trailer bling - LEDs, side skirts etc but there are more serious things bling-like for a fridge!
Temp controls and cut-offs
Temp recorders (paper or digital)
FRC Certificate
etc
One of the biggest mistakes I have ever made,and there have been a few,was to buy a brand new fridge £48k,so many good second hand around between £15k-£20k.Lamberet was my choice and still is,lighter and internal dimensions are generous,pallets fit easily. The Carrier gave good service,easily serviced and not too noisy and the latest model is quieter and obviously more powerful.I would buy a good second hand if I did it again and if required fit a new engine,cheaper option.Renting,in 2 years you have probably paid for what you could buy,fridge trailers if looked after should give a minimum of about 10 years service and you should still get a few quid for it,I did £8k for a 10 year old and it is still being used 3 years later.Lamberet also offer refurbished trailers ,or did,worth giving them a ring.
Biggest problem with Gray and Adams more than a year or two old is you will probably find the insulation is water logged. Usually ends up weighing up to a tonne more than when it was new. We use to find that next to a Cherau running to hot countries in the summer with the fridge on auto the one on the G&A would run twice the hours.
Ex Haulier:
Biggest problem with Gray and Adams more than a year or two old is you will probably find the insulation is water logged. Usually ends up weighing up to a tonne more than when it was new. We use to find that next to a Cherau running to hot countries in the summer with the fridge on auto the one on the G&A would run twice the hours.
I would agree with you too an extent, for a few years G&A had a problem with delamination, (G&A trailers are constructed using a five element panel ie grp, plywood, insulating foam, plywood, grp) these elements are glued together on a big table and then a vacuum is created while the glue drys, the tables they where using didn’t work as well as they should of. These tables have been replaced now and anyone who has been to Fraserburgh where all the panels are made will know its a very impressive operation.
Then a trailer gets to a couple years old and if delamination occurs then water will seep in and the wood expands and weighs more.
I think also speccing a trailer correct helps if using it for fresh meat ie lots of blood or milk ie lots of spilt milk (its not worth crying over) and has to be washed regularly then a fully welded floor is the only way to go and in my opinion this is where people go wrong, speccing a trailer incorrectly ie if doing meat,fish etc don’t order a trailer with a GRP floor because water will seep in!!! I know you can wash a trailer with a GRP floor but it wouldn’t be adviseable to do it for instance every day. Where I used to work we had a Lamberet meat railer with GRP floor (bought cheap 2nd hand) used regularly washed alot and thing ended up being scrapped because the box was coming to pieces cause the wood had rotted out due to washing!! On the flip side had a G&A meat railer that was sold for good money after 16 years of hard work used daily.
G&A will build you a trailer very much to your spec. see Harrisons, tnn.co.uk/Manufacturers/plon … 9920408084 where as alot of the others won’t deviated that much off standard.
In my opinion:-
Gray & Adams - Heavy (well engineered), will last for years!! Loads of options
Chereau - Bl00dy good trailer
Lamberet - Good trailer, fairly cheap, won’t last forever
SOR - as above
Schmitz - good trailers fairly heavy, easy panel repair
Any dutch trailer Lamboo etc - Good if your doing flowers, personally wouldn’t want to do to much heavy work
As for fridges Carrier Vector over anything, Maxima’s aren’t bad either
Just my two pennys