Prairie Farms buys Evapco’s packaged chillers

Dairy operator Prairie Farms has purchased two of Evapco’s Evapcold low-charge packaged ammonia chiller units to process milk at one of its dairies, becoming the first end user to employ the new system.

Evapco is displaying a chiller unit at its booth at the 2017 IIAR Natural Refrigeration Conference & Heavy Equipment Expo in San Antonio, Texas, which concludes Wednesday. The chillers are designed to produce temperatures ranging from 10°F to 60°F, with a “sweet spot” between 10°F and 35°F, said Kurt Liebendorfer, vice-president, Evapco.

More than 50 models of the chiller offer capacities ranging from 20 TR to 150 TR. The units include variable speed screw compressors and water-cooled condensing.

Prairie Farms chose the chillers “because they are expanding an existing facility and getting rid of a very old ammonia system,” said Liebendorfer.

The chiller uses a small ammonia charge (less than 1 lb./TR) to cool glycol at 22°F, which is pumped into the milk processing area to generate a 35°F temperature, said Liebendorfer.

The chiller includes a heat reclaim loop that recovers heat from the compressor and warms glycol, which can be used for defrosting, humidity control and under-floor warming.

Prairie Farms also purchased two of Evapco’s low-charge packaged penthouse refrigeration units, which are rooftop-mounted, Liebendorfer said. These produce a 35°F temperature for a cooler area that stores processed milk. The penthouse unit and the chiller “complement one another,” he said.

Other applications of the chiller include docks, produce rooms and HVAC.

Liebendorfer sees more adoption of low-charge ammonia units. “What I’m sensing at the [IIAR] show is that change is happening. There’s less skepticism of low-charge and packaged configurations.”