Dehumidification removes condensation and improves hygiene in small chilled stores

At these cold rooms, there is a lot of traffic in and out with frequent door openings, which means that warmer air constantly enters the room, causing the relative humidity to rise. In laboratories, evaporation is also seen from petri dishes and test tubes, which are often not wanted to be closed due to the risk of condensation forming in the jars and due to requirements for the supply of air to the cultured cultures. If the cold room is used for storage of e.g. vegetables and meat, the cold room is supplied with more moisture and the relative humidity increases. When hot items are cooled down in the room, condensation formation is further increased. The evaporators that control the temperature in the cold room usually cannot control the relative humidity, which often rises to 90-100% RH. The high relative humidity causes, among other things: * Condensation/condensation drip * Mold and mold growth * Unwanted bacterial growth * Risk of spoilage of especially unpackaged meat * Reduced shelf life * Illegible labels

Controlling and limiting the humidity is key

Problems can be solved my means of dehumidification, lowering the relative humidity to maximum 70 % RH. At this level, condensation and following growth of mold- and fungus will not occur. The need for defrosting in the chilled stores will also be reduced significantly, since evaporators will no longer be blocked by ice formations. This will prevent the fluctuations in temperature that is caused by defrosting. A Munters desiccant dehumidifier can be installed either outside or directly inside the chilled store, since the desiccant principle is not being affected by low ambient temperatures, as what happens to refrigerant dehumidifiers. Thanks to the desiccant principle, dehumidifiers can also operate directly inside cold stores, at minus degrees. For that specific application, Munters designed the award winning IceDry dehumidifier. Laboratories Six cold stores at the University of Copenhagen provide storage and cultivation of algae cultures in nutrient-rich water for research and education. Previously, problems were experienced with mold and fungus growth on walls, curtains, and test tubes and the labels became illegible. Six Munters’ dehumidifiers were fitted outside the cold stores, blowing the dehumidified air into the rooms. The relative humidity is now kept constant, at 60 % RH, and these problems are avoided. Catering centers At Novo Nordisk’s Hvidøre training facility in Klampenborg, a cold store is used to store homemade products and maturing meat. The desire here is to purchase whole animals for maturing to ensure optimal quality, however, the hung animals began to spoil prematurely due to excessively high relative humidity. Munters installed a smaller dehumidifier in the actual cold store, which now ensures that the relative humidity remains, and that the meat matures under the right hygienic conditions.