Smelly reefer unit

I remember the year that Almond Roca got returned back to the manufacturer, wiping out their entire Valentine's season... all due to a change in their packing machinery. Nobody thought to make sure the chocolates were sealed and the VOC's outgassing from the printed boxes didn't permeate the chocolate. Nothing like biting into something that tastes like ink.

Haul nothing but sealed up foodstuffs for a while after cleansing that unit. Make sure it's gone through some cycles. Maybe as a test put some open butter or chocolate in there and see if it tastes funny afterward, they're like the canary in the coal mine for the food industry.

 

Check and see if there is a food grade cleaner specifically for reefer units. These big companies that use freezers must have to clean the coils with a food grade cleaner. Here is a product I found for an example........http://www.refrig.com/Product/Coil_Cleaners/Viper_Aerosol/viper.html

Bleach and ammonia smell will linger around for awhile.

 

Mike, go to the inside nose of the wagon and take off the return air intake which is the big plastic bit (if equipped), and look for the bolts that secure the cover to the unit. Your model has an access cover which when removed will give you access to the evap. area. There is a "channel" under the evap that catches the water dripping off it and sends it to your external drain tubes which are the ones you see dripping on the ground outside. You might have mold or just gunk built up in there. Spray it out with a garden hose attachment if you want, or if it's really bad get one of those hose-end bottles that you can add a detergent to and the hose pressure will mix in the solution as it sprays.

One trailer I bought used had a smell that wouldn't go away, and we pulled the cover and found about 10 pounds of wood chips. Evidently someone hauled bulk chips in it and forgot to turn the reefer off, which sucked a bunch into the unit.



If it's not coming from there, it could be the insulation behind the kemlite (wall covering) if you've got any cuts or holes in it. The walls like to soak up water from washouts, and can eventually start stinking, and even add quite a bit of weight as time goes by.

Good luck.

 

what will happen

 

It will form chloramine gas which is extremely poisonous and corrosive. Basically this stuff poisons you well burning your eyes lungs and any mucusy point on your body at the same time.

 

I ran mine for about 18.

 

what I did was, after running all night, the next morning I shut it off. got the ammonia out, propped the doors so there was a six inch gap at the top and bottom, but only about an inch between the doors, then I ran it for a few more hours. there was still a faint ammonia smell, so sprinkled about 2 lbs of coffee out and ran it another hour with the vent doors open. that cleared it up for me.