What is a Booster Heater, and Does My Restaurant Need One?

In this business, we avoid using the familiar (albeit misguided) term “hot water heater.” We prefer plain old “water heater.” Why? Because “hot water heater” is redundant. 

Think about it: you don’t need to heat water that is already hot; you need to heat cold water. Get it? However, “hot water heater” is the perfect description of a booster heater. Booster heaters “boost” already heated water (between 120°F and 140°F) up to 180°F – the temperature that restaurants need for sanitizing without using chemicals.

What Is a Booster Heater?

If you work in a restaurant, hotel, or other commercial business, you know that your sanitizing rinse water must reach the safe temperature of 180°F to comply with your state and local health and safety codes, as well as the Food and Drug Administration’s Food Code. Heating your water to 180°F ensures that your dishes, silverware, and cooking tools reach a surface temperature of 160°F to kill all bacteria living there. The right water temperature is essential to the success of any food service endeavor because failure to sanitize properly means risking foodborne illnesses! 

The tricky thing is that, for safety purposes, neither a high-efficiency nor standard water heater should be heated above 120-140°F. For that reason, commercial water heaters alone are not enough to run your high-temperature warewasher.

So, how do you get your water up to 180°F for your warewasher? With a booster heater! Sometimes called heater boosters, tank boosters, or electric tank water heaters, think of boosters as the go-between between your current water heater and your warewasher. A hot water booster heater works by storing higher temperature water in an existing tank directly connected to your warewasher’s water line. 

What Does This Mean for Your Kitchen?

1. The ONLY place the extremely hot 180°F water ends up is where it belongs: on your dishes. 
2. Using your warewasher won’t affect the amount of available hot water in your kitchen.
3. The ability to store only the amount of extremely hot water you need for your warewasher instead of heating ALL of your water that high means better energy efficiency for your business.
4. Better control of the temperature of all the water used in your restaurant.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Never turn up your commercial water heater temperature to 180°F! 

Even though your water heater *can* go up to 180°F, it is not meant to run that high in a restaurant setting. Keep in mind, there are various uses for hot water across a wide array of industries and manufacturers must build their equipment to accommodate as many uses as possible. A setpoint capability of 180°F can be very convenient for certain industrial use cases, but that can be very dangerous if utilized in the wrong setting, like your restaurant. If you turn your water heater up that high, 180°F water will come out of ALL of your fixtures, meaning you risk severely burning your employees and guests. We’re talking instant third-degree burns.

See for yourself…

On the other hand, if you opt for a low-temperature machine, you won’t need to worry about boosting your water temperature up to 180°F. Low-temperature dishwashers only require you to heat water to 120°F because they rely on chemicals, typically chlorine-based sanitizers, to kill the bacteria on your dishes instead of heat. This lower temperature is much safer for you, your staff, and your customers.

Which Booster Heater Option Should I Choose? 

Now that you understand what a booster heater is and how to comply with sanitizing laws, you can use these additional considerations to help you decide if a booster heater will meet your needs. 

Low-Temperature Commercial Dishwashers

A low-temp dishwasher might appear to save you in energy costs. After all, you don’t need a booster heater when working with low-temp washers. However, you have to weigh the potential savings against the downsides of using harsh chemicals on your dishes. 

Here are a few things to consider if you’re thinking about using a low-temp warewasher:

1. Because a low-temp warewasher doesn’t use extreme heat to dissolve food residue in addition to sanitizing, they might not remove all the gunk from your dishes on the first rinse cycle. Poorly cleaned dishes can result in more time spent inspecting your dishes and re-washing them. 
2. If your staff doesn’t spot a mess your warewasher left behind, you risk sending food out on dirty dishes! 
3. You’ll need to train your employees to use the chemicals correctly. 
4. Sanitizing chemicals require special wall-mounted equipment that must be monitored to meet safety regulations. 
5. You’ll also have to worry about the safe storage of the chemicals in your establishment.
6. No matter how safely you store these chemicals, they’re not good for the environment.

High-Temperature Warewashers

Your high-temp dishwashers kill bacteria by blasting 180°F hot water, resulting in cleaner dishes without a second wash. Even though you’re potentially looking at higher up-front costs with a high-temp warewasher and booster heater installation, the savings are lasting and worthwhile in the long run. 

Here are a few things to consider if you’re considering using a high-temp warewasher: 

1. You won’t have to worry about purchasing, storing, disposing of, or training your staff to use sanitizing chemicals.
2. They are less hassle, use less energy, and are more eco-friendly than low-temperature warewashers.
3. They have shorter wash cycles and use less water overall. 
4. Booster water heaters take up space, so you will need to make room in your kitchen. The size of your hot water booster will depend on the amount of hot water you need. Some larger tank models can handle 40-60 gallons of hot water at a time and will also require separate venting. While there are some smaller options with less hot water capacity and even tankless options, if your commercial kitchen is short on space, even a small footprint could be an issue. 

Time to Boost? 

When in doubt, do your homework. Shop around and ask questions about each model of warewasher you’re considering for your commercial establishment. If you decide to go with the high-temp warewasher, a booster heater is definitely for you! Reach out to Reliable Water Services today to learn about our commercial water heater rental plans!