-3- 



Most apple storages use cold room air temperature readings as 

 a guide to apple temperatures, but these do not give a true pic- 

 ture during storage. 



Many cold storage rooms hold over a quarter-million dollars 

 worth o£ apples, and whether or not the rooms are cycled, both 

 air and apple temperatures should be monitored. 



A system to do this c 

 probed for temperature mo 

 each bin, and put bins in 

 across the back, three ac 

 o£ the room; (2) use at 1 

 front of the coils and on 

 flow of the room; (3) con 

 ing device that automatic 

 four times every 24 hours 

 for "back-up" temperature 



ould be to (1) use n 

 nitoring placed abou 



the top layer of th 

 ross the middle and 

 east two air tempera 

 e behind the coils o 

 nect all air and fru 

 ally prints out temp 

 ; and (4) use severa 



readings in case of 



ine bins with an apple 

 t 6-inches deep in 

 e stack of bins, three 

 three across the front 

 ture probes, one in 

 r in the return air 

 it probes to a record- 

 eratures at least 

 1 regular thermometers 

 electronic failure. 



This type of cold room instrumentation can give management a 

 better insight on which to base their storage operation decisions 

 for each type of cold room. 



Fan and refrigeration cycling will work. It will save energy, 

 lower energy costs and still maintain optimum apple temperatures 

 during storage. 



Editors note - The author would like to express his thanks to the Washington 

 State Tree Fruit Research Commission, Tree Top, Inc., Pacific Power and Light 

 Company, City of Cashmere Light Department, Blue Star Growers, Snokist Growers, 

 Skookum, Inc., Stemilt Growers and to the personnel of the USDA-ARS, Tree Fruit 

 Research Laboratory for their cooperation in this study. 



KWH 

 X 1000 



150 - 



100 



50 



SEPT. OCT. 



— I 1 — 



NOV. DEC. 



JAN. 



79-80 



81 82 



,1 



Figure 1. This chart 

 shows the amount of 

 energy used in a six-room 

 apple storage facility for 

 three seasons. After the 

 initial fruit cool-down per- 

 iod the fans and refrigera- 

 tion were cycled at 6-hours 

 on, 6-hours off during the 

 1981-82 season. During the 

 months of November, December 

 and January of the 1981-82 

 season a savings of approx- 

 imately 100,000 KWH over the 

 same months of the 1980-81 

 seasons was evident. This 

 would amount to a $1000 sav- 

 ings if the power rate was 

 one cent per KWH. 



Figure 1, 



