How does one go about doing this?
I could use a new pizza prep table as I’m continually sinking money into mine and at this point it appears to be a lost cause.
How do you go about buying a used one and making sure that you’re not buying someone else’s problem? Should you just go new with a refrigeration unit like this?
No doubt, several people will chime in with exactly what you bring up… buying new. On the other hand, I bought my first one used when I bought the entire equipment package for my first store at 10 cents on the dollar… lasted 11 years. The last two years I must have spent $1000 in repairs so I was still thousands ahead.
Bought my second one used… same story with the package for the entire store. It was 6-7 years old and also lasted 10 years until I sold that location and it is still in use 4 years later. Never once needed a repair.
I bought my third one used (to replace the 1st one) and it is going strong now three years later. All in, It cost me a quarter of the price of a new one and has yet to require any repairs. I bought a reconditioned True from a reputable equipment dealer. It was delivered by freight carrier to my store.
How do you be sure? Tough question. The place to start is with a reputable seller. Lots of restaurants go under so it stands to reason that there is good equipment available. You just have to find it.
What about bringing a professional with you to check out the equipment?
There appears to be some good stuff for sale in my area from a place recently out of business.
The compressors are hermetically sealed there is no way to determine the condition of that most important component. We do not sell used refrigeration.
If a unit is a couple of years old that’s a different situation
As units usually fail full of food the chance for substantial loss is all ways there with older units.
George Mills
Each situation is unique so I’ll elaborate a bit more.
The table for sale is a 3 door 93" True Pizza Prep table. I still need the details on how old, but a brand new one of these units seems to go between $4500-$5000.
This unit is for sale for $1500. Apparently it’s in great working condition. I spoke to the food rep that used to deal with this guy and he said the guy was a good guy, but obviously cautioned as everyone else has to be careful with used refrigeration.
Is there a price point where the reward outweighs the risk? if it appears to be in good working shape, is paying 1/3rd the price reasonable? Offer $1000 and pay closer to 1/5th? Or just dump the money on the new unit and not worry about it?
How old is it?
If it is less than 5 years old I would take that deal all day long. 5-10 years old I might still consider it but would likely offer less as you suggest. More than 10 years old I would pass on it. All of the above assume that it is in clean condition. One good hint is to look at the cooling fins. If it is an equipment dealer, they will have cleaned them, if it is direct from the business owner they will give you a good idea of whether the thing has been maintained. Also ask about whether it has needed or had the coolant recharged. Once the system has leaks you will be doing that forever.
When I get more details like actual age and more detailed appearance I will post it.
This is a link to the post on criagslist.
I have pretty much the same table, we bought used (roughly 3 years old) along with the rest of the stuff in our shop. we have been there almost 11 years now with only one service call a few years back to fix a leak and recharge.
When we got the shop some of the equipment, including this table had been abused by the previous owners employees. One area of weakness appears to be the hinge area on the lids to the top compartments and the inner covers on those lids. Almost all of the screw holes have been ripped, bent or damaged in some ways. I have metal working tools so I was able to cobble together functional repair pieces for the hinge areas. I checked on the price of new covers several years ago and the people at True were quite proud of them.
As George said the heart of the system is sealed so there is no way to know the condition other than to plug it in, then you only know it cools today. The nameplate has manufacture date so you will be able to tell how old it is.
Rick
I bought mine used 7 years ago, for 600.00 on craigslist still going strong, have replaced the thermometer and recharged it twice over last seven years (about 300.00) so for 7 years I have 900.00 invested…BUT every situation is different and its a roll of the dice. Do you feel lucky is what you have to ask yourself
Here are the details:
It’s a True 93" TPP-93. As I mentioned in a previous post, they go new for $4500-$5000. The unit was manufactured in 1998 so it’s got lots of miles on it.
Thoughts on a reasonable offer for a table like this that is from a quick glance in good working shape?
These are on Craigslist…
http://phoenix.craigslist.org/evl/app/3437027156.html
http://dallas.craigslist.org/dal/bfd/3459142706.html
http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/wsh/b … 64013.html
http://philadelphia.craigslist.org/app/3423312310.html
These are all 1000 miles away. I figured it’d make sense to keep it close so I could go look at the unit. But it’s good for price comparison if that was the purpose.
Bit the bullet and buy a new one.