The box is warming
The display says 34 and the setpoint says 28 and the gap is growing. Or the unit shut down on an alarm an hour ago and you just saw it at the fuel island. Or it is cranking and not catching, and the receiver is a six-hour drive away.
Every one of those is a claim in progress, and the first ten minutes matter more than the repair.
What to check in the next ten minutes
Before you call anyone, do these in order. Half the reefer calls we get are one of them.
- Reefer fuel. Look at the tank, not the gauge. A unit that ran out of fuel will not restart on an empty tank no matter what the code says.
- Setpoint and mode. Confirm the setpoint is what the bill of lading says, and whether the unit is in continuous or cycle-sentry mode. A frozen load on cycle-sentry in July warms between cycles.
- Doors. Walk the seals. A door that is not latched, or a seal with a gap at the bottom, is a reefer that will never pull down.
- The alarm code. Write it down or photograph the controller before anything is cleared. The code is the diagnosis half the time, and it is also your claim record.
- Keep the doors shut. Every time the doors open, the box takes on heat it has to pull back out.
If the unit runs at all, run it. Then call.
How to reach us, and the honest limit
(419) 724-2475. Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM.
We do not run after-hours or weekend coverage. During shop hours a reefer with a load goes to the front of the line: the service truck is dispatched to the trailer in the Toledo area, or a bay is cleared. After 5 PM, the earliest we can be on it is 8:00 AM, and the call at 8 is first.
On the call, have the setpoint, the box temperature, the alarm code, the fuel level, the unit make and model, and where the trailer is. We tell you on that call what to do right now, whether the service truck goes to you or the trailer comes in, and, if the unit is one a dealer has to handle, that too. We are independent and we would rather tell you that in the first minute than hold your trailer for a day.
What the tech does first
The order matters, because the common causes are the cheap ones.
Fuel and the fuel filter. A unit battery that is low from a tractor that has not been running, with the cables and alternator output checked under load. Belts and tensioners. Coolant and oil on the unit engine, and the low-oil or high-temp shutdown that follows. Then the alarm codes read against what the unit is actually doing.
Then airflow, which is where a unit that runs but will not pull down usually lives. A condenser coil packed with road dirt. An evaporator coil iced over because defrost is not cycling. An air chute torn loose, or a load stacked against the bulkhead so return air has nowhere to go. A door seal leaking warm air in at the floor.
Then the trailer. Floor drains, floor condition, insulation damage, and the brakes, air lines and lights while it is here, because the trailer still has to pass the roadside.
The tech is one of four ASE certified technicians, and the shop is a certified NAPA Truck Care Center with the nationwide warranty on the repair.
What gets fixed where
On site, during shop hours, in the Toledo area: fuel and filters, batteries and cables, belts, electrical faults, door seals, hinges and latches, light trailer repairs.
In the bay: air chutes and bulkheads, floors and drains, insulation damage, coil cleaning, and the refrigeration circuit work that needs the trailer in a bay with the equipment. Refrigeration circuit parts depend on availability for your unit, and we say which it is before the work starts, with the timeline on the quote.
Once the repair is done, the unit runs and the box temperature is watched coming down. A reefer is not fixed because the unit starts. It is fixed when the box holds setpoint.
Documenting the load
Before anything is cleared or reset, download the controller log and photograph the controller and the box thermometer. We do not clear codes until they are recorded, and the log goes in your file with the invoice. If the load is rejected, that record is what you have.
Where we are
820 Matzinger Rd, Toledo, OH 43612. North Toledo, a mile off I-75 exit 207 (Stickney Ave), close to I-280 and the Michigan line, a short run from the Turnpike exits at Northwood and Oregon. The yard takes a tractor-trailer in to drop and turn. Sam’s Parking & Storage is on the same campus if the trailer has to sit while a part comes in.
The number
(419) 724-2475, Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Setpoint, box temperature, alarm code, fuel level, where the trailer is. We take it from there.