Keeping up with hot water demands at Bellyfish Café

Located right on the Esplanade, Bellyfish is a popular Terrigal café enjoying spectacular views out over the ocean. It’s large seating capacity, amazing views, waterfront location and sensational menu all mean that this café gets seriously busy … with both locals and people escaping the city on weekends.

Previously, a standard domestic 125L electric water heater was used for water heating duties. Whilst it worked fine, it was simply undersized to keep up with the hot water demands of the café. Apart from general cleaning and sanitisation, huge amounts of hot water are required for the wash and rinse functions of the commercial dishwasher in the kitchen, which is capable of doing 40 loads per hour. A different solution was clearly required.

A busy café simply can’t stop serving food whilst waiting for dishes to be cleaned. Richard Walker Plumbing was called in to come up with a solution. After a detailed evaluation of available options, the plumber recommended a Thermann 315L Commercial Electric water heater. This product has three, 3.6kW elements that operate simultaneously to heat water quickly and can deliver 458Ls in the first hour (at a 65°C temperature rise). The water heater thermostat is set at 80°C to deliver water hot enough for easy clean up.

Whilst gas was available to the café, there was simply no obvious location for it go short of an expensive (and complex) flued system installation. As it stands, the commercial electric water heater is located internally in a small storage space just outside the cold room. It’s where the previous hot water system was located, and provided easy access to existing plumbing. The electrical circuit had to be upgraded for 3 phase power, but it was otherwise a straight forward install.

Running out hot water is now a thing of the past for Bellyfish. And faster clean ups mean the staff and owners get away at the end of a long day a little sooner than they once used too. Thermann Commercial electric water heaters come in a 315L storage capacity, and in both 3 and 6 element configurations. There’s a choice of 3.6kW, 4.8kW and even 6.0kW element models. All this adds up to a lot of hot water.

They’re made right here in Australia, and come packed with dense foam to better retain heat in the tank. Coupled with a commercial grade Y class enamel and a thick anode, they’re specifically designed for installation in commercial applications. They’re backed by a 5 year tank warranty (including 1 year parts and labour), regardless of the temperature they are set to.

For more information, visit your local Reece branch or download the Thermann Commercial Guide.