Stop Letting the Cold Kill Your Profits
The second the temperature dips, your outdoor patio becomes a ghost town. It’s a waste of space and, more importantly, a waste of money. We fix that with waterproof shortwave infrared heaters. Here is the secret: they don’t try to heat the air. If you use a forced-air system, you’re basically paying to heat the wind. Infrared is different. It beams heat directly onto your guests, just like the sun does. It means you can have a breezy night at a rooftop bar and your customers will still feel warm and cozy. Plus, since they’re waterproof, a bit of rain or heavy humidity isn’t going to fry your electronics. The power side of things Now, let’s talk shop. These units pull a lot of power because outdoor heating is a battle against the elements. Before you go all-in, take a look at your breaker panels. If you plug too many of these into one circuit, you’re going to trip the system and leave everyone in the dark. It’s a pain. We usually suggest balancing the load across a few different phases so everything runs smooth. Keeping people in their seats It’s simple: cold people leave. When a customer starts shivering, they stop ordering drinks and they head for the exit. If you can keep that “perceived temperature” right around 22-25°C, people linger. They order that extra round of cocktails or a dessert they weren’t planning on. Your average check goes up, and your winter months stop feeling like a slump. Keeping them running Setting these up is easy. They fit right into standard mounting brackets, so you can swap them in without a headache. We use quartz glass tubes because they heat up almost instantly. Just a heads-up: quartz is fragile. If a tube breaks during cleaning or someone bumps into it, don’t panic. It’s a quick swap. Just make sure the power is totally off before you touch the housing. One last tip: keep the reflectors polished. It sounds like a chore, but dust buildup on that mirror finish can kill your heat throw by 20%. A quick wipe-down keeps the heat hitting the tables, not the ceiling.