Coolroom Cost Calculator

Understanding coolroom costs in Australia

Coolroom prices in 2026

A commercial coolroom in Australia in 2026 generally costs $8,000 to $45,000 supplied and installed. A small chiller of around 6 to 10 square metres with a monoblock unit runs $8,000 to $15,000. The common hospitality case, a 12 to 20 square metre chiller with a remote condensing unit, insulated floor and shelving, lands at $15,000 to $30,000. Freezer rooms cost 40 to 60 per cent more than an equivalent chiller because of thicker panel, heated door frames and floor treatment. Large multi-room or dual temperature installations, and anything needing redundant plant, run $40,000 to $100,000 and beyond. Refrigeration plant is typically 35 to 50 per cent of the total, panel and construction the rest.

Chiller versus freezer is not just a thermostat

The most expensive misunderstanding in this category is treating a freezer as a chiller set colder. A freezer room at minus 18 degrees needs thicker insulated panel, usually 150 millimetres against 75 or 100 for a chiller. It needs a heated door frame and heated drain line, because condensation freezes and will bind the door shut and block the drain. It needs an insulated floor, and where the room sits on ground rather than a suspended slab, it needs underfloor heating or a ventilated void, because sustained sub-zero temperatures will freeze the ground beneath and frost heave will lift and crack the slab. Rooms built without these fail within a couple of years and cost more to remediate than they saved.

Panel, floors and construction

Coolrooms are built from insulated sandwich panel, typically expanded polystyrene or polyurethane cored with steel skins, joined with cam locks. Thickness is chosen on temperature and climate, with 75 millimetres adequate for a mild climate chiller, 100 millimetres the general default, and 150 millimetres for freezers and hot climates. Panel core matters for fire performance, and building surveyors and insurers increasingly scrutinise it, so confirm the core type and its fire rating rather than assuming. Insulated floor panels are essential for freezers and strongly recommended for chillers unless the room sits on a purpose built insulated slab, because retrofitting a floor later means dismantling the room.

Refrigeration configuration

There are two broad approaches. An integral or monoblock unit mounts through the wall or ceiling as a single package, which is cheaper, simpler and quicker to install, but it dumps heat into the surrounding space and is noisier inside the premises. A remote split system places the condensing unit outside or on the roof and runs refrigerant lines to an evaporator inside, which is quieter, more efficient and the standard for anything of size, at the cost of pipe runs and installation complexity. Larger and critical installations use multiple evaporators or redundant plant so a single failure does not lose the stock. Where the condenser sits matters enormously, since a unit in a hot enclosed roof space or full western sun works harder, uses more power and dies sooner.

Licensing, refrigerant and electrical work

Refrigeration is regulated work in Australia. Anyone handling refrigerant must hold a current ARC refrigerant handling licence, and the business must hold a refrigerant trading authorisation to buy, sell or handle refrigerant gas. Deliberately releasing refrigerant is an offence under Commonwealth ozone protection and synthetic greenhouse gas legislation with substantial penalties. The electrical supply and connection is separately licensed electrical work, and a coolroom often needs a dedicated circuit and sometimes a switchboard upgrade. Ask for the ARC licence number and the electrical licence, and be aware that some older refrigerants are subject to a phase down, which affects the long term serviceability of second hand plant.

Compliance, food safety and monitoring

If you are storing food commercially, the coolroom sits inside your food safety obligations under the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code, which requires potentially hazardous food to be kept at or below 5 degrees and frozen food frozen hard. In practice that means temperature records, and for most businesses continuous electronic logging with alarms is far more defensible than a clipboard and a daily reading. Automated monitoring costs $1,000 to $2,500 and does double duty, satisfying the auditor and evidencing what happened when stock is lost. Check also whether your local council requires notification or approval for the installation, and whether the room affects your building's fire or exit provisions.

Running costs and getting quotes right

A coolroom runs continuously and is a meaningful part of a hospitality electricity bill. A well insulated 15 square metre chiller with a properly sized and sited condenser might draw $1,500 to $3,000 a year, while an oversized room with a poorly placed condenser and a door that does not seal can be double that. Strip curtains, self closing doors and disciplined door use matter more than most operators expect. When comparing quotes, ask for the panel thickness and core, the floor treatment, the refrigeration make, model and capacity, where the condenser will be sited, the ARC and electrical licence details, the door type and hardware, the monitoring provision, the commissioning and pull down test, and the warranty split between panel, plant and labour.