Season by season
The harvest calendar
Crops and dates are for the Central Valley and move with the weather. We book the check by your loading date, not by the calendar.
Stone fruit: peaches, plums, nectarines
First load of the year, warm from the field. Pre-season check in March or April, because the room has to pull the first pallet down fast.
May to Aug
Cherries
A short, hurried run: fruit is picked, packed and cold within hours. Check in February.
Apr to Jun
Table grapes
Long holds in the same room for weeks. Pre-season check in June: coils, drains and door seals, which take the wear.
Jul to Nov
Pomegranates and persimmons
A shorter run into the holidays. Pre-season check in August, with the table-grape rooms.
Sep to Dec
Citrus: navels and mandarins
The longest run, with rooms loaded and unloaded for months. Pre-season check in October, defrost cycles first.
Nov to Apr
Kiwifruit
Cold rooms hold the crop for months after picking. Check in September, before the first bins arrive.
Oct to Nov
Our pre-season checks
Booked from February. Tell us your loading dates and we hold the week before each one.
Mar-Apr, Jun, Aug, Oct
Slow season: bigger jobs
Coil replacement, new rooms, controls upgrades and anything that needs a room empty for a week.
Jan to Feb
Step by step
What happens at a pre-season check
- 01
Step 1: Walk the rooms in loading order
With your shed manager, so we know which room carries the first pallets and which one is the problem child.
- 02
Step 2: Test, don't guess
Pull-down time, defrost, fans, drains, door seals and every alarm, each written down.
- 03
Step 3: Fix what can't wait
Coils, motors, seals and drains we can do on the spot. Bigger parts we order that day.
- 04
Step 4: A written list
Two columns: fix before loading, and can wait. Quotes for the first column come within the week.
- 05
Step 5: Set the night call list
Who we call first, which sensors ring which phones, and where the key to the plant room hangs.
Why before, not after
The check against waiting for the first alarm
| First alarm in July | Pre-season check | |
|---|---|---|
| Parts | First alarm in JulyOrdered when the room is already warm | Pre-season checkOrdered in March, on the shelf by June |
| The room | First alarm in JulyFull of fruit while we work | Pre-season checkEmpty or half-loaded while we work |
| The crew | First alarm in JulyWhoever is on shift that night | Pre-season checkYour shed manager walks it with us |
| Night calls | First alarm in JulySettled on the phone at 2 a.m. | Pre-season checkCall list and rate agreed in advance |
Book the check for your first load
Tell us the loading date and which rooms go first.