4) Do you have an approximate "cycle cost" of cooling pallets? Te main costs of these units are their upfront cost and the electricity consumption (in addition to increased handling costs).


Te cost of a 16-pallet cooler system will run in the mid to high six figures, which is a significant investment. Since the number of cycles per year will vary, each grower would need to do their own math to determine the cost per square foot to attribute to this equipment. A rough estimate of five cycles per day, 200 days per year, for 10 years, would equate to $70 per cycle, or about three-quarters of one cent per square foot.


Jacky estimated that his electricity cost is about €0.10 per square meter (approx. 1 cent per square foot). Expect this to be significantly lower in the US with lower energy costs.


Te time that it takes to cool will depend on the starting temperature and can vary between 20 and 45 minutes. Jacky said that his 24-pallet unit will almost keep up with his Autostack harvester.


Tese coolers are not portable, so you also need to account for additional handling time and costs associated with transporting the sod back to the cooler. Darin modified his cooler to load from the side as opposed to the front to cut down on handling time. Jacky uses a telehandler with double-length forks to load and unload two pallets at once from the front of the units.


Telehandler loading sod into the cooler at Rollrasen Van de Sluis. Photo courtesy of Rollrasen Van de Sluis 52 TPI Turf News January/February 2025


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