If you’re like me—administrative or facilities purchasing for a mid-sized operation—you juggle a lot. One day it’s sourcing a Munters AHU for a server room, the next it’s finding a diesel heater for a workshop, then someone asks about how to clean an ice maker. It’s a lot. And the wrong call can cost time, money, and internal trust.
This checklist is for those moments. It’s not a general guide—it’s a field-tested set of steps I’ve developed after managing climate control and equipment purchases for a 300-person company across two sites. We’ll cover four distinct purchase types: Munters AHU and related climate control, diesel heaters, garage heaters, and even the deceptively important task of cleaning an ice maker. Seven steps. Do them in order.
Before looking at any product—especially before spec’ing a Munters fan or AHU—you need exact numbers. Not an estimate. Exact.
I made this mistake in 2023. I assumed ‘same specifications’ meant identical results across vendors for a workshop heater. Didn’t verify. Turned out the space was 20% larger than I thought, and the garage heater we bought was undersized. The room never reached temp. (Learned never to assume the proof represents the final product after that.)
For Munters AHU specifically: Measure the square footage of the area needing precise temperature/humidity control (e.g., a data center or lab). For a diesel heater in a warehouse: measure the volume, not just floor area. For an ice maker: it’s about the unit’s location (ventilation matters) and the volume of ice you need daily.
"This pricing was accurate as of Q4 2024. The market changes fast, so verify current rates before budgeting." — My standard caveat for any cooling quote.
This is where the "professional has boundaries" approach applies. Not every space needs a Munters AHU. A storage closet? No. A server room or a pharmaceutical storage area? Yes.
Here’s a quick heuristic:
The vendor who said "this isn't our strength—here's who does it better" earned my trust for everything else. I keep that principle here. If you just need a garage to be warm, don’t buy a Munters fan system. Buy a diesel heater.
For a Munters AHU, don’t just look at CFM. Look at:
For a diesel heater or garage heater: check BTU output relative to the square footage from Step 1. A common rule of thumb is 30-40 BTUs per square foot for a well-insulated space. Double that for a garage with high ceilings or poor insulation.
For the ice maker (yes, we’re still going here): check the production capacity—pounds of ice per 24 hours—and the bin storage size. Most units, like a Manitowoc or Scotsman, list this clearly.
A Munters AHU can be 20-40% more energy efficient than a standard CRAC unit for a data center, but only if it’s properly installed. I’ve seen installations where the condenser was choked by a wall. Worse than expected performance.
For diesel heaters: Calculate fuel consumption. Not just the price per gallon. A 200,000 BTU diesel heater running 8 hours a day will burn roughly 4-6 gallons. That adds up.
For the ice maker: Check the water and energy usage. An ice maker that isn’t cleaned regularly (see Step 6) will consume 20-30% more energy. (Thankfully, this is fixable.)
I keep this simple now. Three things:
This step is often ignored. It’s the most practical part.
How to clean an ice maker (standard procedure I use):
For a Munters AHU: check the desiccant wheel (if it’s a desiccant model) or the cooling coil annually. For a diesel heater: clean the combustion chamber and replace the filter each season.
"The checklist: specs confirmed, timeline agreed, payment terms clear. In that order."
After the purchase, I write a one-pager. Not for me—for my successor or for finance. I include:
Final thought: Not ideal, but workable. The point isn’t perfection—it’s consistency. Following a checklist like this has cut my purchasing errors by about 40% over two years. It’s saved my team time and saved my reputation with the operations director.