This is temporary cold storage hired from the same counters that rent spot coolers and generators: mobile freezer units and refrigerated containers dropped on site for an outage, a fit-out or a temporary overflow. Kitchen and restaurant refrigeration, which is fitted and serviced by a different trade, is not what this page covers. A 20 foot freezer container commonly runs $900 to $2,000 a month.
The two things yards actually stock
The small end is a wheeled upright freezer, a few cubic feet, hired by the day for an outage or an event kitchen overflow. The large end is a refrigerated container or trailer, 10 to 40 feet, delivered on a flatbed and set down where it can be powered. In between there is very little, so most enquiries end up at one extreme or the other.
Power is the constraint, always
A small upright runs on a standard outlet. A 20 foot refrigerated container typically needs a 208 or 230V three-phase supply and draws real current when the compressor is pulling a warm box down to temperature. Where the site has no supply, the answer is a generator hired alongside it, sized for the start-up surge rather than the running load.
Pull-down time and the temperature you asked for
A freezer container arriving at ambient takes hours to reach minus 10 Fahrenheit, and longer once it is loaded. Deliver it a day early and empty rather than filling it on arrival. Ask whether the unit has a temperature log or an alarm, because for anything that has to hold a record, an unmonitored box is not usable.
What the rates look like
A small upright is commonly $40 to $90 a day. A 20 foot freezer container runs roughly $900 to $2,000 a month, with delivery and collection charged separately and often several hundred each way. Weekly rates exist but the transport dominates them, which is why almost every container hire is quoted as a month.
Questions people ask about portable freezer rental
How cold does a rented freezer container get?
Most units hold anywhere from about 0 down to minus 20 Fahrenheit, and the setpoint is yours to choose. Confirm the range when you book, because a chiller-spec unit that only reaches the mid thirties looks identical from the outside.
Can a freezer container run off a generator?
Yes, and it is the normal arrangement on a site with no three-phase supply. Size the generator on the compressor start-up surge rather than the running load, and hire both from the same counter so the connections match.
How long does delivery take?
A day or two in normal conditions, longer after a regional power outage when every unit in the area is already out. Book early where you can, and make sure the drop point is firm and level with room for a flatbed to reverse.