One way to keep your dogs warm…

Here comes the cold stuff – and that’s great news for hot dog sales! You’ll sell more hot dogs in January than you do in August, all other things being equal.

Why? Simple – hot food sells better when it’s cold outside. I know when it’s 100 degrees out sales on my cart drop dramatically.I must admit that even though I’m a major hot dog fan, I just don’t want much hot food when I’m sweating my you-know-what off. In fact my favorite hot weather food is a cold braunschweiger (liver sausage) sandwich with raw onions and an icy cold beer. Or three. Yes, I’m German.

However, when it cools down to where you need a jacket, I can sell a LOT more hot dogs. Which brings us to today’s topic:

How do we keep the cart cooking when the mercury falls below 32 degrees?

Buddy Schrader writes…

Steve,
How does everyone ‘winterize’ their carts so they can work in the colder months but not have their water lines, water pump or the EccoTemp L5 lines from freezing, while working a normal daily shift. I have read the instructions on winterizing the L5 when storing your cart, but what about during the working shift? Might be a timely article with the colder weather right around the corner!
Buddy-

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You won’t have problems with water lines freezing inside the cart when the burners are fired up and the steamer is steaming,

Outside lines running to an external water heater might give you trouble, but only if it’s really cold out. There are two solutions for this:

1. Don’t use your sinks when it’s too cold out. Drain all the water from your system and blow out the lines. Make sure the sink faucets are closed tight. Then fill the tank with water but don’t turn on your pump or open any faucets. Your lines should stay dry, but you will still have water in case the inspector pops by. Use hand sanitizer when necessary.

2. Run your cart as you do in the summer, but run a splash of water through your system every 20 minutes or so to keep things from freezing up.

In any case, the biggest problem you will have isn’t keeping your water from freezing. It’s keeping your feet from freezing. The toes are the first to go so be careful out there!

If you have any cold weather tips please share them with us in the comments…

-Steve

P.S. Winter is a great time to build a hot dog cart, either your first one or to expand your fleet for the spring rush. I’ve spoken to several Hot Dog Profits Premium Members who are going to build two or even three hot dog carts at once over the winter. These folks are going to absolutely dominate their markets when they hit the streets with multiple carts after the weather breaks. I think that’s pretty darn exciting!!!