Cold room monitoring: temperature, humidity, and CO₂
Actus ELENA adds sensors and a monitoring platform to cold rooms you already have. It measures air and product temperature, humidity, CO₂, and power outages, and alerts your team when conditions move out of range. You do not need to replace your room or refrigeration equipment.
What it measures
Sensors in each room send continuous readings to the web and mobile platform. Actus Airsense measures air temperature, relative humidity, and CO₂. The Actus CoreSense probe measures the product’s internal temperature. Your team can view each room’s conditions, review history, and receive alerts.
- Air temperature: temperature by zone inside the room.
- Product temperature: temperature inside the product, which may take hours to follow changes in the air.
- Relative humidity and VPD: air moisture and vapor pressure deficit, which help identify dehydration or condensation risk.
- CO₂: carbon dioxide that builds up as produce respires.
- Power loss: an alert when the room loses electrical power.
What it does not do
- Actus does not build the room or supply its insulation or doors.
- Actus does not install or operate the refrigeration plant. ELENA does not switch compressors or evaporator fans; your refrigeration controller continues to operate independently.
- ELENA-M does not operate equipment. It displays data and sends alerts for your team to review and act on.
ELENA-M and ELENA-MC: what is the difference?
Monitoring and alerts
Sensors, history, alerts, and recommendations on web and mobile. Your team receives alerts and decides what action to take. Results depend on that response.
Monitoring and control
Everything in ELENA-M, plus a control module. The Actus air-exchange system brings in fresh air and exhausts CO₂-rich air. Actus humidification can add moisture based on VPD and stop when condensation risk rises. ELENA-MC can also send temperature setpoint ramps to the existing thermostat through Modbus.
The air-exchange system is quoted for each installation. Humidification equipment is supplied separately.
Who it is for
Businesses with existing cold rooms or refrigerated storage that want visibility into conditions without relying on manual checks.
- Storage: potatoes, onions, apples, and pears held for weeks or months.
- Ripening: bananas, avocados, and mangoes in ripening rooms.
- Precooling: table grapes, berries, tomatoes, cucumbers, and vegetables before shipping.
Observed case: potatoes stored for processing at 10–11 °C
In one customer’s potato storage operation, dehydration loss after three months was about 10%. After ELENA-MC was installed, the loss over a similar period was about 5%.
This is an observed result from one operation, not a guarantee. Results depend on the crop, variety, room, installation, and operating practices.
Actus also conducted a three-phase potato pilot in northwest Mexico. Phases 1 and 2 took place in a small test cold room; phase 3 took place in operating rooms with 600-tonne capacity.
| Phase | Conditions | Dehydration loss |
|---|---|---|
| Phase 1 | Test room: 476 kg of potatoes over 7 weeks | 3.74% of total weight |
| Phase 2 | Test room at full capacity: 6,279 kg for 1 month, with skin set during the first 10 days and sanitation matching normal operations | 3.57% in the weighed sample |
| Phase 3 | 600-tonne operating rooms under similar operating conditions: one conventionally managed and one with Bodega ELENA | Conventional: 10.45% on day 32 ELENA: 6.08% on day 73 |
In phase 1, an industrial buyer inspected and fry-tested the potatoes and rated the sample “very good.” In phase 3, loss was measured at the end of each room’s storage period. The customer chose when each room was emptied, so the end dates (day 32 and day 73) differ and do not measure product shelf life. The Bodega ELENA room ended with lower loss: 6.08% versus 10.45%.
These are measurements from a pilot with one potato variety: two phases in a test room and one in operating rooms. They do not guarantee results for another operation.
Frequently asked questions
Can I monitor a cold room without replacing its equipment?
Yes. ELENA is installed in your existing room with sensors and a communications device. Refrigeration continues to work as it does today; you do not need to replace the room, insulation, or refrigeration plant.
What does ELENA measure?
Air temperature, product temperature, relative humidity and VPD, CO₂ concentration, and power outages.
What is the difference between ELENA-M and ELENA-MC?
ELENA-M monitors conditions and sends alerts for your team to act on. ELENA-MC adds a control module that can exchange air to manage CO₂, activate humidification based on VPD, and send temperature ramps to the existing thermostat.
Does Actus build cold rooms or install refrigeration?
No. Actus does not build rooms or supply or operate refrigeration plants. ELENA does not switch compressors or evaporator fans.
How do I receive alerts?
Through the Actus ELENA web and mobile app. Each person at your company sees the rooms they have access to and their status.
Which crops can it support?
Crops stored, ripened, or precooled in rooms, including potatoes, onions, apples, pears, bananas, avocados, mangoes, table grapes, berries, tomatoes, cucumbers, and other vegetables.
How much dehydration loss can I reduce?
It depends on the crop, room, and operation. In one potato case at 10–11 °C with ELENA-MC, dehydration loss over three months went from about 10% to about 5%. This is an observed case, not a guarantee.