Many commercial and residential refrigerators have some of the same characteristics. Both of these refrigerators need to be reliable and sufficiently user-friendly. A residential refrigerator will certainly be much smaller than a commercial model, which is probably the primary difference between these two products.
Different Devices
Plenty of individuals have relatively large fridges at home. However, other people prefer to use smaller fridges. They know that they will save energy that way in a lot of cases. Even the largest residential fridge is not going to be as large as the smallest commercial fridge in most cases.
The commercial models just need to store many more products. They also have to be reliable. No one wants a fridge to fail. However, the consequences of that failure can be worse with a commercial fridge, especially if it is already full. Thousands of dollars worth of products could be damaged in a case like that. Residents usually will not lose more than one to three hundred dollars worth of groceries if something similar happens at home.
Design Changes
Almost any commercial refrigerator will have only a shelf or two. Residential types of fridges can seem very intricate by comparison. A lot of people will want all of their food products in different compartments to make sure that the different flavors do not get mixed up subtly.
People can also preserve their food at home more easily with a setup like that in some cases. The vegetables in the vegetable and fruit crisper might rot, but since they are found in a self-contained and sealed compartment, they might not contaminate most of the other food items in the residential fridge.
There is less of a need for a feature like that in a commercial fridge. People need to make sure that these fridges have as much space as they possibly can. While it does not look like a compartment or interior shelf will consume a lot of space, it really can do so in practice. People who use commercial fridges make sure that the items inside don’t spoil regularly, and they have to meet strict requirements.
Of course, residential fridges were also designed for people to use for other purposes. Many of these fridges now have exterior systems that serve water or ice, and ice making systems on the inside. People can get access to water and ice more easily with a setup like this. There is absolutely no need for a system like this if the fridge is a commercial one.
However, other than that, these devices are fairly similar. They will both have angular box-like shapes, which is more efficient for general cold storage. It takes a substantial amount of energy to run both of these devices. There are still shelves in both, and the shelves can still be adjusted easily to make things more convenient for the people using the fridges. Ultimately, these are devices that serve the same general purpose, which is reflected in the design of both.