Getting a refrigerated container delivered and sited on your ground

A refrigerated container is heavy, tall and awkward to place, so how it reaches your site matters as much as which unit you choose. A 40ft high cube weighs several tonnes empty and stands nearly three metres tall, and it has to be set down level, close to a three-phase supply, on ground that will carry it fully loaded. Most of a smooth delivery is decided before the lorry arrives. This guide covers how a reefer reaches a UK site, the access the vehicle needs, the ground it demands, how close it must stand to power, and how to prepare. All figures below are ex VAT, with VAT at 20%.

Two ways a reefer arrives: HIAB or tilt-bed

Most UK deliveries use one of two methods. A HIAB — a lorry-mounted crane, or crane lorry — lifts the container off its own bed and lowers it exactly where you want it. It needs swing room to one side for the jib and clear airspace above the drop zone: no low cables, branches or canopies overhead. A tilt-bed or beavertail lorry carries no crane; it slides the unit off the rear as the vehicle pulls forward, so it needs several metres of straight run-off behind and a firm surface to slide onto. A plain flatbed cannot self-offload at all, so a forklift or telehandler of the right capacity has to be waiting on site. For a one-off placement a HIAB is usually simplest, because the driver does the lifting and positioning.

Access: height, width and turning room

The vehicle, not just the container, sets the access you need — the lorry is longer and wider than its load. Start from the container’s own external dimensions:

Every reefer is 2.44 m wide, so any gate or gap has to clear that plus room for the lorry to manoeuvre. Height is the trap on the 40ft high cube: it stands 2.90 m tall and higher again on the lorry bed, so check overhead cables, branches and eaves along the whole approach, not just the final spot. A crane lorry or articulated trailer is long and needs turning room, so flag any blind bend, weak bridge, height barrier or soft verge before the date is fixed.

The ground: bearing and level

A reefer bears on its four bottom corner castings, so it does not need a full slab — but those corners must sit on something solid and level. Concrete, compacted hardcore, paving slabs, railway sleepers or hardwood baulks under each corner all work; soft soil, a lawn or fresh summer tarmac do not. Level matters more on a reefer than on a dry box: the doors seal only on a true frame, defrost and condensate water drain by gravity, and the unit is built to sit level. Allow for the weight, too — a 20ft weighs about 3,000 kg empty and a 40ft high cube about 4.5 tonnes, and a loaded 20ft can reach roughly 27 tonnes — so the ground must carry the laden unit, not just the empty shell.

Distance to the power supply

A reefer only earns its keep while it is running, so site it within easy reach of the supply. These units connect to three-phase 380/400 V through a five-pin 32 A CEE socket, though some small formats take single-phase 230 V, and the machine draws 5 to 12 kW while working. Keep the container within a sensible cable run of the socket rather than trailing a long lead across a yard, which risks trip hazards and volt drop. If three-phase is already in place, connection can cost little or nothing; if not, bringing a supply to the unit is an electrician’s job worth pricing before delivery day. Our other guides cover plugs, cabling and generators.

What to budget

Costs fall into three parts: the unit, getting it there, and running it. Delivery is quoted separately from the hire rate or purchase price and scales with distance and how awkward the site is to reach — a straight tilt-bed drop on open hardstanding costs far less than a crane lift over obstacles. For the unit itself, UK hire starts indicatively from around £12 a day ex VAT, with a minimum term of about 90 days common; used units are observed at £4,500 to £7,500 ex VAT and new one-trip units at £18,995 to £22,500 ex VAT — the prices page and the for-sale section set out the full picture. Running cost is electricity: a reefer draws roughly 70 to 170 kWh a day depending on format and setpoint. Lead times vary, so agree the price and the date in advance rather than assuming a fixed turnaround.

Site-preparation checklist

Run through this before the delivery date:

1. Confirm the method — HIAB or tilt-bed — against your access and the final position.
2. Measure the tightest point on the approach for width and, on a high cube, for height.
3. Clear overhead obstructions — cables, branches, eaves — along the whole route.
4. Prepare firm, level ground that carries the laden weight, with timber or plates ready for the corner castings.
5. Site it near the supply and arrange an electrician if no three-phase socket is in place.
6. Check any local rules — siting a container may be subject to local planning, so confirm with your local authority if the unit will stay for any length of time.

Get those right and the lift itself takes minutes. When you know the format, setpoint and site, set out your requirement once and we pass it to specialist suppliers, who contact you directly if they can meet your need.