With boilerless steamers continuing to gain greater market share, they now seem to be on the verge of becoming the new standard for steamers, overtaking older boiler-equipped designs. Boilerless steamers' easy-to-maintain technology, greater energy efficiency and reduced water use are gaining the approval of operators and specifiers in every market segment.

Stellar Steam's Energy Star rated Sirius II (gas) and Altair II (electric) lines of boilerless steamers offer all these benefits, and more, through the use of innovative design and technology. As the Stellar line evolved from the original connectionless Capella model, the company's goal remained to deliver outstanding energy and water efficiency, but with improved cooking speed. Today's Altair II and Sirius II models have accomplished that objective through a number of unique and patented design features. The cooking compartment of all Stellar steamers, for example, is made of cast aluminum. This is the heart of Stellar's superior operating efficiency, as cast aluminum has excellent heat transfer and retention properties. Stellar's patented design expands this advantage by heating all models' entire cooking compartments, rather than just the water in the bottom. This raises the heat level in Stellar cooking compartments above the temperature of steam (to 230^°F), which allows a greater proportion of the steam to be applied as cooking energy.

The Altair II and Sirius II have added another exclusive feature to enhance cooking speed. Stellar installs a heat exchanger technology in these models that simultaneously preheats incoming water and cools outgoing condensate. This dramatically reduces cooking times, and saves both energy and water.

Another key benefit offered by boilerless steamers in general is that they are easier to clean and maintain than units that rely on boilers, noted Bob McLoughlin, vice president of product management for Stellar Steam. "Any time kitchen staff heat water up to the boiling point, precipitants fall out causing a lime scale buildup on heated surfaces. Stellar's boilerless design provides an easier process for cleaning these precipitants. Kitchen staff can see the build-up in the bottom of the cooking chamber and react by removing it. In most cases, regular cleaning with a vinegar and water solution will suffice. In boiler-based units, this build-up occurs on the heating elements or heat exchanger tubes in the boiler, where they are out of sight and out of mind."

A further advantage of Stellar's models is that the heat source is not immersed in water during operation, as is the case with boiler-based steamers. When heating elements (or heat exchanger tubes) are continually submerged, they can quickly become covered in scale and lime. These mineral deposits insulate the heating elements or tubes, resulting in less heat reaching the water, higher energy usage and, ultimately, burned out elements or tubes.

Stellar's innovative technology, as well as the other energy- and water-efficient features of Altair II and Sirius II models, has been proven to be a major cost-reducer for operators. According to McLoughlin, tests conducted by Pacific Gas & Electric have shown that water and energy savings can run around $1,800 to $2,000 per year when compared to boiler-based counterparts. Savings such as that, said McLoughlin, are "tipping" the market toward boilerless steaming equipment.

"The steamer market is at the tipping point," he stated. "Just a few short years ago, operators and some specifiers didn't know what a boilerless unit was. Cooking performance has improved from the early days of connectionless, boilerless units and is now comparable to boiler-based units. This, combined with dramatic energy and water savings, are leading the way to a rapid expansion of the boilerless segment."

For more information, visit Stellar Steam's web site at www.stellarsteam.com