9/8/2026
Mortuary refrigerator capacities and what the specification must state
A mortuary refrigerator is a long-life purchase: it runs day and night, is opened dozens of times a week, and is cleaned and chemically disinfected throughout its service life. The decision therefore starts with capacity, then material, then what happens when the power fails — not with the exterior. This guide sets out the capacities available in the Preservus range from Medica-Lab, what a specification has to state at licensing and inspection, and the questions worth asking before you request an offer.
What the unit is, and where it is used
A mortuary refrigerator is a stainless steel cabinet divided into cells, each with its own door and a sliding tray, holding bodies between +2 and +8 °C until procedures are complete. It is used in hospital mortuaries, washing facilities, forensic institutes and municipal facilities. Suppliers and translated tender documents also use the term morgue refrigerator for the same equipment.
Alongside the chilled version there is a freezer configuration running between −10 and −20 °C, intended for long-term cases: unidentified remains, cases awaiting forensic examination, or extended repatriation. Any cell configuration can be supplied in either version, which makes the choice a matter of the facility's procedures rather than of model.
Mortuary refrigerator capacity: from one cell to nine
The range starts with the single-cell MLM-01E for clinics and small facilities, running on a 0.50 HP unit. The two-cell MLM-01 follows with a 0.75 HP unit and is also available in a horizontal two-door version. The three-cell MLM-02, with a 1 HP unit, is the standard configuration for a mid-size hospital. The four-cell MLM-03 and six-cell MLM-04 cover larger hospitals, while the nine-cell modular MLM-05 serves major hospitals and forensic facilities.
Capacity is normally sized on bed count, local practice and the average time a body remains before release. The practical rule is to size for the peak rather than the average, because the unit that copes on ordinary days is the same unit tested on an exceptional one. The mortuary refrigerators page lists every configuration with its external dimensions, so it can be matched against the room before ordering.
Vertical, horizontal and modular layouts
How the cells are stacked changes the footprint more than it changes the capacity. The two-cell unit is available as a horizontal two-door version, code MLM-01H, for rooms with a low ceiling or no room to stack. The four-cell unit is arranged 2×2, the six-cell 2×3 and the modular system 3×3 — capacity grows in height and width together.
Configurations should therefore be compared on external dimensions, not on cell count alone: 2250 × 1000 × 1350 mm for the single cell, 2200 × 1000 × 2400 mm for three cells, 2200 × 1900 × 2400 mm for six. Measuring clear ceiling height and the access route before choosing prevents the most common installation problem of all.
Inside the cabinet: cells, trays and material
Interior and exterior are AISI 304 stainless steel. That is a specification choice rather than a finish: the grade withstands repeated chemical disinfection without pitting or staining, where painted or lower-grade steel degrades within a few years in this environment. A stainless steel body tray with two handles slides inside the cell, and the internal cell dimensions on the single-cell unit are 550 × 700 mm and customizable.
Insulation density is recorded at 40 kg/m³ — the figure that governs how stable the temperature is and how quickly it recovers after a door is opened. Always require the external dimensions in the offer: the nine-cell unit, for example, is 2800 × 2200 × 2400 mm. Those numbers concern the access route, the doorway and the lift long before they concern the room.
Health-authority requirements: what the specification must state
Licensing and inspection requirements for a mortuary are issued by the competent health authority in each country, and the text in force at the time of tender is the one to work from, since it is updated periodically. The part that falls on the equipment itself is narrow and clear: cleanable stainless steel contact and interior surfaces, a written and monitorable operating temperature range, capacity proportionate to the size of the facility, and a written commissioning record handed over with the unit.
The practical approach is to write those points into the tender in measurable form: the material with its grade, the temperature range with its figures, the presence of a temperature alarm, the cell count, and each option named. A measurable specification makes offers comparable and shortens the inspection committee's questions later. Preservus units are built under the group's ISO 13485:2016 quality system, the document normally attached to the approval file.
Power, alarms and redundancy
Standard units restart automatically when power returns. A facility with frequent outages needs more than that: a UPS-backed temperature alarm that stays live through the cut, the emergency cooling option, and multiple independent cooling units so a single compressor failure does not compromise the whole cabinet. Deodorisers and universal door locking complete the option list.
These are build-time options rather than retrofits, so they belong in the tender and not in later correspondence. It is also worth naming who monitors the alarm and when it is tested — an alarm nobody is responsible for hearing adds nothing to the specification.
Around the unit: preparation tables and trolleys
A refrigerator alone does not run a mortuary. The daily cycle needs a body-resting table with an AISI 304 stainless steel top, a transfer trolley with a removable inner tray on 150 mm braked castors, and a hydraulic lift trolley operated by hand crank or foot pedal, rated to 250 kg with a 300–1600 mm height range, to move a body between table and cell without manual lifting.
Forensic and pathology departments add an autopsy table with an integrated basin and mixer tap. Ordering these items together buys one shipment and one installation, and keeps the heights of table, trolley and cell compatible. The autopsy and accessories range shows what a facility needs alongside the refrigerated unit.
What determines the offer
There is no single figure for a mortuary refrigerator, because the offer moves with the configuration: cell count, chilled or freezer version, number of cooling units, the options requested — backed alarm, emergency cooling, deodoriser, universal locking — then the delivery city, the scope of installation, the warranty period and the after-sales service plan. Send us your bed count, the room dimensions and the access route, and we will propose a configuration and send a detailed quotation.
Installation and commissioning on site
Units are delivered, positioned, connected and temperature-tested on site, and handed over with a written commissioning record. Our teams cover Saudi Arabia and Egypt directly; in export markets we work with the appointed local partner. Good planning starts before shipping: measure the access route, fix the electrical point, and set the unit's position so the doors keep a full swing and there is room to manoeuvre a trolley.
Frequently asked questions
What is a mortuary refrigerator in a hospital?
A stainless steel AISI 304 cabinet divided into cells, each with its own door and a sliding body tray. It holds bodies between +2 and +8 °C until procedures are complete, and is used in hospital mortuaries, washing facilities and forensic institutes. The same configuration is available as a freezer running between −10 and −20 °C.
How long does a body stay in the mortuary?
The duration is set by the facility's procedures, the family's arrangements and the competent authorities; it is not a property of the equipment. The unit itself is designed for continuous operation and holds its temperature range for as long as power is available and the alarm is sound. Extended cases use the freezer version.
What is the difference between the refrigerator and freezer versions?
The refrigerator holds +2 to +8 °C for routine short-term preservation. The freezer version runs at −10 to −20 °C for long-term cases: unidentified remains, cases awaiting forensic examination, or extended repatriation. Any number of cells can be supplied in either version, so the choice follows the facility's caseload.
How do I choose the right number of cells?
Capacity is sized on bed count and local practice: a clinic or small facility is served by one or two cells, a mid-size hospital by three, and a large hospital or forensic institute by six or nine. Tell us your bed count and the average length of stay in the mortuary and we will recommend a configuration.
What happens during a power cut?
Standard units restart automatically when power returns. We recommend the UPS-backed alarm option, which keeps the temperature alarm live during an outage, the emergency cooling option for facilities where outages are frequent, and multiple independent cooling units so a single compressor failure does not compromise the whole cabinet.
Can the cells be customised?
Yes. Cell dimensions can be adjusted, and the options include multiple cooling units, deodorisers, universal door locking, emergency cooling and UPS-backed alarms. Send us the room dimensions and the access route and we will confirm the configuration that fits, in either the chilled or the freezer version.