The fit-out determines whether you’ll still enjoy working in your food truck in five years’ time. It also determines the resale value – and whether the health authorities are satisfied on their first inspection.
Do it yourself or have it done for you
| Self | Specialist company | |
|---|---|---|
| Costs | 8.000 – 25.000 € | 30.000 – 80.000 € |
| Duration | 4–12 months on a part-time basis | 8–20 weeks |
| Gas supply | Possible, but time-consuming | including |
| Resale | often less than 40 per cent of the effort | 60 – 75 % |
| Guarantee | none | two years |
The middle ground is often overlooked: Do the structural work and fit the furniture yourself; have the gas and electrical work carried out by specialist contractors. This saves a significant portion of the costs and ensures that these two areas – where mistakes can be dangerous – are in expert hands.
The tried-and-tested order
If you work in the wrong order, you’ll end up having to redo what you’ve already finished. This sequence has become the established routine:
- Planning and measuring. On paper, to scale. Each unit shown in its actual dimensions, including wall clearances.
- Clear out and remove rust. Anything not dealt with now will continue to rust away beneath the finished fit-out.
- Spacing. Hatches, windows, ventilation, cable entries – everything that passes through the outer skin.
- Insulation and cladding. Walls and ceiling, food-safe surfaces.
- Electrical and water supply as empty conduits. Before the cladding, not after.
- Boden. Seamless, non-slip, with a chamfered edge on the walls.
- Furniture and appliances. Only now.
- Gas system. Finally, carried out by a specialist firm, subject to approval.
The fillet is often overlooked. The transition between the floor and the wall must be rounded so that it can be cleaned – a sharp corner is a dirt trap. Fitting this retrospectively means having to redo the floor.
What the Health Authority wants to see
The requirements are set out in EU Regulation 852/2004, Annex II, Chapter III. In practice, it boils down to six points:
- Washable surfaces anywhere food goes or could go
- Hand basin Separate from the sink, with hot water, a soap dispenser and disposable towels
- Separate water tanks For fresh and waste water; the waste water tank must be at least as large as the fresh water tank
- Refrigeration with temperature display, legible without opening the door
- Rubbish bins with a lid, cannot be opened by hand
- Fly screens on all pages
Electricity: the three ways
| Source | Scope of work | What is it for? |
|---|---|---|
| Mains power 230 V / 16 A | 3,6 kW | Refrigeration, lighting, small appliances |
| Shore power 400 V / 16 A | 11 kW | Electrical appliances, induction |
| Battery with inverter | 1 – 3 kW | Overnight refrigeration, lighting |
A generator is a last resort: it’s noisy, emits a strong odour and is banned at many events. If you do need one, you should opt for a quiet inverter and position it as far away from the serving hatch as possible.
Work out your electricity requirements before you buy any appliances. Two induction hobs, each rated at 3.5 kW, and a deep-fat fryer rated at 3 kW add up to 10 kW – which will blow the fuse on a 16-amp connection. Many food trucks therefore combine gas for cooking with electricity for refrigeration and lighting.
Gas: there’s no room for improvisation here
The gas system is the part where a fault does not merely cause a nuisance, but can lead to an accident. It must be handled by a specialist company and requires a commercial inspection in accordance with DGUV Regel 110-010 and the Industrial Safety Regulations. Equipment installed in or on vehicles must be inspected at least every two years. The risk assessment may require shorter intervals.
- Gas cylinders in a ventilated box, accessible from the outside, with venting at the bottom
- Gas shortage protection fitted to every appliance
- Shut-off valve accessible without going through the kitchen
- Fixed pipes, no hoses as a permanent solution
Organisers may request up-to-date inspection reports. You must not simply continue to operate the facility without the required inspection. The consequences for your insurance cover depend on the terms of your policy and the specific claim.
Mistakes that will prove costly later on
- Not enough workspace. Anyone who plans a kitchen on the drawing board underestimates how much space is needed for food preparation. Two metres of continuous worktop is the minimum.
- Devices listed by price rather than performance. A deep-fat fryer that takes too long to heat up slows down throughput every lunchtime.
- No access for maintenance. Built-in appliances that cannot be accessed from the rear mean that any repair must begin with removal.
- Waste water tank too small. It must be at least as big as the fresh water tank – otherwise you’ll be left without water at lunchtime.
- Ventilation is insufficient. For deep fryers and grills, you need an extractor fan powerful enough to remove the smoke before it settles on your clothes.
Test it before it goes live. Stick the floor plan to the hall floor with masking tape and spend an hour working exactly as you’ll be working later on. Anything that’s a nuisance now will be a nuisance every day later on – and can still be changed now.
How much it costs
| Trade | Self | Specialist company |
|---|---|---|
| Insulation and cladding | 1.500 – 3.000 € | 4.000 – 8.000 € |
| Bottom | 800 – 1.500 € | 2.000 – 3.500 € |
| Electrical systems | 1.500 – 3.000 € | 4.000 – 7.000 € |
| Gas system | — | 2.500 – 5.000 € |
| Water and tanks | 800 – 1.800 € | 2.000 – 4.000 € |
| Stainless steel furniture | 3.000 – 8.000 € | 8.000 – 20.000 € |
| Devices | €5,000 – €25,000, depending on the concept | |
| Serving hatch | 1.200 – 2.500 € | 2.500 – 5.000 € |
Anyone buying a ready-made vehicle saves themselves all that – and pays a premium for it, which is usually less than the cost of fitting it out themselves. A look at the Current offers It’s worth doing this before you turn a single screw.
