Temperature and Humidity

• The difference between beverage and floral coolers all comes down to temperature and humidity. Beverage coolers keep humidity low, so it can chill products as quickly as possible, in temperatures as low as possible without the risk of freezing. A floral cooler has a general set temperature that is higher than a beverage cooler -- that's what is needed for flowers. Beverage coolers are often colder than floral coolers because the products are denser. The ideal humidity level for a floral cooler is 90 percent to 95 percent, and the lowest tolerable level is 80 percent.

Using One in Place of the Other

• While you could convert a beverage cooler to a floral cooler, the changes needed are significant and can be costly. This is because the changes needed are all internal -- the exterior of the refrigerator can stay the same. Because beverage coolers do not need to be calibrated as carefully as floral coolers do, you could keep drinks chilled in a flower cooler. However, drinks kept in a floral cooler will not be as cold as those in a beverage cooler because food and drinks are denser than flowers and thus take longer to chill.