Mixers - Planetary & Spiral
Choosing a Commercial Dough Mixer
Spiral or planetary
A spiral mixer does one job properly. The bowl rotates while a fixed spiral hook works the dough, which develops gluten faster and keeps the dough noticeably cooler than a planetary would. Cool dough is what gives you predictable proving, so if you're producing bread or pizza dough daily, spiral is the right tool even though it does nothing else. A planetary mixer takes different attachments and handles doughs, batters, creams and fillings from one machine, which suits cafes, patisseries and anywhere the production is mixed. Plenty of bakeries run both.
Dough temperature and why it matters
Friction from mixing heats dough, and every degree it comes out above your target changes how it proves. A spiral mixer generates less friction than a planetary working the same batch, which is the main reason bread bakeries prefer them. If you're mixing in a hot kitchen through summer, that difference gets bigger, and it's worth factoring in when you're choosing between the two rather than treating it as a technicality.
Sizing by flour weight, not bowl litres
Bowl capacity in litres tells you how big the bowl is, not how much dough the machine can actually drive. Manufacturers quote a maximum flour weight and a dough capacity, and stiff low-hydration doughs load the motor far harder than soft ones. Work from your largest single batch of your stiffest dough, and don't buy to the limit, because a mixer running at maximum every day will not last. If you're regularly at capacity you want the next size up.
Fixed or removable bowl
Fixed bowl mixers are simpler and cheaper. Removable bowl models let you lift the whole bowl out and start the next batch immediately, which matters in production where the mixer is the bottleneck. On larger units the bowl trolley is a separate purchase, so factor that in.
Power, weight and floor
Bench top mixers generally run single phase, floor standing production models want three phase. These machines are heavy and they move when they're working a stiff dough, so they need a solid level floor and clearance to load and unload. Check the doorway width too, because floor standing mixers do not come apart and plenty have been delivered to the kerb and stayed there.
Brands and support
We stock Hobart mixers and Moffat bakery equipment, with attachments, bowls and parts available. For the rest of the bakery, see our provers and holding cabinets, pastry sheeters and moulders and dividers. Everything is available on SilverChef Rent-Try-Buy, with installation and servicing through our own technicians.