Short of replacing your current
refrigerator or freezer, there are plenty of improvements you can make to your
existing unit. First, check door gaskets to be sure they are sealing properly.
As they age and wear, they are less able to do their job of keeping cool air
in and warm room air out. This requires the unit to run unnecessarily, wasting
energy. There is a simple test to see if your seals are sealing properly.
Place a slip of paper or dollar bill at the place the door closes, then close
the door and pull on the paper. If it slips right out, the seal should be considered
for repair or replacement. (If your door seals are magnetic, the test may not
work.) Replacing door seals can get expensive, and if your unit is older anyway,
it may be time to look at just upgrading to a new energy-efficient model.
When you get a new refrigerator, it is tempting to move the old one to the garage or basement for extra refrigerated storage. This usually is a bad idea because older refrigerators can turn into big energy wasters. They are already probably less efficient units than your new model, plus their seals are wearing out, and often they are placed in a hot, unconditioned space where they have to run full time to keep their set temperature. Many a high electric bill complaint has stemmed from a second refrigerator quietly robbing from your energy budget at really marginal added convenience.
Refrigerators requiring manual defrosting use less energy than automatic defrost models, but that may be a small consideration compared with the convenience of not having to empty and defrost the unit. Another advantage of manual defrost unit is they are not as likely to cause freezer burn. Automatic defrost freezers tend to dehydrate food increasing freezer burn.
Check
the inside temperature of your refrigerators and freezers with a thermometer
because the ones built in aren't always accurate. A setting 10 degrees lower
than recommended can raise operating cost by 25 percent. The refrigerator compartment
should be between 36°F and 38°F, and the freezer, between 0°F and
5°F.
Most
homeowners are not aware that there is a small switch located at the back of
their refrigerator that can save them money. Automatic defrost refrigerator
freezers use little heaters built into the refrigerator's walls to prevent moisture
from condensing on the surfaces inside the unit. Some newer units have energy
saver or power-saver switches that can deactivate these heaters when condensation
is not much of an issue. Unless you have a condensation problem, keep this switched
off.
Regular maintenance of refrigerators and freezers includes defrosting manual defrost units and making sure heat exchange coils are kept clean and have good air flow.
A full
refrigerator or freezer operates more efficiently than an empty one. This is
because when the door does open, if it is full, there isn't much area where
warm air can enter. You can fill empty spaces with containers of water, which
in a freezer has the added advantage of being able to hold a lower temperature
in the event of a power outage.
Food should be covered prior to being placed in a refrigerator or freezer. Uncovered, moisture in the food will be evaporated into the interior of the unit causing it to use more energy. And don't put hot food directly into the refrigerator or freezer. Let it cool a little first, but don't leave food standing around too long either because bacteria grows well in unrefrigerated food.
