The refrigerator is one of the largest consumers of electrical energy in the home, mainly because it runs continuously. Insufficient air circulation behind the appliance, a crowded interior or a layer of frost can significantly increase consumption and shorten the life of the compressor.
A modern household consumes a large amount of electricity throughout the year, with the appliance that runs continuously in the kitchen accounting for the largest share of the final bill. Unlike the washing machine or the coffee machine, we never turn off the refrigerator, which makes it the biggest consumer of electricity in the apartment. At the same time, looking at the bill after the summer season does not have to cause a financial or nervous shock if we move the refrigerator just five centimeters further from the wall. Don’t you believe?
You can also learn more about the functioning of the refrigerator in the YouTube video from Almost Fiction CZ:
A small shift, but a big difference
This unobtrusive maneuver solves the biggest weakness of home cooling – i.e. insufficient air circulation behind the appliance. The cooling grid on the back wall needs to constantly dissipate the accumulated heat into the surrounding space. But as soon as you press the device close to the wall or install it firmly the hot air has nowhere to escape, it begins to accumulate and the compressor has to switch much more often than is normal and, above all, necessary. This constant overloading leads not only to an unnecessary increase in energy consumption, but also to a significant shortening of the life of the entire engine.
The fridge is not bottomless
In addition to the free space around the refrigerator itself, the way we fill the internal shelves also plays a huge role in the fight against electricity consumption. Many people have the habit of filling their coolers to the brim after a big purchase, which is not good for the indoor environment at all. To ensure an ideal flow of ice air, the food inside should occupy a maximum of eighty percent of the total volume, so that cold air can move freely between the individual levels. Food that is “extra” in the refrigerator will reliably block the ventilation holes, the refrigerator will start to freeze and its operation will immediately become more expensive.
Check the seal
It is the ice crust on the inner walls that works as a silent thief of money, which you can easily drive away with timely intervention. Even a tiny layer of frost with a thickness of a few millimeters creates an insulating wall on the cooling circuit, due to which the motor has to perform twice as much in order to cope with its main task – that is, to protect the food inside the refrigerator with cold. The main cause of this is usually a worn or clogged rubber seal on the door, through which warm and humid air from the room constantly penetrates. Regularly checking its elasticity and occasionally washing it with warm water will save you a lot of trouble.
Set the correct temperature
The last step to reasonable savings is the correct setting of the internal thermostat, which is often unnecessarily turned to extremes in households. The experience of service technicians and various energy audits confirm that an internal temperature of between three and four degrees Celsius is more than sufficient for safe food preservation. The frozen stock will then reliably protect the stable eighteen degrees below zero in the freezer. Any further lowering of the temperature will not improve the quality of the stored raw materials in any way and will not extend their shelf life, it will only unnecessarily take more money out of your wallet. Do you also make some of the described mistakes, or do you refrigerate your food really efficiently and in a way that is gentle on your wallet (and nature)?
