Six Things You Didn’t Know About…Running Your Fridge

How often do any of us really think about our refrigerator? Once a marvel of the modern age, the one appliance above all that revolutionized the way we buy and store food, today it’s pretty much taken for granted, humming ever more quietly than even its forebears did, a hulking yet forgotten presence in the corner of the kitchen.

Buried beneath chidren's drawings, report cards and miscellaneous snapshots magnetized to its door, it works … and works, and works. Twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. Today’s refrigerators even work better than ever: those sold today under the federal government’s Energy Star program are upwards of 75 percent more efficient than the old models bought a generation ago.

Still, knowing how to run your fridge right means saving money — both in terms of saving on electricity, and in terms of keeping your food fresh.

Your refridgerator uses the most electricity in your home (after the AC unit), almost 14 percent on average. The colder you run your fridge, the more energy it uses. So if you want to save on your electric bills (but don’t want your leftovers to spoil), you should keep your fridge between 34°F and 38°F.

Some fridges have a digital display that shows their internal temperature. If yours doesn’t, you can pick up a perfectly good fridge thermometer for $10 or less. Check it regularly, especially when the seasons change. The setting that keeps your fridge cold enough in winter may not work as the mercury climbs outside, so adjust the thermostat accordingly.

A full freezer runs most efficiently (don’t block the cooling vent). As for your fridge, it runs best when it’s somewhere between 70 and 80 percent full. Going on vacation? Fill empty containers with water and stick them in your fridge.
What else can you do to keep your fridge from sucking up more juice? Keep the coils clean! Yes, it’s true: dirty coils make the fridge work harder. The good news is that it’s only a once or twice-a-year job … unless you have pets that shed, then it’s every three months.

Here’s a neat trick: take a dollar bill and close your fridge door on it. If you can pull the bill out, your door isn’t closing tight enough (and you’re wasting energy). Try cleaning the gasket with soapy water.

You may think you’re saving money by keeping an old fridge around in the basement or garage and stocking it with groceries you picked up on sale, but older refrigerators are often half as efficient as newer models (or worse). The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that second refrigerators cost owners $420 to $750 over the lifetime of the fridge.

Brought to you by;
Aaron’s Mechanical Services
623 -388-4436
info@coolingaz.com
http://coolingaz.com/