Energy Efficient refrigerators and freezers

For most homeowners the biggest energy hog in their kitchen is by far the refrigerator. The compressors in refrigerators require a great deal of energy.   The good news is that there has been remarkable improvement in the efficiencies of refrigerators and freezers since 1993 when federal efficiency standards kicked in.  Older models of refrigerators can use as much as 1800 KW of energy a year.  Compare that to newer models many of which use less that 500 KW watts per year and you can see that there is significant energy and money to be saved by switching to a newer model.  So if your current refrigerator is on its last legs, now may be exactly the right time to upgrade.

There have been a number of fundamental changes in refrigerator design to achieve better energy efficiency.  To begin with most refrigerators now have thicker and more effective insulation so there is less thermal loss.  Motors and compressors have been made more efficient and have been positioned so that less of the heat they generate flows close to the refrigerator and thus avoids counteracting the cooling process.  Most new refrigerators now contain microchips which help to create a more effective defrost cycle than old mechanical timers. 

As with most appliances there are things you can do to reduce the amount of energy it uses by following a few commonsense practices:

1.  Position your refrigerator away from a heat source such as an oven, a dishwasher, or direct sunlight from a window.
2. To allow air to circulate around the condenser coils, leave a space between the wall or cabinets and the refrigerator or freezer and keep the coils clean.
3. Make sure the door seals are airtight.
4. Keep your refrigerator between 35 and 38 degrees Fahrenheit and your freezer at 0 degrees Fahrenheit.
5. Minimize the amount of time the refrigerator door is open.
6. Recycle older or second refrigerators.

The Energy Star listing of rated refrigerators and freezers is quite long  and too big to put on this Web page.  To find the rating of a specific refrigerator model go to this link on the Energy Star Web site and open up one of the spreadsheets which provides the listing: http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=refrig.pr_refrigerators.