Refrigerators and Freezers

Refrigerators can use up to 15% of your home’s total energy usage, so it pays to ensure that yours is as energy efficient as possible. What's more, you could lower your fridge's electricity usage by 40% by replacing a unit that's 12 years old or older.  

The temperature of the air around a refrigerator significantly affects its energy usage. Don’t keep a refrigerator in the garage, near heat sources such as ranges, stoves or dishwashers or in direct sunlight. A refrigerator or freezer located in a garage or area where temperatures reach 90° F or higher can use a significant amount of energy. Give a refrigerator space and allow for good air circulation around the coils.

• Keep the temperature inside the refrigerator at 36-38° F. Place an inexpensive thermometer inside your refrigerator, and adjust your setting accordingly.
• We recommend refrigerators with an energy saver feature, which allows the user to control the anti-sweat feature of the refrigerator.
• Larger refrigerators use more energy than smaller ones.
• Refrigerators and freezers operate most efficiently when full but not overcrowded.
• Put items slightly apart on refrigerator shelves to let air circulate.
• Let food cool slightly before putting it in the refrigerator.
• When going on vacation, remove perishables from the refrigerator and turn the setting up a few degrees.

• Follow the manufacturer’s recommendations, and disconnect the power before performing any maintenance on your refrigerator.
• Keep the refrigerator coils, which are located at the back or on the bottom of the unit, clean by brushing them off or vacuuming them on a regular basis. This will help your refrigerator run more smoothly, which means lower energy usage. If you have pets, clean the coils every three months. Clean them every six months if you have no pets.
• If your refrigerator is not frost free, defrost it when frost is ¼ to ½ inch thick.
• If your refrigerator has an icemaker, make sure it works. If it doesn’t, turn the icemaker off until repairs are made by a certified professional.

As with refrigerators, the garage is a bad place to keep a freezer because they use a significant amount of energy in rooms with temperatures at or above 90° F. Because of less thermal spillage and better insulation, chest freezers use less energy than upright models.