by Eileen O’Haire | 17 Aug 2020
Have you seen your electricity bills go up with all your family home during lockdown? It’s not surprising, is it? All those extra cups of teas, maybe the games console used constantly and then left on overnight, long hot showers instead of quick 5 minute ones?
Apart from the TV, there is one appliance that’s probably seen a lot of use in the last few months and that’s our fridges…. Just imagine how many times your fridge door gets opened every day!
Fridges and freezers are usually the only appliances in your house that are on 24/7, day in, day out. So any savings you can make will have a big effect. So, here’s a focus on fridges, on how to get the best out of them and give them a bit of TLC.
Start with the right temperature.
It’s the Goldilocks situation, over-cooling can damage your vegetables and cost you more, whereas if the fridge is too warm it defeats the object. Fridges should be around 7º and freezers -20ºC. You can buy a fridge/freezer thermometer for less than £5 if your fridge doesn’t have one built-in.
Remember to cool off!
Never put hot food directly into the fridge or freezer, allow it to cool on the side first.
Age is not just a number.
Old fridge/freezers might work well but could be costing you over £200 a year to run. New AA+ fridges will cost around £25 a year depending on size and chest freezers around £45 pa. You can compare the energy efficiency of a range of fridge /freezers and other appliances here: https://www.sust-it.net
You don’t need to keep an eye on your food.
Checking what’s in the fridge every half hour?! There is some debate on just how much energy is wasted by the door openings. But each time it happens warm air will flood into the fridge and the motor starts up to regain the temperature. Best not to leave the fridge door open for long periods and remember the food pixies haven’t changed the contents since you last looked!
Give it some space
Ensure there’s at least a 10cm gap behind your fridge to let heat flow away more easily. And don’t put the fridge or freezer near a radiator.
Keep it fresh!
Defrost your fridge or freezer regularly. A build-up of ice means it has to work that much harder.
Finally, it’s all in the seal.
Are the door seals old and worn? You can replace them quite easily, and can find simple tutorials on Youtube.
