There are many ways in which we can bring our energy bills down; in recent years we’ve been urged to reduce our usage by turning off unnecessary appliances when we aren’t using them or using them more effectively such as only running dishwashers when they are full. One of the main appliances that are hard to reduce our usage of is our refrigerators, they are always on and we can’t really turn them off to save a few pennies on our electricity as our food is likely to spoil and require replacing.
But there are energy efficiency tips when it comes to buying a refrigerator, buying the cheapest one you can find is risky as these are often models that are not very energy efficient and will quickly cost you more to run than an expensive yet efficient model. Most modern appliances will have their energy rating on them, refrigerators all come with this rating and you should be aiming to buy ones rated A or B rather than F or G rated refrigerators.
As well as the grading on the appliance you should look out for the blue Energy Saving logo, this is a recommendation from the Government so you can be sure this appliance meets the government’s standards and so you are guaranteed to have an appliance that will save you money on your bills.
There are a few ways that we can save money and be more energy efficient in the way we use our refrigerators too, if our refrigerator is full of food this can actually help reduce the amount of energy needed to keep our food cold. The food keeps the cold inside as well as stopping all of the cold air being released when the fridge door is open.
Also, try to keep the door closed when loading up the fridge, many people will leave the fridge open as they bring their shopping in from the car and whilst you are walking to and from the kitchen all of the cold air will be released and more energy will be required in order to get your food back down to the correct temperature.
Some refrigerators can get frost forming and this is often the case when food that contains a lot of moisture is left uncovered in our fridge. It is advisable to always cover food or place it inside a sealable box to prevent moisture escaping; this will also keep our food from drying out.
For refrigerators with freezer compartments it is recommended to defrost and thaw out our appliance regularly to make sure they are working correctly and at maximum efficiency.