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high efficiency refrigerators

Discussion in 'Environmental Discussion' started by tomdeimos, May 8, 2006.

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  1. fshagan

    fshagan Senior Member

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    Do you really need a separate freezer? The compressor motors in freezers and refrigerators are generally some of the highest energy vampires in the house. Unless you're slaughtering deer or bison, you can probably get rid of the freezer or fridge in the garage.
     
    #21 fshagan, Jul 30, 2006
  2. Godiva

    Godiva AmeriKan Citizen

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(fshagan @ Jul 29 2006, 11:46 PM) [snapback]294501[/snapback]</div>
    I bought a separate small freezer for the garage last year. Why? Because CostCo sells in bulk and there was no way it would all fit in the freezer drawer of my refrigerator. I can't go to the store every few days so I buy in bulk and store. I'm building pantry shelves in the garage this month for the canned goods as I'm tired of using the cases they come in for storage.
     
    #22 Godiva, Jul 30, 2006
  3. tomdeimos

    tomdeimos New Member

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    I use my freezer section of the refrigerator for ice cubes. Anything I want to keep over a month goes in a real freezer. I have too many power failures, and the way refrigerator freezers are mostly connected to the refrigerator, they warm up really fast.

    I did consider a separate refrigerator that was all refrigerator, but that wound up being more costly to operate than what I got, with the space I required for each.

    If I ever had to make do with one appliance the refrigerator would go into the trash, not the freezer.
     
    #23 tomdeimos, Jul 30, 2006
  4. kirbinster

    kirbinster Member

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    This thread had me go check my big GE side by side Fridge with its 27 cuft capacity. It is about 10 years old. The energy label says it uses 1059 kwh a year - and was lists as one of the worst energy wise when I bought it. Now I always had heard that your refridgerator uses about $25 of electricity a month, and that was years ago before the price of power went up. Even at roughly 15 cents a kwh this "pig" only uses $13.24 in electricity a month. Even if I could buy a new one this size that used only 500 kwh a month the savings are not worth talking about. I might save a whopping $85 a year, but a similar fridge would cost me close to $2,000 -- so the payback would be almost 24 years at todays electric rates. Hardly a good economic decision.
     
    #24 kirbinster, Jul 30, 2006
  5. tomdeimos

    tomdeimos New Member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(kirbinster @ Jul 30 2006, 05:31 PM) [snapback]294736[/snapback]</div>
    Two problems here. Try your figures with 42 cents a kwh electricity for about half the time, 15 cents the other half. The other is there are no really efficient side by side units I could locate. I expect this should change soon. For now all the most efficient models are top freezer units, with a couple of expensive exceptions like Sunfrost.

    My payback should be at current electric rates about 4 years for both refrigerator and freezer.
     
    #25 tomdeimos, Jul 30, 2006
  6. kirbinster

    kirbinster Member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(tomdeimos @ Jul 30 2006, 08:45 PM) [snapback]294798[/snapback]</div>

    Never heard of electric that is that expensive. Where are you and at what time period is electricity 42 cents a kwh?
     
    #26 kirbinster, Jul 30, 2006
  7. vkykam

    vkykam New Member

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    Define "efficient". 550-650kwh/year 26cuft side by sides do exist on the market, but none much less than that... The 26cuft LG I bought earlier this year is about 650kwh/year.

    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(tomdeimos @ Jul 30 2006, 08:45 PM) [snapback]294798[/snapback]</div>
     
    #27 vkykam, Jul 30, 2006
  8. tripp

    tripp Which it's a 'ybrid, ain't it?

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(kirbinster @ Jul 30 2006, 07:21 PM) [snapback]294815[/snapback]</div>
    He's in MASS and those are peak rates.
     
    #28 tripp, Jul 30, 2006
  9. tomdeimos

    tomdeimos New Member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(kirbinster @ Jul 30 2006, 09:21 PM) [snapback]294815[/snapback]</div>
    I get power from Nstar in the Boston area. The 42 cents is my current peak rate and goes M-F 9 am to 6 pm
    Off peak it drops to around 15 cents. Gets cheaper in winter a bit but peak hours get longer. This incudes the generation and the delivery fees.

    That is why I updated my freezer and refrigerator first. They are the only big power users that run during the peak hours a lot.
     
    #29 tomdeimos, Jul 31, 2006
  10. nerfer

    nerfer A young senior member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(tomdeimos @ Jul 29 2006, 10:49 AM) [snapback]294293[/snapback]</div>
    Maybe I missed this, but how do you connect your Prius to your appliances? These are standard AC appliances correct? I have a small inverter that plugs into a cigarette lighter (altho they don't call them that anymore), which I seem to have misplaced at the moment so I can't read the watts it's rated for, but is it as simple as that? From my understanding, that would draw from the 12-volt aux battery, not the main traction battery, altho I imagine the gas engine charges that battery about as efficiently as the traction battery.
     
    #30 nerfer, Aug 1, 2006
  11. Godiva

    Godiva AmeriKan Citizen

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    I don't think you can use an inverter that plugs in to the cigarette lighter. I think you have to have an inverter that attaches directly to the battery to run appliances that big.
     
    #31 Godiva, Aug 1, 2006
  12. tomdeimos

    tomdeimos New Member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(nerfer @ Aug 1 2006, 12:42 AM) [snapback]295549[/snapback]</div>
    Standard appliances. Very simple, but the cigarette lighter plugs can't handle it. I have a 1kw TrippLite inverter. Bought jumper cables and cut them, so I have nice big clip on wires to the inverter. Then I clip it to the battery directly (12 volts) for the plus and the car frame for negative.

    Then start car up and leave going, lock door with mechanical key. Turn off AC lights etc, so only real load is the inverter. Then plug in the appliances.

    Power is drawn via the dc to dc converter from hv battery. The 12 volt battery just sits there.
    Engine starts for a few minutes every so often.

    The catch here is my new refrigerator and freezer loads are small. And though starting current is high it works. My old appliances had too high a start up current on the freezer so that would not work. So you need to watch and be ready to unplug if a motor can't start. I got a 2kw inverter too, but have not hooked it up as I have not needed it yet. 1KW is plenty for steady state and all the car can handle for a load.
     
    #32 tomdeimos, Aug 1, 2006
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