Category Archives: Energy Saving Tips

Tips For an Energy Efficient Refrigerator

In this day and age, everyone is trying to save money and reduce their carbon footprint. The first step to achieving that goal is reducing the amount of energy we use in our daily lives. Your refrigerator and freezer use about 15-20% of the energy in your home, so why not be smart about it? Check out the following tips for making your refrigerator as energy efficient as possible.

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Pack it in
When you open and close your refrigerator door, you probably feel the cold air rush onto your body. While it might feel nice in the summer heat, it is actually killing your energy efficiency. By keeping your fridge ⅔ full, you can reduce the loss of cold air and give your energy bill a break.

Clean your condenser coils
The condenser coils are located in the back or underneath most refrigerator models. The coils are the ‘powerhouse’ of your fridge; they keep it cool and running. These coils can build up dust rather quickly, so it is important to clean them twice a year. Doing this simple task can save you as much as 15% on yearly energy costs.

Defrost
Your freezer is supposed to be frozen, but it should not develop frost. This might seem contradicting, but it will help reduce the amount of energy your freezer is using on a daily basis. If the frost grows past a ¼” inch in thickness, turn off your freezer for 90 minutes and let that frost melt. Wipe down the freezer thoroughly and then place your food back inside.

Avoid Uncovered Liquids
This will cause moisture to buildup in your fridge and force your compressor to exert more energy. This could also lead to the aforementioned frost, which can increase the wear-and-tear on your compressor.

Is your refrigerator causing your energy bill to spike? Help is just a phone call away with Speedy Refrigerator Service. We offer same-day refrigerator repairs and maintenance services to Long Island and New York City. Give us a call at 866-782-9376 today.

 

3 Ways a Chest Freezer Helps You Save

Chest Freezers are perfect for families with busy schedules and the desire to eat home-cooked meals. The chest freezer works separate from a refrigerator, and its sole purpose is keeping your food frozen for long periods of time. It saves you from the cost of eating out, but it can also help slash your energy bill. Read below to learn about all the ways you can save money with a chest freezer:

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Cool Air Containment
Cold air is denser than warm air (a little science fact for you) so it sinks towards the bottom of your freezer. With a front opening freezer, this cool air escapes when the door is opened. This forces your freezer to work harder to produce more cold air, causing it to use more energy. More energy costs you more money. A chest freezer opens from the top, minimizing the loss of cold air.

Exploiting the Sales
The extra freezer space alone will help you save money. If you are wandering around the grocery store and see a sale on meat, you can capitalize to the fullest extent. Take it home, leave this week’s portion in your fridge/freezer and store the rest in your chest freezer. The days of eating out two or three times a week are finished! Feeding the whole family can be hard, but a chest freezer can ‘cool’ down the costs.

Managing Waste
Cleaning out your fridge/freezer used to be a necessary evil. You find yourself throwing out unused food, the equivalent of throwing hard earned money straight in the garbage. The chest freezer is a great place to store the food that you might not want right away. It will keep your meals fresh until you are ready to eat them, and it will also keep them out of the garbage.

The average chest freezer costs around $500 and might seem like a wasteful investment. But for the average 4-person household, the savings could double the cost over the span of just one year. Treat your food and your money with the care they deserve!

If you run into any problems with your chest freezer, the experts at Speedy Refrigerator Service are just a phone call away. We offer 24/7 service to Long Island and New York City, so call us any time at 866-782-9376.

 

Going On Vacation – Should You Unplug Your Refrigerator?

During the winter months, many people (especially residents of the cold northeast) pack their bags and go away on vacation. Whether you are heading to a tropical destination, or just spending the holidays with your family, leaving your home for an extended period of time takes lots of planning and preparation.

One question that commonly arises in this situation is whether or not you should unplug your refrigerator – after all, it’s not like you are going to be using it. Most people make an effort to disconnect all of their electronic devices when they go away in order to save money, and the refrigerator can be one of your home’s main energy consumers. With that says, it only makes sense to pull the plug on your refrigerator as well, right?

If you are trying to decide whether or not to unplug your refrigerator before you go on vacation, here are some things to consider:

  • Length of Vacation. A “long” vacation to you may be 7-10 days, but this is almost never long enough to justify unplugging your fridge. If you were traveling for a month or longer, that may be more reasonable.

  • Energy-Efficiency of Refrigerator. Newer Energy Star models consume about half of the energy of old refrigerators, and generally cost less than $10 per month to operate. These savings aren’t worth the work of unplugging and defrosting your fridge.

  • Amount of Food. If you have a refrigerator full of food, you will have to either throw it out or give it away before you unplug your refrigerator, which could cost you more money than it saves you.

All in all, it is probably not a good idea to unplug your refrigerator before you go away on vacation.

The professionals Speedy Refrigerator Service are experts at anything refrigeration-related, which is why Long Island residents have depended on us to fix their refrigerators, freezers, and ice makers for over 75 years. We guarantee one-hour service to Nassau and Suffolk County, even on nights and weekends, so call us any time at 866-782-9376.

6 Refrigerator Hacks That Can Save You Money

Your refrigerator is the only appliance in your home that runs around-the-clock, so it’s not surprising that it can account for a significant portion of your home’s electricity consumption. Use these six hacks to help keep your energy bill low.

Vacuum the coils. The condenser coils are located on the back of your appliance and can accumulate a thick coating of dust over time. Vacuum these every six months so they can effectively release heat from your refrigerator.

Minimize door opening. Every time you open your refrigerator door, as much as 40% of the cold air can escape. Instead of going to the fridge several times over the course of a meal, take out everything you need in one trip, and avoid keeping the door open for long periods of time.

Keep out the heat. You probably do it without realizing, but putting hot food straight into the refrigerator can warm up the entire interior, causing your compressor to work harder. Try letting the food cool off for twenty minutes on the counter first.

Test the seal. If your door seal has a leak in it, your refrigerator could be losing cold air 24/7. Test the strength of your seal by closing the refrigerator door on a dollar bill. If you can easily slide the bill up and down or remove it, you should replace the gasket.

Keep it full. A refrigerator that is full of food has a greater thermal mass than an empty refrigerator, which means it will retain its temperature better when the door is opened. Keep your fridge well-stocked, but not too full – this can block air circulation and lead to warm spots.

Give it space. As your refrigerator cools off on the inside, it must release heat to the outside. Make sure to give your appliance at least three inches of space on all sides (including the back and the top) to allow for proper ventilation.

Have you noticed a spike in your electricity bill, despite your best efforts to conserve energy? A malfunction in your refrigerator may be to blame! If your fridge is making loud noises or constantly cycling on and off, contact the professionals at Speedy Refrigerator Service. We guarantee one-hour service to Long Island and New York City; so give us a call anytime at 866-782-9376.