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.