Great advice to help you to live more sustainably.
ENERGY-SAVING APPLIANCE CARE
Wendy Graham cuts down electricity costs with a fridge and freezer clear-out.
WITH energy bills still high, saving energy is a key priority for most of us. Beyond the energy-saving basics, such as turning lights off when you leave a room, there are lots more ways to help keep your bills down.
One surprising way to save more energy is to give your fridge freezer a little TLC. In return, it will reward you with lower energy bills.
Start with your freezer. Defrosting it regularly is important, especially if it’s looking a bit glacier-like in there.
This is because frost build-up in your freezer increases the amount of work your freezer’s motor has to do. If the motor is working harder, then this means it’s using more energy.
Defrosting your freezer might be a monotonous task, but it can result in significant energy bill savings Some organisations estimate that these could be in the region of £100 to £200 a year, which is not to be sniffed at!
Your fridge can also be given the energy-saving treatment. Here, you should look for your fridge’s condenser coil – a winding zig-zag section of tubing – that takes air from the room and makes it cool enough to keep your food inside the fridge fresh. It’s typically on the back of your fridge, but on some models it can be on the front, behind a grille.
Over time, this coil collects dust, dirt and pet hair. The resultant build-up can make it hard for the coil to release heat and keep things cool.
This means your fridge has to work much harder, and uses more energy – resulting in higher bills for you.
Dusting it off just twice a year could improve the efficiency of your fridge by up to 30%. Plus, it will help to extend the lifespan of your fridge, saving yet more money.
The easiest way to dust it is to use a small attachment on your vacuum cleaner.
Do switch off the fridge before you start, and remember to switch it back on again afterwards.
From personal experience, this is a mistake you only make once!
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