What parameters determines the power consumption of a modern refrigerator

When buying new household appliances, all consumers are interested in the priority question: the power consumption of the refrigerator and how much this engineering miracle will spend per month of electric energy. This approach is understandable, because the cost of electricity is steadily rising, so you need to know in advance the electricity consumption of any new product.

The power of the product is affected by: energy efficiency class, overall productivity, the presence of additional functions and a defrost system. To understand how all this affects the power of refrigerators, what factors affect the overall energy consumption, you need to read this article.

What does energy consumption depend on?

A refrigerator is a rather complicated unit, there are other devices inside that actively consume electricity during the performance of functional duties: a compressor, and sometimes two, a heater for defrosting the evaporator, a fan, if the product is equipped with No Frost technology.

A compressor is the heart of every refrigerator, it depends on how much energy the product consumes, because it works almost around the clock, compressing and pumping refrigerant, while ensuring optimal temperature inside the freezer and cooling chambers.

The average efficiency and power of the refrigerator depends on the following factors:

1. The presence of one or two compressors.
2. The total volume of the product.
3. Temperatures in the room where the unit is installed: the higher it is, the more often the compressor will work.
4. Availability of technology of dry freezing (No Frost).
5. An additional function of the ice maker.
6. The tightness of the freezer.
7. The set optimum temperature inside the chambers.
8. The frequency of opening the door.

In this case, it is necessary to take into account the composition of the family and the average weight of the products, which must be cooled daily.

The type and power of the compressor is of great importance, because the largest peak in the consumption of electrical energy occurs during its operation. For example, the inverter type of these devices never turns off, but continues to operate at minimum speed - they actively save energy consumption, in contrast to conventional products that are switched on periodically and often consume maximum electricity.

The information sticker on each refrigerator contains the following information:

• the average power of the product at rest is 100-200 W / h;
• the same maximum setting is 300 W / h.

Do not forget that such household appliances operate periodically, but are constantly connected to the home network and during the day consumes approximately 1.5 to 3.5 kW, but this value can change significantly if the product is equipped with two compressors.

How much does it consume in kW

The data sheet of each product contains all the information necessary for the user, so find the numbers you are interested in quite easily. When indicating the energy saving class, a figure is immediately indicated, for example, A ++ and below 221 kWh / year - this is the amount of electrical energy that this unit will spend under normal operating conditions.

In order to find out how much a similar expense will be per month, day, or hourly, you need to make some fairly simple calculations, for example:

• dividing 221 by 12, we get 18.417 kWh per month;
• if by 365, then per day the product will consume about 0.606 kW;
• per hour, a similar parameter is better expressed in watts, we get 10.09 watts.

All these figures are somewhat arbitrary, for the full picture you need to add a minimum of 0.3 to compensate for engineering calculations.As a result, we get 18.7 kWh per month, and an electric kettle with a power of 2 kW spends 27.8 kWh over the same period, so to speak - feel the difference.

Electricity consumption largely depends on operating conditions, all the above calculations relate to ideal conditions when the room temperature does not rise above 22 ° C. It should be borne in mind that summer heat immediately increases the activity of the compressor, which significantly increases the cost of electricity.

Compressor power

As mentioned above, the main device in the design of any refrigerator is a compressor. In the presence of Know Frost technology, a fan is added, in addition to them, the backlight, power supply of the electronic control unit, and the heater for defrosting the evaporator are actively consuming electricity.

It is important for users that the unit consume as little power as possible, but at the same time provide high cooling parameters. Much depends on the type of compressor: for example, the linear type consumes 3 power ratings during emergency start-ups, such sudden surges negatively affect its overall engine life. Inverter devices operate continuously, continuously regulating the temperature.

Such compressors cost much more and are installed only on expensive models. Linear types of similar devices are cheaper and in demand, they can withstand temperature peaks during the summer heat much better, so manufacturers install them on budget and middle-class products. On some models of recent years, two compressors are installed, one each for a freezer and a refrigerator.

What affects the power of the refrigerator

Not only the quality or power of freezing, but also the cost of bills for energy consumption depends on the power of modern devices for cooling products, so users choose refrigerators with a high class of energy saving to save the family budget.

The main criteria when buying a refrigerator are:

1. The power of freezing, denoted by X **, indicates how many kilograms can specifically freeze the product during the day with an average reading power consumption.
2. Energy efficiency - depends on how rationally the consumed energy is used during the operation of the product. At class A, it is 34-45 Wh / h, and the energy efficiency index is 44-45, i.e., savings of up to 35%.
3. Additional functions significantly increase the total energy consumption, these include super-freezing, ice maker, accelerated freezing.

Many of them are practically not used, so you should think about it before purchasing an aggregate with such options.

Choosing the optimal freezing power

Each refrigerator has a sticker with information for the user, where there is such an “X” symbol, and next to one to 3 stars - this is an indicator of the power of freezing, measured by the number of kilograms of frozen food per day. The initial temperature of the products is considered to be from +18 to -20 ° С, and they need to be cooled to minus 18 ° С in 24 hours.

For an average family, when using the middle class of the refrigerator, the power of freezing should be at least 9 kg / day. There are so many models of cooling units on sale today that potential buyers have a head spinning around from an abundance of information. To choose a decent model for your family, you need to navigate all the technical parameters.

Different products from well-known manufacturers have different values ​​in terms of the volume of frozen products, for example:

• Samsung - 10 kg / day;
• Biryusa - 12 kg / day;
• LG - 17 kg / day;
• Bosh and Atlant - 20-22 kg / day;
• Indesitum - up to 30 kg / day.

As you can see, the domestic brand of the well-known Biryusa refrigerator occupies a middle position here and is ideally suited for the average Russian family.With a large value of the parameter X, the products are used in small places of public catering, for example, in cafeterias of institutions or large offices of large companies.

Asterisks are used for marking, it is they that indicate the minimum freezing temperature of products:

• * - up to -6 ° С, products can be stored for a month;
• ** - up to -2 ° С and storage from 2 to 8 months;
• *** - up to -18 ° С, safety guarantee for up to a year;
• 4 stars - up to -24 degrees, and a shelf life of more than one and a half years.

In principle, these figures are not relevant for the Russians, because it is unlikely that in some family the products in the refrigerator are delayed for more than a month, with the exception of frozen berries and fruits, the amount of which should be enough for the entire winter period.

findings

The actual power of the product, according to the assurance of specialists in refrigeration equipment, can be almost twice as much as that indicated, and many factors influence energy consumption, but in order to get some guidance, it’s enough to carefully read the information on the sticker and compare the data with the instructions for use.

Proper operation and strict implementation of all manufacturer's recommendations will help reduce potential costs. Experts advise to purchase products with the highest class of energy saving: spend finances from the family budget once, and then you will save daily.