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I was just reading some of the many posts on the forum, and observed that there were a lot related to refridgeration.
Thought I would post my solution, as It may be usefull to others.
First, trust nothing. Your best friend is a killowatt meter. Those energuide labels may, or may not be correct when it comes to freezers, and fridges.
Now with that said, I bought a GE fridge about 4? years ago. A 18 or 18.5 cuft model, from memory the sticker indicated that it used 400 or 425kwh/y or there about.
Once home I tested it, and it did use roughly that amount. This model had a large freezer on the top. The size was at least 5 cuft, though I think it was 5.5 cuft, a large size anyway.
I bought a off the shelf temperature controler for roughly 60.00 dollars, it was the kind with a long copper coil with a temperature sense bulb at the end.
I glued the temperature sense bulb to the inside wall of the freezer compartment, ran the copper coil down the outside of the fridge to the back bottom part where power came in.
I wired the incoming power to the controler, and outgoing to the fridge. This controler had a little wheel with temperature markings for setting it to roughly the temperature you would like.
I pulled the shelf out of the freezer and then after removing two screws I could pull off the back cover inside the freezer to uncover the coils, fan motor, and such. I could see that the fan blew the cold freezer air down into the fridge part through a couple holes.
I took a couple of pieces of sponge material , and plugged the holes up.
I put the shelf back in, and I set the temp by placing a dish of water inside the freezer. At first I had it to cold, and It started to freeze the water but after a couple changes of the temperature setting I got it to where it didnt freeze the water. I have sense checked the temp, and it stays around 34 degrees.
I now have a 5.5 cuft fridge that uses 266 watts a day. It works perfect, It is at a perfect usefull head hight, required no permanent changes to the fridge, and has storage down below.
By controling power to the fridge I think I have defeated the timing cycles for the door seal heaters, and such.
Anyway, this is what works for me.
I do have a freezer down in the unheated basement (6-6.6 cuft) unmodified, that consumes something like 475-500- watts a day.
The combo together work well for my needs. So together roughly 750- 800 watts
I could save further by using a outside freezer in the winter for 6 months (I would not even have to plug it in) as its -29 C outside right now.
PS that title should have been expressed as .266KWH/ per day.
Thought I would post my solution, as It may be usefull to others.
First, trust nothing. Your best friend is a killowatt meter. Those energuide labels may, or may not be correct when it comes to freezers, and fridges.
Now with that said, I bought a GE fridge about 4? years ago. A 18 or 18.5 cuft model, from memory the sticker indicated that it used 400 or 425kwh/y or there about.
Once home I tested it, and it did use roughly that amount. This model had a large freezer on the top. The size was at least 5 cuft, though I think it was 5.5 cuft, a large size anyway.
I bought a off the shelf temperature controler for roughly 60.00 dollars, it was the kind with a long copper coil with a temperature sense bulb at the end.
I glued the temperature sense bulb to the inside wall of the freezer compartment, ran the copper coil down the outside of the fridge to the back bottom part where power came in.
I wired the incoming power to the controler, and outgoing to the fridge. This controler had a little wheel with temperature markings for setting it to roughly the temperature you would like.
I pulled the shelf out of the freezer and then after removing two screws I could pull off the back cover inside the freezer to uncover the coils, fan motor, and such. I could see that the fan blew the cold freezer air down into the fridge part through a couple holes.
I took a couple of pieces of sponge material , and plugged the holes up.
I put the shelf back in, and I set the temp by placing a dish of water inside the freezer. At first I had it to cold, and It started to freeze the water but after a couple changes of the temperature setting I got it to where it didnt freeze the water. I have sense checked the temp, and it stays around 34 degrees.
I now have a 5.5 cuft fridge that uses 266 watts a day. It works perfect, It is at a perfect usefull head hight, required no permanent changes to the fridge, and has storage down below.
By controling power to the fridge I think I have defeated the timing cycles for the door seal heaters, and such.
Anyway, this is what works for me.
I do have a freezer down in the unheated basement (6-6.6 cuft) unmodified, that consumes something like 475-500- watts a day.
The combo together work well for my needs. So together roughly 750- 800 watts
I could save further by using a outside freezer in the winter for 6 months (I would not even have to plug it in) as its -29 C outside right now.
PS that title should have been expressed as .266KWH/ per day.