Make Your Fridge or Freezer Last Much Longer

As a bit of a handyman, it saddens me when people say things aren't made as well as they used to be.  Could it be that our changing lifestyle is taking a toll on our appliances?  We're just too busy to do a little bit of maintenance or put the same thought into what we do.  Here are some simple things you can do to make your fridge last a lot longer.

1. To defrost something, take it out of the freezer in the morning and put it in the fridge.  As the item defrosts, it will keep your fridge cool and make your motor work much less.
2. Make sure you allow things to cool to room temperature before placing them in the fridge or freezer.  Placing a warm object in the fridge or freezer warms up your whole appliance, making your motor work a lot harder for much longer.
3. Decide what you need before opening the fridge door.  This seems obvious, but how often do we open the fridge for the butter, then again for the jam, and a bit later for the milk with our coffee.  Each time the door is opened, the cool air is fanned out by the action of the opening door; in fact, much worse than leaving the door open to get 3 or 4 items out at the same time.  This again makes the motor work much harder.
4. As much as possible, don't keep a fridge or freezer near a cooking or heating appliance or in direct sunlight.  If the outside of the fridge gets warm, so does the inside; the motor then has to work harder.
5. Buy a good quality thermometer which can read down to -25°C.  Every 6 months, place the thermometer in the fridge and take a reading from the fridge and freezer just before going to bed.  If the reading is warming up, it may be time to have a look at the seals around the doors.  Alternatively, do a physical check of the seals and make sure the seal contacts the body of the fridge all the way around.  Good seals will mean your fridge motor does the bare minimum of work.
6. Lastly, make sure your fridge is level.  Most refrigerators and freezers have adjustable feet.  If your appliance isn't level, the doors will apply more pressure to parts of the frame and less to others.  At the points where less pressure is applied, cool air may escape.

And, since your fridge motor is running less, the secondary benefit of all these points is a lower power bill!

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