An ongoing discussion in our home, which is 12 years old, is when to replace appliances. Do we wait until they conk out? Or do we replace them with more energy efficient models as our budget allows? Since moving in 2 years ago, we’ve already had to replace the water heater and the dishwasher. The washer and dryer were new on move-in, so we are down to the original fridge and stove. The stove we have pretty much decided to use until it stops or becomes a safety hazard, but the fridge is still under discussion. Although, after my research for today’s post, we may be starting a “fridge replacement fund.”

Yesterday, No Impact Man posted about spiritual materialism and the idea that if we valued our material possession more, we would not be as accepting of low quality, single use, badly designed products whose only redeeming factor is being cheap. Today, Danny Seo posted about appliance efficiency, specifically that of refrigerators. Danny has some great ideas, but he also works with businesses, and so although he tries to make green recommendations, I find his blog on occasion to be somewhat misleading.

First I did some research at the Home Energy Magazine to determine what would qualify as an energy efficient refrigerator and to learn more about recycling old ones. I learned that in the 1980s refrigerators used about 2000kWh per year of energy, and by 1990 the average fridge used around 1000 kWh of energy per year. Since that time, efficiencies have continued to improve and many refrigerators today run around 500 kWh (plus or minus) per year, and if yours is new (less than 15 years old) there is a good chance that it runs around 800 kWh per year.

When it comes to recycling refrigerators, it appears that only working ones can be recycled. I am not 100% clear why this is the case, but it has to do with the ability to safely remove the coolant and so on. So, if you have an older fridge that runs more than 800 kWh I would say that the green thing to do, would be to replace your fridge! If you wait too long, and it conks out on you, your dead fridge may not be eligible for recycling and may end up in the dump.

To determine the most efficient models of refrigerators, I downloaded the Energy Star product list that identifies each model of refrigerator and its various specifications. Danny Seo has been pimping Bosch, so I started by identifying the two most energy efficient refrigerator models by Bosch. I then went through the list and identified models made by other manufactures that had a similar capacity and specifications.

What I found, is that although Bosch has two models that are fairly efficient, Frigidaire, Maytag and GE have comparable models, a few of which I would argue to be even more efficient than Bosch. When comparing the models in my spreadsheet, look at volume & adjusted volume, in addition, to estimated kWh per year, then make your own decision. Keep in mind that the “percent” better column is somewhat deceiving, as it indicates how much better this model fridge is to other models in the exact same class. The “percent better” column could conceivably make a side-by-side fridge look more efficient than a top freezer fridge, when really the side-by-side still uses much more energy. I also included a few brands that are not mainstream, just to show that there are even more efficient models out there, you just can’t find them at Sears, so we tend not to hear about them!

The key when looking for an efficient fridge is to look at total kWh per year usage and not just the Energy Star Rating. Next consider a top or bottom freezer unit, as these are more energy efficient than side-by-side models (if you don’t believe me, check out the Energy Star product list), and don’t get an ice maker. When you install the fridge, make sure it has 2 inches of space behind and all around it, so that it gets adequate air flow, and try to keep your freezer full, as both of these measures will reduce energy use.

In general, I still have hard time believing that committing a working appliance to the landfill or the theoretical “recycle center” is more earth friendly than using the thing until it stops. I also wonder about the amount of energy and resources that go into building any new appliance, as well as, the longevity of new appliances…are they really built to last? Along these lines, I’d hoped that my research, would uncover detailed info as to how various fridge parts are recycled and the energy and resources that go into building a new fridge, but I couldn’t come up with any satisfactory answers. If you know where to find this info, please share!