The National Geographic found that over 2.9 trillion pounds of food are wasted each year globally. American contributes 4.4 pounds of waste every day to landfills. Want to contribute to waste reduction? Here are seven ways to reduce waste by improving your fridge’s efficiency.
- Improve Efficiency With Regular Maintenance
It is no secret that proper refrigerator care and maintenance extends the life of an appliance. By having checkups, it reduces food spoilage when a fridge works normally.
- Check The Seal For Signs Of Deterioration
Replace the rubber seal around the door as it loosens and allows cold air to escape. While a fridge will last for 15 years, the seal will quickly deteriorate after a few years of usage.
- Set Temperatures Correctly
Check the thermostat in the refrigerator as it will affect how quickly food spoils if turned too low. An improperly set thermostat will also cause your refrigerator to work overtime to get it to the proper temperature. A refrigerator must be set between 36 and 38 degrees Fahrenheit. The freezer must be set between zero and five degrees. If you do not have a touchscreen, set the dial midway to achieve an optimal cooling level.
- Never Put Hot Food In The Fridge
There is much debate over whether you should put hot food in the refrigerator or not. While most people pay more attention to bacteria, it is actually the heat you need to worry about. Anytime a heat source is introduced, it alters the temperature in the fridge which makes the compressor work harder to cool down the area. Food left out has a two-hour window before bacteria will likely occur.
- Clean The Condenser Coils
As debris and particles are in the air, it is easy for it to attach to the refrigerator coils and prevent your appliance from cooling as it normally would when clean. Dirty coils also cause your energy consumption to soar because of the increased condenser usage.
- Clean, Declutter, And Organize Refrigerator Contents Seasonally
Cleaning and decluttering outdated food is a really important step that you should do seasonally. It will remind you of food that is close to expiration while also optimizing food costs by helping you store fruits and vegetables based on the recommendations for humidity. You should place larger items near the bottom so that they will not block air flow from occurring. Storing food together will also help you find things more easily.
- Pay Attention To Frost Accumulation
If you have a modern refrigerator, frost accumulation should not be much of an issue. Otherwise, you will need to defrost your fridge to remove the frost from the coils as it will cause your fridge to work harder to achieve temperature settings. If left unattended, frosted coils will eventually cause food to spoil when the fridge stops working.
Appliance health will improve your fridge’s efficiency and reduce food spoilage and waste, so schedule a maintenance or repair appointment by calling (781) 953-9600 or visiting Facebook.