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Buying a family fridge with an extra star on its label cuts greenhouse gas emissions by more than 100 kilograms each year. Over its lifetime it will save $200 in running costs.

Refrigerators and freezers

Use energy labels to choose your energy-efficient,
greenhouse-friendly new fridge or freezer.
See www.energyrating.gov.au to compare products
and www.energyallstars.gov.au to see the leading products.

Which appliance?

Buy the right size fridge to suit your needs: the star rating on the energy label compares energy consumption per litre of storage. Don’t buy bigger than you need.
To compare different sized models, use the numbers on the energy labels—they show annual energy consumption (and annual kilograms of greenhouse gas).
Small fridges and wine coolers without energy labels are now being sold. Many of these are very inefficient, and can generate up to 6 times as much greenhouse gas and cost much more to run than energy-labelled fridges of the same size.

Finding your way around the fridge

Ensure good air circulation around the coils at the back of the refrigerator. Appliances with no coils on the back need good air circulation around both sides and back: save up to 150 kilograms of greenhouse gas each year.
Locate refrigerators and freezers in cool spots, out of the sun: save up to 100 kilograms of greenhouse gas each year.
Ensure door seals are clean and the door closes properly—if ice builds up rapidly the door is not sealing. The seals may also need fixing or replacing.

Using the fridge efficiently

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Ensure door seals are clean and the door closes properly—if ice builds up rapidly the door is not sealing.

A third of Australian homes have at least two fridges, many of which are old and inefficient. Switch off the second fridge except when it’s really needed: for a single door fridge, save up to a tonne and $130 each year.
To keep food safe and save energy, set the fridge temperature at 3–5°C. Setting it 1°C lower than necessary releases 15 to 50 kilograms more greenhouse gas each year.
Put cold items back in the fridge immediately after use. Cooling a 2 litre bottle of drink from room temperature generates ten times as much greenhouse gas as opening the fridge door.
If the fridge or freezer motor runs almost all the time, ring for maintenance: otherwise you could waste over 20 kilograms of greenhouse gas for each week the fault remains.
Avoid running LPG/electric fridges on electricity: they generate three or more times as much greenhouse gas as electric-only fridges of the same size. Using LPG, they generate about as much greenhouse gas as electric-only units.