Having A Smaller Refrigerator

I have used a small refrigerator and I can do it again, I meal prep a lot for I need the room of a big refrigerator. Also I have read the small refrigerators use about the same amount of energy to run as big fridges (if not more). Refrigerators usually cost less then 100 dollars a year to run (depending on were you live and the fridge).
Here is that report about small fridges costing more to run

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I honestly don't like using a small fridge, as I find it frustratingly restricting. It's just me and my husband, and we live in this small apartment that's forced us to get a medium sized fridge with very little freezer space. There are times when there's so much stuff we could get to freeze, but can't because of limited space. this also dictates the amount of stuff we get for our weekly shopping. We also can't make ice-cubes because of that. I just can't wait to move out and into a bigger place so as to get a bigger fridge.

 

I have not shopped for a fridge for a very long time. That's because the one we have in the house now is still working well after so many years. It's a two-door model, with the freezer section at the bottom. I think having the freezer section as a separate part with its own door does help to save on the electricity bill because we don't open the freezer section much.

 

I agree with that notion that a bigger refrigerator consumes much more electricity than a smaller one. When we bought our present refrigerator, it is 8 cubic feet. But I was looking at a much bigger one that is 12 cubic feet. My reason is that we have lots of food to store. The salesman in the appliance store explained to me that a bigger refrigerator consumes more electricity simply because the volume to cool is bigger so the motor would have to work harder. After realizing what the salesman said, I opted for a small refrigerator.

 

Much as I would agree that purchasing the right-sized refrigerator to suit the family's needs and lifestyle is always a smart move - with the more modern energy saving fridges we have today - I'm not altogether sure that choosing to buy a smaller fridge is necessarily the better option from a money saving point of view - especially as its generally whether or not the fridge has a freezer compartment that tends to affect the overall running cost way more than the actual size - particularly bearing in mind that fridges - regardless of their size - with freezer compartments usually use more electricity than those without.

In fact - although there are only two of us its actually way more economical for me to have a large energy efficient fridge - as not only do I live in an extremely hot country where its very necessary to store most things in the fridge - meaning its generally almost always pretty full particularly as I do a lot of bulk cooking too - but as I also live in the middle of nowhere and only shop every alternate week - switching to a smaller refrigerator than I currently have - would actually result in extra cost rather than savings for me - as the additional cost of having to shop more often would more than wipe out the miniscule amount saved on electricity - especially as fuel here costs way more than electricity.

 

I have just bought a new under the counter fridge and it is fine for a couple of people, but I would still go for a medium sized one if space permitted because if you over stuff it, then it's less effective.

My mother crams the fridge full and as a result the items don't chill well, and I am trying to teach her to not do that. We do have two small fridges and I think that costs more to run than one larger one.

 

This is something that I have always had my list of things to consider, but I have never really made the leap or thought about it in any significant fashion. It makes sense for me though, and I have this big refrigerator and often times I am only using about half the space. I think that you have to think of the opposite scenario, and what might happen if you did not have enough space, and that would certainly be frustrating to deal with, so I am not sure. I would say just do your research before purchasing anything.

 

I would like to get a smaller refrigerator, since a 25-28 cubic foot refrigerator is more than I need as a single person living alone. I see an 11.5 cubic foot refrigerator online which costs only $37 a year to run and would be all I needed. Unfortunately I won't be able to downsize like that until I buy a condo, because a rental unit always comes with a full-sized refrigerator that is probably ten years old and fairly inefficient.

 

It depends on your food expenses. If you are the kind of person that doesn't buy a lot of food to cook at home, and less if these don't require refrigeration. Then I don't see the point of purchasing a huge refrigerator with freezer included. On the other hand, if you're a fan of cooking or grilling red meat, fish or chicken, you're going to need a sizable freezer. Also, a water and ice dispenser is quite handy to have around.

Never a bad idea to buy a big refrigerator.

 

If you are not efficiently utilising the space that is available in the current refrigerator, then I agree that a smaller model would be the way to go. You should also consider getting a really energy efficient refrigerator. The refrigerators that are equipped with inverter technology and led lighting are deemed to be the better engergy saving appliances so this should be a consideration when you are purchasing the appliance.

 

I couldn't do it with my family of three. Even though that doesn't sound like a lot, my little brother is eleven and he's always hungry. I shop probably twice a week so I need a lot of room to store the meat, fruits, and vegetables. I couldn't imagine having a small fridge for food. I've considered buying one for my art supplies since my apartment gets really hot and I end up cooking my clay but other than that, no. A small fridge would create more problems than a bigger bill.

 

As OP rightly mentioned the size of refrigerators should depend on the size of the family and how much food you want to keep in fridge. We (a family of four) are quite satisfied with our medium sized single door fridge. We don’t have a tendency of keeping lot of foods in the fridge. We prepare foods only for the required quantity. But yes, it is a blessing to keep our vegetables and fruits refreshed.

We also avoid keep drinking water refrigerated as we drink normal water. We mainly use it to keep vegetables, fruits, ice creams, milk etc. in good condition. We don’t keep non-vegetarian food items in it. So this fridge is more than enough for us keeping in mind our requirements and size of the family. We never thought of trading it off for another refrigerator. It is a power saving model with four star rating, so it saves our electricity too.

 

This may sound funny to some but we have 1 refrigerators - 1 in the kitchen which is the default fridge and another in the terrace which serves as complement that is not usually operating. But when the need for a bigger fridge space occurs, particularly on occasions that there are lots of food to store, we turn on the complementary fridge in the terrace. I guess our style with refrigerator saves us electricity instead of buying a big refrigerator that would be running all the time.

 

Well, isn't that just efficient and convenient. What a good idea. Where possible, this could provide for the best of both worlds. You get the extra space when you have to have it without the extra costs when you don't need it. I wish I had the space for a mini fridge. If I did, I'd be doing what you do.

We went from a larger fridge to a smaller one when we moved (because it was here). With fewer people living at home these days, it works okay. I still prefer my larger one, because I like to take advantage of sales. With less storage space, it can be a bit more challenging to do. Most of the time, it's fine, but it gets a bit tricky during the holidays.