Keeping your fridge cooler money saving tip

HOv3

I'm single and often, for long periods, my fridge has just the bare minimum in it. If I open the door to get something out, it's therefore losing a lot of its cooled air and is warming up. That's costing me money to then have it running to cool down again. 

I eat a fair bit of yogurt. The brand I use is sold in rectangular 1 litre tubs and these fit neatly into the interior of the fridge, taking up empty space. These get chilled and, as I keep the lids on, they retain their cool air when the door's opened. 

Effectively this is making the interior smaller and cheaper to keep cool. Use any plastic containers you have to pack your fridge and save money.

Spies

Unsure if there might be an argument for filling the containers with water? 

arty688

You can also use polystyrene and this also has the bonus of recycling it. Also you could fill it full of Beer

QrizB

HOv3 that's an interesting tip, and something that hadn't ever occurred to me. Thank you!

Spies said:

Unsure if there might be an argument for filling the containers with water? 

The problem with filling them with water is that (unbless you fill them in the depths of winter) the water will be warmer than the fridge and will cost you money to chill; money you're unlikely to get back.

In very rough terms, a litre of water weighs as much as a cubic metre of air, 1000 litres.

roddydogs

? Where else would you keep yogurt.

2nd_time_buyer

roddydogs said:

? Where else would you keep yogurt.

I presume they are empty.

Exiled_Tyke

I can't see this being an issue worth worrying about.  A modern fridge costs between £20 and £40 a year to run. If there's not much in the fridge then the door won't be open for very long times - I'm guessing something like going in a few times a day to get milk for tea etc and yoghurt of course.  I would expect the energy loss each time to be pretty minimal, perhaps a very small percentage of the overall running costs.  As QrizB suggests remedies are going to cost more than they save.  Surely there are more significant energy saving possibilities elsewhere?

2nd_time_buyer

On the opposite end of the heat spectrum. We have gone from a range with a single oven to a dual oven range. The fan-oven side is barely wider than a baking tray but the full height. I am amazed how much quicker it heats up than the old oven (and the gas oven on the other side). It also gets back up to temperature much quicker after opening the door. So it also cooks much more consistently. We end up using it all the time.

Thrugelmir

Canned or bottled drinks are a way of utilising fridge space with non perishable items.