Can a fridge be under a quartz worktop in direct sunlight

longwalks1

We are currently planning a new kitchen with an island, and ideally want to have 2 x integrated under counter fridges and an integrated under counter freezer as 3 of the 4 x 60cm units under it (island will be 2.4m long).  One half of the island will be in direct sunlight, through bifold doors until about 2pm, will the fridge be protected enough from the sun by the quartz island top and sides?

I am hoping to have a cupboard nearest to the bifolds, then 2 fridges, then the freezer, so that at least one fridge and the freezer are never in sunlight.

hope that makes sense
many thanksalll in advance 

grumbler

longwalks1 said:

will the fridge be protected enough from the sun by the quartz island top and sides?

hope that makes sense

Not really. They protect the top and the sides, not the front/door.

However, I don't think that a fridge has to be protected. It will work fine, although can consume a little more energy - and, to some extent, this depends on the door colour.

TELLIT01

Temperatures tend to be highest from mid-afternoon onwards, but I wouldn't expect its location to be an issue anyway.

Eldi_Dos

Check climate class of the appliances you are interested in to see the minimum and maximum operating temperature. I think SN could be borderline in the area you describe in summer months.

Apodemus

Within reason, fridges should work better in warmer temperatures rather than colder ones, at least up to low 40's C and the under counter temperature is probably less than the in-direct-sun surface temperature at the front.  So unless your kitchen is getting really hot, I can't see this being a problem. 

avoidtheupsidedownbottles

Apodemus said:

Within reason, fridges should work better in warmer temperatures rather than colder ones, at least up to low 40's C

Really?  Why is that?

Alderbank

The heat pump process relies on the special refrigerant fluid in the pipes being able to change from liquid to gas and back to liquid again. This is temperature dependent - if the outside air is too cold it doesn't vaporise properly. Old fashioned refrigerants like freon were fairly tolerant but they are banned nowadays because of their greenhouse effect on the environment. Today's refrigerants are quite choosy about temperature.
Modern fridges in the UK are designed to operate between 16°C and 32°C
There are actually four classifications in Europe:

N (Normal) Class = +16°C to +32°C ambient room temperature

SN (Sub Normal) Class = +10°C to +32°C ambient room temperature

ST (Sub Tropical) Class = +18°C to +38°C ambient room temperature

T (Tropical) Class = +18°C to +43°C ambient room temperature.

Your fridges under the quartz worktop should work OK but it is essential that you provide at least the specified ventilation in the right position at the back of each unit. That will probably mean ventilation slots in the middle of your island worktop

avoidtheupsidedownbottles

Thanks, that's useful to know about the categories.

Alderbank said:

The heat pump process relies on the special refrigerant fluid in the pipes being able to change from liquid to gas and back to liquid again. This is temperature dependent - if the outside air is too cold it doesn't vaporise properly. 

The vaporisation occurs inside the cavity, which should be around 2 to 5 ℃, so the same for any fridge.  It is the process of condensing the hot refridgerant back down in the coils on the back that will be affected by the ambient temperature.  AFAIKS this would only get harder to do as the ambient increases, so I can't see why it would work best in the 30s or 40s.

For @longwalks1 situation, hopefully a gap between the top of the fridge and the worktop would allow the warm air from the coils to emerge, assuming it's not a fully-integrated.