Fridge freezer working fine, is it worth replacing it, though?

Andrea15

Hi,

I have a Bosch kgu32125gb/01 fridge freezer which is working fine, but being about 14 years old I cannot find out what its energy rating is and how much it consumes (I have left the model number in case you are better than me at searching...).

My point is that, no matter what I try, I cannot get my electricity bill down, so the main culprit has to be the aforementioned fridge freezer which is constantly on. Perusing various websites I have noticed that these days there is a lot to choose from consumption-wise and potentially one could save a lot by choosing wisely, but how do I find out how much energy my current one is eating up?

In short, should I even consider ditching my perfectly functioning fridge-freezer?

CSI_Yorkshire

You can measure how much it's using with a smart plug.  Many people on the energy board recommend the Tapo P110 (not the P100 because that doesn't measure).

mi-key

The amount you save on electricity will be more than cancelled out by the cost of buying a new fridge freezer. All of them use a relatively high amount of electricity, so even the most economical ones arent going to make a huge difference to your bill. 

CSI_Yorkshire

The amount you save on electricity could quite easily be more than the cost of buying a new fridge freezer over a couple of years.  Old ones often used a massive amount of electricity compared to newer ones, and the most economic ones have been calculated for some people to save them over £100 per year on their bill.

You will only know if you measure (or if we find the actual listed usage for your model).

The new 'F' rating is equivalent to the old A+++, if I remember the system correctly.

Andrea15

I have run a quick test and between midnight and 8 am I have used up 1.4 kWh. We were in bed, so apart from a few lights (all LEDs) and some phone being charged there was nothing on - except the fridge...

Andrea15

About these Tapo things, how many do I need? No more than 1 I would think... I see you can buy them in packs of 1, 2 or 4.

Besides, what would I do with that information? I mean, how would I know how a different fridge would behave given it is not being used in standard and controlled conditions? That is why I think I would need to know the rating and consumption level under standard conditions, or do I?

Alnat1

Andrea15 said:

About these Tapo things, how many do I need? No more than 1 I would think... I see you can buy them in packs of 1, 2 or 4.

I was one of the early promoters of the P110 after finding out our 14 year old American FF, which was supposed to use something like 345kWh per year, was actually using nearer 900kWh. It was only the overflow FF kept  in the garage and was using almost a third of our annual electricity! Now replaced with a smaller non American type.

After you've used it to test the FF for 48 hours, you can see how much the TV/set top box/PC etc use in standby and see if worth turning off fully when not in use.

It also doubles as a smart plug you can set up by phone app, so after all your appliances have been tested it's handy to use as a timer. We now have 3, one to turn off the old bedroom TV as the plug socket is awkwardly inside the fitted wardrobe, and 2 to time the heat lamps on our tortoises. Over winter when they are sleeping (in the garage fridge) it gets used on the Christmas lights.

CSI_Yorkshire

Andrea15 said:

About these Tapo things, how many do I need? No more than 1 I would think... I see you can buy them in packs of 1, 2 or 4.

Besides, what would I do with that information? I mean, how would I know how a different fridge would behave given it is not being used in standard and controlled conditions? That is why I think I would need to know the rating and consumption level under standard conditions, or do I?

You would only need 1.

It means you would know how much your fridge is actually using now - which puts a limit on how much you could save.

If it was only using £20 per year in electricity, to use a silly example, you wouldn't even think about replacing it.
If it was using £2000 per year in electricity, you might change your mind about having it turned on even now.

You're right, you can't exactly compare the standard numbers for a new one with the use of your old one, but you can get an idea.  See how much difference it might make.  Maybe assume that your conditions are 10% worse than standard and see if it is worth changing.  Try 20% worse.

At least it would give you a clue, which is better than you know now.

Andrea15

Ordered one.
I will report back.

DullGreyGuy

Energy ratings get rebaselined occasionally as it gets a bit silly when 80% of devices sold are A+++ or such and hence bands are realigned to differentiate between the most efficient. Old devices that arent sold any more arent adjusted and so you need to be careful comparing an A rated item from 14 years ago with a B rated item today... I got caught out when looking at dishwashers just as the last changes were made as all the old models were still showing an A rating (obv now know that was the old scale) and all the new models were C - E which just didnt make sense.

Would have thought an email to Bosch would get the average consumption number for you.

Andrea15

I have tried that, but they themselves don't have the info (anymore). I have the technical specs that they sent me, but a lot of it is blank.