Is your refrigerator old? Besides not looking very good, It’s probably wasting energy. According to EnergyStar.Gov, a typical 24 cubic foot top-freezer refrigerator from the mid-1980s wastes more than $765 in electricity over 5 years! (@ 11 cents per KWh, a pretty reasonable rate). The average price of a nicely equipped 24 cubic foot refrigerator is only $1000. That means a new refrigerator pays for itself in just 6.5 years. Every year after that is a tidy return on your initial cash investment.
What About Newer Refrigerators?
For newer refrigerators, the savings aren’t as dramatic. Replacing the same refrigerator built in 2003 will return only $265 over 5 years. An upgrade probably isn’t worth it, unless you really want to earn some green points by helping out fellow citizens and saving the electricity. Check out the EnergyStar site for more details. You can even put in your specific refrigerator’s model # to get a listing.
Before You Buy a New Refrigerator, Get a Coupon!
Before buying any major appliance, you should pickup a coupon. Home Depot, Lowes, Sears, and more all offer 10% off coupons if you search for them. One Project Closer maintains a Sears Coupons list that always has the latest appliance discounts. We expect there will be big savings for Black Friday, so keep your eyes out at all the retailers.
Recycle Old Refrigerators
Need to recycle a refrigerator? Check out Energy Star’s Refrigerator Recycling page for information. A 10 year old refrigerator can contain as much as 100 lbs. of steel that can be recycled over and over again. Don’t let the refrigerator go to the dump!
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