Green eco refrigerator options

6 years ago

Looking to select reasonably green-friendly appliances, but am not really sure which ones meet green specs.

For example, here's a refrigerator primer: https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2016-12/documents/transitioning_to_low-gwp_alternatives_in_domestic_refrigeration.pdf

Hydrocarbons (HCs) such as isobutane (R-600a), propane (R-290), and R-441A seem to be the greenest refrigerants (CFCs are already phased out, and HFCs are in the process of being phased out). What refrigerators in the US use these HCs?

Then there are the foam blowing agents. CFCs and HFCs are the worst, but there are various ones with much lower global warming potential.

The third green prong is the energy efficiency profile of the refrigerator. This is the only prong that is disclosed by manufacturers.

I have been unable to find manufacturer specs that disclose the refrigerants and foam blowing agents used when I checked GE refrigerators. Any thoughts on how I can get this information?

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Comments (3)

plllog
6 years ago
The most green thing you can do is get a second hand but energy compliant fridge, making sure that the system doesn't leak. The big problem is putting the chemicals and manufacturing waste into the world to begin with. Once they're already there, the transportation from somewhere nearby is going to be the biggest impingement.
steve_o
6 years ago
I admire your interest in evaluating exhaustively but I'm with pillog on this. The manufacture, transportation, and warehousing of any appliance makes a far greater carbon footprint than considerations like foam blowing agents. In addition, as manufacturers race to the bottom in product quality, you'll find that a new refrigerator may not even last longer than an older one.

Last year we replaced a very energy efficient 12-year-old top-freezer because it was 12 and that's supposedly how long refrigerators of that vintage last. Got kind of stuck with dimensions and the fact that manufacturers offer only cheap skimpy top-freezers these days. We ended up with a bottom-freezer from the same monolithic manufacturer. I hate the new fridge for lots of reasons.

I now wish I'd bought an old fridge -- even an energy hog -- and parked it in the basement as insurance for when the old fridge broke. I'll bet we still could get parts for the old one and probably would be able to for years. That would have been far "greener" -- and far less annoying to me -- than the new fridge, which yellow-labels at twice the energy usage of the old one for no added capacity or features. At least the new one did not have to be shipped from another country. Still...
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thaddeus buttmunch
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Well...long story short, I unplugged my fridge for two months and ate out (or used what I call Hormel "K-rations," complete dinners that are kept at room temperature and then nuked.) I did this because of a severe electrical issue in my Early 60s house (it had NO weather head, and water was entering the system, causing low voltage brownout issues.) I unplugged it because the compressor was making Terrible noises for this reason, and would have fried (several other things DID!) I did not clean it out properly, figuring the relatively low temperature in the house from the furnace being off would prevent most issues. That was Stupid. I ended up with a CSI fridge-mold and flies-in all stages of their life cycle.

It actually worked fine after the electrical repairs were completed, but was so gross and contaminated (and 20+ years old) that I decided to replace it. I got another GE top/bottom model. But, of course, this one uses Isobutane, Hank Hill would call it "The Bastard Gas." I have it set colder than recommended, but not on the coldest setting, and the fridge is around 35-40 F, while the freezer is maybe 5-10 F, it hasn't hit Zero (had it for about six weeks now. I think it's those new "Green" refrigerants. I took Physics courses in College, and the Freon class of coolants evaporate at a lower temperature, and also take more energy to evaporate, meaning they probably cool more efficiently. Isobutane has an evaporation temp. of 10 F. I assume that it can cool a freezer lower than that because it's under partial vacuum from the compressor pump??

Well...at least it has a connection for an internal ice maker, which I can use if I buy a house with an appropriate waterline hookup.

Green eco refrigerator options

Comments (3)

plllog

steve_o

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thaddeus buttmunch

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