How Many AMPs Does a Refrigerator Use

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Last Updated on August 29, 2021

Refrigerators are used to store food items in order to maintain their freshness. It is important to know that refrigerators are not only used to preserve food but also to keep other items such as milk, juice, eggs, butter, and cheese cool. Refrigerators are available in different sizes and capacities depending on how many people live in the household.

A refrigerator is usually placed in the kitchen and is connected to the freezer compartment on the needs of the user. Whether you want to know how many amps a refrigerator uses over time, the simplest approach is to look up the model number on Google and check if it has an Energy Star certification. They generally list it out once a year if it has an energy star rating.

There are many refrigerators out there that save a lot of energy and if you are someone who wants to find out how many AMPs does a refrigerator uses then this article is solely dedicated to finding the answer to that question.

Contents hide
1 How Many AMPs Does a Refrigerator Use?
2 What amp breaker do I need for a refrigerator?
3 How many amps does a refrigerator compressor draw?
4 How many Watts Does a refrigerator use?

How Many AMPs Does a Refrigerator Use?

The first thing we need to do before going into details about how much electricity your fridge consumes is to understand what exactly amperes mean.

Amperage refers to the amount of current flowing through something like a wire or a circuit. The more amperage a device draws from the power source, the faster it will heat up. This is why when you plug in appliances they draw less amperage than older ones did. For example, a light bulb with 100 watts requires 1 amp while a 60 watt one would require 0.6amp. A typical refrigerator can use anywhere between 10-15amps at full capacity. If you have a larger refrigerator, it may consume even higher amounts of electricity.

Now let’s get back to our main topic: How Much Electricity Does My Fridge Consume?

If you don’t own a home appliance tester yet, I recommend getting one because it helps you identify problems early on so you won’t end up spending thousands of dollars fixing them later down the road. You should always test all electrical devices including fridges. There are some things that might seem harmless but could actually be causing damage to your house.

You can buy these testers online or offline stores where electronics are sold. Some models come with a built-in display screen which makes it easier to read the results. These displays show you the voltage level, frequency, resistance, etc.

When testing your fridge, make sure you turn off any lights inside the room and remove anything else that could affect its performance. Also, remember to unplug everything before starting the test.

Once you’ve done those steps, start by turning on the power switch located near the door handle. Once the power comes on, wait until the indicator shows "OFF" and then press the button labeled "ON".

It’ll take around 30 seconds for the machine to warm up. After that, open the door and close it again immediately after. Then repeat the process 5 times.

After doing that, go ahead and measure the total consumption using the meter provided. Don’t forget to record the reading as well. Now compare the result with the manufacturer’s specifications.

For instance, my Samsung refrigerator consumed 12.5 Amps during normal operation. That’s not too bad considering most other brands usually consume 15 amps or more. However, if yours exceeds 20 amps, chances are high that it needs maintenance.

Also, keep in mind that different types of fridges use different levels of electricity depending on their size. So, if you’re looking for information regarding how much electricity does a small freezer use, check out this post instead.

What amp breaker do I need for a refrigerator?

The answer depends on what type of refrigerator you have. Most refrigerators today run on 240V AC and therefore require an appropriate GFCI outlet installed nearby. In addition, many newer refrigerators also include AFCIs.

This means that there will be two breakers protecting the dedicated circuit – one for the receptacle and another for the compressor. The number of breakers required is determined by the model of the unit.

How many amps does a refrigerator compressor draw?

A typical household refrigerator uses about 10 watts per hour when operating at full capacity. This amount varies based on the brand and model of the device. For example, a Whirlpool Gold Series refrigerator consumes 8.3 W/h while a GE Profile draws 9.2W/h.

However, since we already know that each appliance requires a certain amperage rating, we can easily calculate the exact wattage needed to operate a particular model. To find out how many amps a specific appliance draws, simply multiply the rated current by the rated voltage.

In our case, let’s say we want to figure out how many amps a refrigerator draws. We first look at the label on top of the unit itself. It should tell us the maximum continuous load current, along with the minimum recommended load current.

How many Watts Does a refrigerator use?

If your fridge has no such labels, just aFcircuitFssume that it operates at 100% capacity all day long. If so, then divide the maximum continuous load current by 60 minutes to get the average hourly usage.

So, for instance, if the maximum continuous load current is 1 A, then dividing 1 by 60 gives 0.01767 which equals 2.7 Watts. Therefore, assuming that the fridge runs continuously throughout the entire day, it would use approximately 3.4 Watt.

Conclusion

Now that you’ve learned everything you need to know about how much energy a refrigerator uses, you’ll probably wonder why manufacturers don’t make appliances that consume less power. Well, they actually do! But unfortunately, these models cost significantly higher than those consuming similar amounts of energy.

Daisy
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