Buying an Energy Efficient Refrigerator: Tips, Suggestions, & Information Resources. AND The Research Steps, Once Learned => Apply To ANY Other Manufactured Item Purchases, And All Will Go Much Faster!!!

Here is "Gurr's Green Guide" To Information Resources For Purchasing a New Refrigerator. Although Ultimately Rewarding, The Careful Buying Of A Good Energy Efficient Fridge Is A Detailed And Time Consuming Process.

Access to most of the information and resources discussed on this page requires a computer connected to the Internet. If you do not have convenient use of a computer, you can use a computer with internet access at almost any Public Library or University Library. They will be glad to help and could even help you get paper Xerox copies of selected information. Alternately, you might get help from your friends and use their computer.

NOTE 1: Be sure to check both the Internet and your local appliance stores for sales and price reductions. And when in a store, ask about slightly dented or marred units. These may be an excellent buy!

NOTE 2: Dear Earth Friendly Enthusiast: You will see that the Steps For Best Purchase form a pattern, which may be applied to ANY purchase!
For example, you will see these same Pattern of Steps for Purchase Good High Energy Efficiency Air Conditioner)

Thus, in your search for ANY New Manufactured Item, where you seek Maximum Value, please''' just follow the example of the Refrigerator below, but as you read, substitute word “Refrigerator”, for the “Item Name”, that you are looking for.
Sincerely Henry Gurr

A) If you have a refrigerator/freezer older than say 10 - 15 years, consider replacing it!

This will more than pay back your cost in $ savings in electricity bills!! And don't forget you will be reducing Global Warming CO2 Emissions as well!! (More information on CO2 and Global Warming at links, listed below.) To find out if a newer refrigerator has substantially lower electricity costs, you will have to do some approximate calculations. I will be glad to help with these OR the Energy Star Site, mentioned below, has one of these calculators. However, such calculations are based on averages, which calls for some judgment, as applied to your own circumstance. Large improvements in the energy efficiency (i.e. lower electricity bills) also applies to other new appliances. So, your other older appliances may likewise need replacement, such as air conditioners, heat pumps, hot water heaters, computers, dish washers and clothes washers, and many other "energy grabber" appliances calling for your close examination & study.

B) In your search for a new (improved & more efficient) refrigerator, your first stop should be the most recent Consumer Reports (Annual) Buyers Guide.

Use this to find the longer Consumer Reports Magazine Articles (which the CR Buyers Guide summarizes). Then, for future reference, Xerox copy all the CR Buyers Guide tabular listings on the recommended refrigerators listed. Use this in your continued search and store purchases. You will notice immediately that the Refrigerators with "Top Freezer",are the most energy efficient. This seems to be a general rule among the standard upright models. You will see that the "Bottom Freezer" are generally less energy efficient, with the "Side-by-Side" Freezers generally the least efficient. (This pattern, seen in Consumer Reports, is confirmed in the Energy Star listing explained below.)

C) Consumer Reports Guide (and Magazine) are available in most public libraries.

If you have a library card, you probably can also view the Consumer Reports Buyers Guide and Magazine over the Internet, on your computer at home. But, you will need a library card with your password to access library computers. Even better: Support Consumer Reports organization by sending modest $ for a yearly subscription!! Consumer Reports is a highly recommended resource for all your purchasing and the Consumer Reports Organization, deserves your regular financial support! We know of none better.
Consumer Reports: Abbreviated Appliances Tested Reports. But to see their full listings of recommended purchases, consider $ support of a very worthy cause => click on Subscribe now

D) Your Second Stop Should Be the US Government "Energy Star" Website.

This site has lots of general advice and energy saving advice that deserves your close attention. Suggestion: Some of the advanced features on this "Energy Star" website are fairly complex. In the next section, I give some detailed reading suggestions, but you might also need help from your friends and/or your Public Library, or University Library. They will be glad to help and could even help you get paper Xerox copies of selected information.
Go to http://www.energystar.gov/

D1) The Most Helpful Section of the Energy Star Web Site is their “Find and Compare” Page:
This page allows you to select the following, all of which are among their "ENERGY STAR Certified Refrigerators & Freezers".

After you have Clicked to Mark EACH of Your Successive Choices, the webpage automatically, reloads to show your new (shorter), list of your chosen refrigerator. Among those still listed, you can, then click a small box (at right), beside those refrigerators you want to “Compare”, then scroll to the top-right of page & Click on the Orange “Compare”: The results are shown in a large table, at bottom of page, These you can scroll around to study. You could do page Save-As, or a Paper Print, so you can, hold your results, while you do other choices, or shopping study, for example the next paragraph below;.
https://www.energystar.gov/productfinder/product/certified-residential-refrigerators/results

D2) ENERGY STAR Most Efficient — Medium, Large, and X-Large Refrigerators:

The Year's Best of ENERGY STAR for Energy Efficiency and Innovation:
WHEN ONLY THE BEST WILL DO!
Introducing energy star’s “Most Efficient”, a new distinction that recognizes products that deliver cutting edge energy efficiency along with the latest technological innovation. It is an award that truly represents the best of ENERGY STAR. But what has to be kept in mind is that larger refrigerators will naturally use more electricity, so mentally you have to keep this in mind when looking at the KWH electricity usage per year. (KWH/year). A useful figure of merit might be, divide to get=> KWH per Cubic foot of size. But caution: Smaller refrigerators will have a higher KWH per year/Cubic foot, because they have larger surface to volume ratio. For this reason, a better figure of merit would be Yearly KWH/Square foot of surface area. But surface area is too hard to find, so we have to go with KWH/CuFt, and remember that a good enough figure of merit goes up, as frig size goes down: For example my friend Priscilla's choice frig, is 310 KWK per year/11.5 CuFt = 26.9 This may seem too high, but for this smaller size this is good.) Email me if you have questions, or need help.)

After this page comes up, be sure to click to view the results, for TYPE of Refrigerator: Freezer Top <=> Bottom <=> Side-by-Side.
Click Here For Choice “Top Freezer”

NOTE: You will discover that (for the same refrigerator size), the "Top Freezer" Refrigerator Models clearly have better (lower) relative energy consumption than "Bottom Freezer" Models. The highest relative energy consumption, are the so named "Side-By Side" Refrigerators.

D3) ENERGY STAR Certified Residential Refrigerators: Active Specifications:
WITH Detailed Listings Of Key Efficiency Criteria.
In this HUGE Data Set, there are 28 Columns of Specification Data, listed for each of ~2150 Certified Refrigerator Models.
... These are BEST viewed, AFTER you download (and saved), into your computer: To do this, click “Download”, and then choose Formats => C SV, CSV for Excel, CSV for Excel (Europe), RDF, RSS, TSV for Excel, or XML Follow instructions, and you will see this is a normal ~normal series of steps to => Download, Save-As, and Launch in APP to View The Data.
... This is a huge data set table showing: ALL the refrigerators available in USA, along with columns showing much important information! It is the most useful way I found to search for main refrigerator features I wanted, such as Size, Energy Efficiency, Ice-Maker, Top Freezer, etc.
... A click on a data column at top, will alphabetize (ie sort) any of the data columns, such as features or kilowatt per year electricity usage, etc. Then you can then scroll through down through the listings to see comparisons of 1) Manufacturer, 2) model number, 3) Cubic Feet, 4) Top Vs Bottom Freezer. 5) Ice-maker vs none. (The kilo-watt-hours/year energy consumption is based on standardized test, so a click on the top of kwh/year column will line up all the choices by the power consumption, best to worst, all in order top to bottom!! WOW!!!!! Very nice!!! (The only limitation of this huge table seems to be it does not list models which may be sold mostly overseas, and/or models that have higher kwh/year than approved by the Energy Star Program.)
https://data.energystar.gov/Active-Specifications/ENERGY-STAR-Certified-Residential-Refrigerators/p5st-her9

... DETAILS => HOW TO VIEW IN YOUR OWN COMPUTER:
Once this download is saved into your computer, you may click on it so it opens in your Excel Spread Sheet, html Viewer such as Chrome or FireFox Browsers, or other viewer programs (APPs). When this download comes up in your viewer, you will see a huge data table of all the different makes and models in the Energy Star Database. This data table, as first comes up, will be sorted alphabetically by manufacturer in the left column.
... Now, to sort by kwh/year, click on this label at the column top: (It may be necessary to choose in Tool Bar > Data > Sort.) Now you can use the very versatile and powerful features (for example in Excel), to: data select, reorganize, do selected printing, and many others.

Caution: It Is Easy To Get "Out-Of-Date" Model Numbers From Both Consumer Reports And The Energy Star Listings, Even The Most Recent Ones!
When you ask Google for Store websites for a model that happens to be out-of-date, you will either a) not find it or b) you will get a message saying "not found" Either way, you will not know what is wrong. The only way I know how to move ahead and find the current model (equivalent to the out-of-date model you wanted), is to ask a sales person at a store that sells the item you are looking for. But, you have to be politely persistent with your request to finally get some answers, since the sales people don't seem to know how the older models relate to the newer models. This info is in their sales books, so keep asking.

E) How Do you Look Up Price, Size, Features, and get a Photo, of the Refrigerator You Want To Buy?
... After you have chosen a specific fridge model numbers on Consumer Reports (or Energy Star pages), you should use Google to search for this model number: As you know Google knows all the different places there is information about this model: These include, places that sell the model, forum discussions about it, shopping advice sites, Google’s own shopping comparisons results, and the website of the company that manufactures the refrigerators you want to learn more about.
... I have found that using Google first, is more effective than going to store websites, or go to this manufactures site and put the model number in the "Search Box", usually near the top of the webpage. Caution: This is not as successful as you would hope, principally because you cannot make side-by-side comparisons with a range of desirable refrigerators. For this you should use your favorite shopping and price comparison website, discussed next below.

F) The Internet Shopping & Price Comparison Websites Are a Good Resource.

These are a quick and very helpful resource, which allows you to selectively narrow down by price, type, brand, & a selection of other features. These may be done in any order. Then you may click to side-by-side compare from 3 to over 18 refrigerators. Generally these comparisons show a rather complete "specification sheet + photo for each fridge. Also, these comparisons generally show the Energy Star kwh/year electricity consumption. However, you can not sort best to worst by this number, nor other items in the spec sheet. To do this, you should use the Energy Star Site or Excel Download discussed above.
F2) Biz Rate Shopping Search has ability to side-by-side compare only a max of three refrigerators. A complete 42 item specifications sheet is provided.
http://www.bizrate.com/refrigerators/

F3) Price Grabber Dot Com has the ability to side-by-side compare over 18 refrigerators. A complete specifications sheet is provided.
https://www.pricegrabber.com/refrigerators/browse/

F4) Shopping Dot Com has at page top a “Search By” into which you type “Refrigerator”. Then at left you can “Filter By” for Category, Color, Brand, all the way down to Price Range.
https://www.shopping.com/search.html?keyword=Refrigerator

F5) Please send your suggestions and opinions as your favorite Shopping and Price Comparison WebPages.

F6) Wikipedia Article Discusses “Online Shopping”:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Online_shopping

G) A Very Useful Resource Is the Sears.com “Sears Refrigerators Page: This Will show the Available Models, Spread Out So You Can Immediately See => A Photo, Price, Sale Price, Cubic Feet, and color.
'However, There Are ''Some Things You Need To Know:
The whole Sears selection process, good as it is, there is not provided for many desired selection criterion, such as sorting by energy efficiency, external dimensions, whether advanced technology, etc. So, you are "flying blind" a small amount.
... Thus, as you study the Sears.com Page, you may want to concurrently consult Energy Star Pages (discussed above) to help guide your selection and choices, as you work with the Sears.com Refrigerator Comparison. You possibly might want to have your favorite Energy Star Page, in another browser window, OR on an adjacent 'second computer, OR even your cell phone,' OR possibly print paper copies of your current top choices. Either way, you will need to allow ample time to use the Sears.com Refrigerator Comparator. Don't get in a hurry!
... As I said above, I don't know of any good ways to use Google to search and display info for specific model numbers of various appliance manufacturers. This also applies individual appliance websites. If you have suggestions or need information, even opinions, please send me an email.
''' When page (link below) comes up:
Click to Select “Category”

G1.1) Click at left to select color, price range, max. width, etc. (This will "narrow your results"),
G1.2) Then, on right, you click your choice of "compare boxes" (max 5 choices),
Click Here To See Sears.com “Sears Refrigerators Page, Showing “Top Freezer”: This Will show the Available Models, Spread Out So You Can Immediately See => A Photo, Price, Sale Price, Cubic Feet, color and Exterior Dimensions In Inches.

H) A 2nd Very Useful Resource Is the HomeDepot.com “Refrigerators Page: This Will show the Available Models, Spread Out So You Can Immediately See => A Photo, Price, Sale Price, Cubic Feet, and color. After You Have Narrowed Your Choices To a Few Model Numbers, I Recommend That "You Check-Around" To See What Others Users of These SAME Model Numbers, Report Re Their Experience. '''

I) After You Have Narrowed Your Choices To a Few Model Numbers, I Recommend That "You Check-Around" To See What Others Users of These SAME Model Numbers, Report Re Their Experience.
Consumer Reports is good resource here, in reporting their own experience and that of other users. (Also they compile repair & complaint statistics, for various appliances, and especially cars. So look for these Re your chosen Model Numbers.)

Another good resource, is Amazon.com Product User Reviews: You type your Model Number into their search box, and when the results come up, make sure what your looking at is Your Model Number, then scroll on down to where your see the user reviews: This is good for both books and appliances.

Google also is a good help: Type in to Google several the following, which will quickly locate many opinions and comments:

You will have to learn, from experience, which of these Google "Hits" to Click on: But no matter, click on a few, and you will get an "eye full", and eventually sort things through, trying to get the general drift ... what the 85% think about the model you have Googled for.

Of course, you will get the 10% "Hacked Off" customer who says "Your model number broke immediately, and don't ever purchase from this Manufacturer!!" As long as these are the minority, you are probably safe to purchase this model anyway. I have found that generally the reports of persons who take their time to write-up their own experience on the internet (even anonymous),, can be trusted, on the average.
THUS OVERALL, USER OPINIONS ARE A GOOD GUIDE, AND WORTH THE TIME TO SEARCH FOR, & READ THEIR REPORTS!!

H Continued) Suppose You Have Narrowed Your Choices To a Few Model Numbers, And Now You Want To Actually See ‘Em In a Store.
Now you have the very tough problem of actually finding these in a store! By long experience, I have found that this is by no means easy! In order to maximize your chances of having a good look at your choices, you should go the largest appliance store around, and in some cases shop online eg. Ebay or Amazon, or better yet look at what the store has on catalog and save yourself the trip, if possible. If you cannot, or choose not to look online, ask the sales person at the chosen store for help locating the model numbers you are looking for. (Be sure to take your Xeroxes from Energy Star or Consumer Reports.) Be prepared for the store not to have the models you picked. If this is the case, take your time studying what is actually there. Ask the salesperson to help you locate models similar to the choices you had decided to look at. Work through the comparison steps to reach a purchasing decision. Take your time. Don't rush! What you are looking for now is peace of mind and a refrigerator you can live with for a long time! You are starting to spend money in a permanent way! Be sure to compare prices at several different stores or websites. Another reason not to rush.

I) What About Manufacturer WebPage Search, Versus Using Google Search?
I have had limited success in using the Search Box, at the top of various manufacturers webpages. In addition, I found that when I searched this way, comparisons between various model numbers (or manufacturers) was quite difficult to arrange. For comparison you use => a) The Sears "Refrigerator Comparator" OR b) The Energy Star “Find and Compare” Page OR Use various Internet Shopping & Price Comparison Websites: These are discussed above.
... Of course you could eventually try all the search methods above, and keep score how successful!: But Google is such a flexible resource and very powerful!! Thus when looking for practically any information, you should just goto Google FIRST. Especially since, for your every search for purchases, Google will show you shopping comparison examples, and even on occasion, offer a complete listing of stores and prices for your search!

J) Well, What Refrigerator Did We Get?
For our new fridge, we searched in the above mentioned Energy Star Certified Residential Refrigerators: Active Specifications Download, for All Manufactures & All Models In Range 16 To 20 Cubic Feet, and for Top Freezers. We found that the refrigerators that fit this criterion and highest energy efficiency (almost without exception) did not have ice makers (which was OK by us.). I believe they all had automatic defrost, which is somewhat less energy efficient, but this needs to be checked. USCA Professor Allan Dennis recommended we go to a large appliance store, so we could study a large selection right there in the store. After doing our internet searching plus website comparisons, we went to several stores to become familiar with prices and models. By pure luck, we rather quickly found a 24 Cu Ft With A 7 Cu Ft Top Freezer, which was on lower price special sale! Double Luck!! And it was additionally reduced because of slight scratches!! Triple Luck! This unit had a good energy efficiency, 475 kwh/year, better than many even considerably smaller models in the Energy Star ranking on our Xeroxes. We focused on this refrigerator with a somewhat larger freezer, since we wanted to shut off our other non-refrigerator freezer. Then, we took our time to check similar models nearby, double checked our notes, and the next working day we had this great fridge running just fine at home!

If you want more advice, have questions, or suggestions please do not hesitate to contact me. See Contact Me information below.

Thus This Is The END Of => Buying an Energy Efficient Refrigerator: Tips, Suggestions, & Information Resources.

AND PLEASE REMEMBER => The Above Research Steps, Once Learned => Apply To ANY Other Manufactured Item Purchases, And All Will Go Much Faster!!!

FOR FURTHER READING:

…A) Listed Near The Top Of The At Left Main Menu, Where You See In Black => " ‘Earth Friendly Decisions’ Series Of Webpages”, Which Are => “Sitemaster Henry S Gurr’s Earth Friendly Projects:”
…Below this “Black” you may read => My pages concerning Save Energy Guide => Purchasing Energy Saving Appliances and other Earth Friendly Ideas

…B) Listed 9 Inches Down From The Top Of The At Left Main Menu, Where You See In Black => ” Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance” By Robert
…This is where you may read => My pages concerning this book =>
Where your FIRST Reading should be the following two pages =>
Screen Top > Edit > Find > ZMMQ For BEGINNERS
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…C) My PHOTOS Concerning The Book => "Zen And The Art Of Motorcycle Maintenance", By Robert Pirsig.
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Legal Notice

Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy and safety of the information presented on all these Save Energy Guide Pages (Text Pages) AND my Save Energy Guide Photograph Galleries (Photograph Web Pages). However, the University of South Carolina, University of South Carolina Aiken, and Henry S. Gurr make no warranty with regard to it. NO WARRANTY is expressed or implied as to the suitability or safety of the information provided herein. THE USER ASSUMES ALL RISKS.

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The views and opinions expressed on these Save Energy Guide Pages and Save Energy Guide Photograph Galleries are entirely those of the author, Henry Gurr. The contents of the page have not been approved by the University of South Carolina-Aiken.

© Copyright 2003 by Henry S. Gurr.
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Contact Me
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https://www.usca.edu/mathematical-sciences/faculty-sites/henry-gurr

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