I’m an appliance pro – your fridge freezer is in the wrong place and it’s adding nearly £100 to your energy bills

YOUR fridge freezer could be adding to your energy bills depending on where it’s positioned in your home.

As it turns out, not leaving enough space around your appliance could decrease energy efficiency by 15% – and ramp up your bills.

Energy bills are currently capped at £2,500 but this will rise to £3,000 in June.

It means bill payers are set on saving as much money around the house as possible.

Something as simple as your fridge freezer could have a bigger impact on energy costs than you realise.

If you don’t leave enough space around it, for example, it could decrease energy efficiency by 15%.

That’s the equivalent of adding an extra £75 onto bills by the end of the year.

Nicholas Auckland, heating and energy expert from  said: “Many factors can affect the efficiency of the fridge, including how full it is, what temperature it’s set to and even the types of food and material of the containers used inside.

“One certainly is that the position of the fridge in the room and how near or far away it is to other appliances has an impact on how hard it has to work and the annual cost of running it.

“A poorly located fridge, next to heat sources like ovens and radiators, positioned in direct sunlight or fitted in a space with inadequate ventilation around it, can be costing you more money than it should.

“We estimate up to £75 annually, based on the current price cap.”

A fridge or freezer’s main job is to stay cool and keep your food fresh.

But if the appliance is boxed in it has to worked harder to keep cold.

That’s because refrigeration appliances require ventilation to work properly.

Without a steady air flow, the appliance won’t be able to regulate temperatures inside properly, making it work harder.

This means it has to use more energy to keep cool, adding to your bill.

Where is best to store my fridge freezer?

Mr Ausland said: “Ensure there’s around 5 cm of free space around the sides, the back and top of the refrigerator for ventilation. This air gap allows for the heat generated by the compressor to be dispersed without building up.

“Try to have a distance of 50cm between the oven and the fridge. Heat from the oven can make the fridge work harder.

“Following the above will increase your fridge’s efficiency and therefore reduce costs”.

It’s important to know your fridge also needs to get cool air in from the bottom and warm air out the top.

So always remove anything stored on top of your appliance to prevent warm air from becoming trapped.

And make sure nothing is stored around the outside of your fridge at the bottom so cool air can reach it without obstruction.

Try to avoid storing the kitchen essential in a stuffy room with no windows or doors, as this will restrict fresh air too.

Equally, don’t sit your fridge in direct sunlight where heat will beam on the appliance throughout the day.

Pop it in the coolest spot in your kitchen, and make sure there’s room between the back of the appliance and the wall by at least 10cm to allow the coils to work most efficiently.

Also, create some distance between your fridge freezer and your cooker or other hot appliances to avoid making it work harder to stay cold.

Elsewhere, your sofa could be blocking heat from your radiator – meaning you end up spending £100 extra on your energy bill every year.

To cut costs, always remove any furnishings from in front of your radiators to feel the true extent of the warmth your radiators let out.