Got a question for you all. I’m doing some minor upgrades to my kitchen and one idea is to move the fridge to another corner to gain some extra counter space. However, one wall has baseboard heat running along it. Is this a bad idea for my electric bill? Will the heater affect the cooling of the fridge? If so, are there any solutions to make it work short of rerouting the heat?
Thanks, Matt
Listeners write in about ventilation and radon control and ask questions about tightening basement garages, ventilation solutions, and safer paint stripper.
"I have learned so much thanks to the searchable articles on the FHB website. I can confidently say that I expect to be a life-long subscriber." - M.K.
Dig into cutting-edge approaches and decades of proven solutions with total access to our experts and tradespeople.
Start Free Trial NowGet instant access to the latest developments in green building, research, and reports from the field.
Start Free Trial Now
Replies
Go for the asthetics, for get the elec. bill. Mines sitting on a radiant heated floor, but looks great where it is.
What kind of baseboard? If electric it should be simple to disconnect the segment or swap it out for a shorter one. If hot water, build a metal shield for the area behind the fridge, to prevent heat from escaping.
It's hot water heat. I like the metal shield idea. I was thinking that might do the trick. Thanks...
Instead of using metal, I used a left over scrap of poly-iso foam board, and "boxed" the fin elements inside the enclosure. Blocks the air flow as well as heat transfer.
Quantum materiae materietur marmota monax si marmota monax materiam possit materiari?
If it's electric heat, there will be no effect on your bill.
???
A strong nation, like a strong person, can afford to be gentle, firm, thoughtful, and restrained. It can afford to extend a helping hand to others. It's a weak nation, like a weak person, that must behave with bluster and boasting and rashness and other signs of insecurity. --Jimmy Carter
If the baseboard is electric resistance heat, any additional refrigerator run time just creates more heat, and will cause the baseboard heater to shut off faster. Both being relatively 100% percent efficient as heaters, the cost of a btu of heat is the same from either the refrigerator or heater.
But the thermostat for the baseboard heater is on the wall, across the room. And meanwhile the fridge is having to, in effect, pump "cold" out of hot air, requiring more work and more electricity.
A strong nation, like a strong person, can afford to be gentle, firm, thoughtful, and restrained. It can afford to extend a helping hand to others. It's a weak nation, like a weak person, that must behave with bluster and boasting and rashness and other signs of insecurity. --Jimmy Carter
nope
Whatever.
A strong nation, like a strong person, can afford to be gentle, firm, thoughtful, and restrained. It can afford to extend a helping hand to others. It's a weak nation, like a weak person, that must behave with bluster and boasting and rashness and other signs of insecurity. --Jimmy Carter
They are both heaters, both running on electricity, no effect.
Hot air out of the baseboard heater will be rising in some sort of convection loop while the heater is running. The heater will be pulling in cold air from the floor. Likewise, most refrigerators pull from the floor level. Thus, having them in close proximity shouldn't have any impact at all on how much the refrigerator runs.However, if he has a "works in the top" refrigerator, the story might be different.
Won't this move the (already deep) appliance out another ~3 inches?
"I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul." Invictus, by Henley.
In my opinion it will increase the running of the refrigerator.
Refrigeration is all based on the the principle that"heat goes to cold". A refrigerator does not really make cold but in fact removes the heat "units" from the box (refrigerator) and the result is cold. These heat units that are removed from inside the refrigerator are released, by coils, into your kitchen. The quicker the refrigerant can release those heat units into your kitchen and go back inside your fridge to pick up more heat units the more efficient your fridge is.
Which means that the cooler your kitchen is the more efficient the fridge is. If you have a heater right beside the fridge you will affect the heat transfer to some degree. Think of temperature DIFFERENCES.
Your fridge will work if it is standing in the blazing sun but it won't be efficient.
Phew!! This is too early for me thinking of refrigeration.:)
roger