Old refrigerator question


 

Lynn Dollar

TVWBB Emerald Member
We just bought a new fridge. I'm keeping the old one in the garage. Somewhere and at some time , I've gotten the idea that its best to keep an old fridge running whether its in use or not ? Something about they're more likely to go bad if unplugged.

True or false ?
 
We have had a garage fridge ever since Barb and I got married, that's 37 years ago today. When we were building our new home in Prescott our two refrigerators were in storage a little over a year. Didn't have any problems when we fired them back up.
One thing to be aware of if your garage gets really hot most manufactures recommend that they be kept in an environment of under 115 above that can shorten it's service life.
 
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If you're not going to need the extra space then shut it down and unplug it. Wipe it down with a mild bleach solution. Such the cat/dog hair out of the coils under it. Clean the drip pan under it. And prop the doors open. Save wear on the compressor and fans. Those and the icemaker should be the only moving parts. Saves on electricity as well.

Our garage fridge came about because I just couldn't stand the thought of sending it to the dump when it swallowed its compressor a long time ago. I repaired it and she's been chugging away since holding temps. If the wife ever figures out we don't need that much cold storage, I'll mothball it.
 
If you're not going to need the extra space then shut it down and unplug it. Wipe it down with a mild bleach solution. Such the cat/dog hair out of the coils under it. Clean the drip pan under it. And prop the doors open. Save wear on the compressor and fans. Those and the icemaker should be the only moving parts. Saves on electricity as well.

I agree with this completely. If you don’t clean it completely and let it have good airflow, you would be better off leaving it running. Once they mold over, good luck trying to straighten that out.
 
We just bought a new fridge. I'm keeping the old one in the garage. Somewhere and at some time , I've gotten the idea that its best to keep an old fridge running whether its in use or not ? Something about they're more likely to go bad if unplugged.

True or false ?

I say false. Look at all the used ones sitting in second hand stores or on Craigslist etc. ( they aint plugged in)
And then the vintage ones on fleabay.

Tim
 
Similar experience to Rich. in RI, we had our old one in the basement for 15 years, plugged in but powered off with the doors ajar. Ready to go for holidays, etc. Here in Vegas, we have an 11 year old fridge in the garage set up the same way. Temp isn't an issue if they are not running, but is if they are trying to run in hot temps. Fortunately, we have a swamp cooler running in the garage in the summer.
 

 

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