Unplugging the electronic appliances is standard practice, mainly when they’re not being used. It can also help to save your energy consumption. But this is not the case for refrigerators.
The purpose of an LG fridge or any other refrigerator is to keep your food fresh and cool throughout the day. Ideally, users should keep their refrigerators plugged in to ensure their stable and effective performance unless deemed necessary.
If you plan to go on a vacation for a couple of weeks or months and are worried about your LG fridge or other branded refrigerator present in your house, then this post is for you. Let’s find out when can you unplug your refrigerator and what other precautions do you need to take:
Scenario #1
If you’re planning to go on a holiday that can span from 4 weeks to 6 months, you must unplug your refrigerator. Before turning off the power, increase the temperature of your refrigerator and disconnect it from the socket point and perform the following steps.
First, empty your refrigerator by removing all perishable food items from it, and wait until the refrigerator’s temperature comes down and settles at room temperature. Then, clean the interior of your refrigerator thoroughly so that the smell and moisture are completely gone.
If the shelves, drawers and baskets are removable, take them out and clean them using household items such as toothpaste (Colgate is a good option, avoid gel-based options), baking soda, vinegar or lemon.
Make sure to clean the door gaskets, rubber seals and the freezer compartment. If your refrigerator has features such as water dispensers or ice maker mode, then shut off the water supply to the fridge before you unplug it.
After a thorough cleaning, make sure that every section and part in your refrigerator is dry. Use kitchen or paper towels if needed. Otherwise, the water residues in the fridge may cause an unpleasant smell.
To eliminate the moisture from your machine, you can rely on moisture-absorbing agents like grounded coffee powder, baking soda, damp moisture absorber, silica gel sachets, etc.
Ensure that the refrigerator’s doors are not fully closed and keep them slightly opened so that there is enough space for air to move.
To make sure that the doors remain in that condition, you can place a cloth or paper towel between the refrigerator and its doors or pull the vegetable compartment drawers a little out from the fridge, and it will stop the door from closing. If you happen to have rats in your home, get rid of them first; otherwise, they can jump into your refrigerator and damage the interiors by chewing them off (especially the rubber gaskets).
Once you have returned from your holiday, just take the absorber (you placed earlier) out of the refrigerator, then plug it back in and turn it on.
Once you have turned on the appliance, lower the temperature of your refrigerator. By following this method, you can save money by reducing your energy bills and also protect your fridge from getting damaged in your absence.
Scenario #2
If you are planning to for a vacation or not going to be at home for less than four weeks, it is a better option to leave your fridge turned ON.
The more perishable or other food items are kept in the refrigerator, the more energy the fridge will consume. Therefore, it is better to get rid of the items and then place 2/3 bottles of water in the refrigerator.
Earlier fridge models which used to rely on Direct cool technology are totally different from modern inverter technology refrigerators. Direct cool fridge models consume more power than inverter technology refrigerators.
Turning off your refrigerator for short periods, like two to four weeks, is not a great idea since modern inverter technology refrigerators consume relatively less electricity, and their power consumption can change according to the cooling requirements. If your refrigerator is an older model (direct cool refrigerator) and uses more power, then unplug it regardless of your vacation duration and follow the steps mentioned in scenario #1.
When the refrigerator is ON, and the compressor is working, it creates a huge amount of pressure. The compressor of your LG fridge or any other branded models will not start right away if you disconnect and re-plug your fridge immediately.
The build-up of pressure is the main reason behind this, as it is at the crux of the refrigeration system because the role of the compressor is critical. Connecting and disconnecting the refrigerator right away can also damage the compressor.
It will have to start running against this high pressure, producing an unwanted overload because the motor is not capable of handling such a situation. Such built-in thermal overload has the potential to rupture both the motor and the compressor.
Thus, one should wait for at least ten to fifteen minutes before switching on the refrigerator again.
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