82 Litre Freezer $168 BIG W

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• 

  llama on 11/07/2012 - 22:54

  +7

  Beware the energy cost on these cheap freezers!

  Compare the (estimated) Annual Energy Consumption on the labels - mutlipy the difference by 25c per kWh and you'll see the benefits of buying a higher priced but more efficient model.

  • 

    Cluster on 11/07/2012 - 23:16

    +1

    0.49kWh/day, according to the manufacturer. 178 per annum assuming the test is compliant with the energy star tests. At my local electricity prices that equals $60/year. Less than 3 years and the freezer costs its own price in power.

    By comparison, I just bought a Samsung 511L fridge with 150L freezer that consumes 500kWh/year.

    • 

      BlueMM on 12/07/2012 - 09:57

      Based on the Energy rating site, the Avita isn't listed, but is probably a rebadge. All three 82L freezer models use 300kWh/year, so I wonder if 178kWh/year is accurate, wonder if they calculate it differently?
      If it was 178kWh/year, it would be almost as good as a $3k german made 96L trendy freezer, by far the most efficient.

      • 

        Cluster on 12/07/2012 - 12:23

        The one thing that caught my eye in the freezer's specifications was the gas used: R600, instead of the more common R134a. R600 (iso-butane) is meant to be more efficient so maybe that explains part of the difference.

  • 

    arescarti42 on 11/07/2012 - 23:29

    Jumpin jellybeans!

    Where the hell do you live that you're paying 25c per kWh? Over the course of a day mine averages about 15c/kWh.

    Still, a very valid point, my parents have an ancient chest freezer, I worked out that the payoff period for a newer freezer in reduced electricity consumption was about 2 years.

    • 

      tm001 on 12/07/2012 - 10:12

      Mind me asking who you are with? Thanks!

      • 

        arescarti42 on 12/07/2012 - 20:13

        ACTEW AGL (Canberra). On closer inspection, it looks as though Canberra prices are just pretty cheap, rather than 25c/kwh being expensive.

  • 

    ibfragalot on 11/07/2012 - 23:33

    +3

    mutlipy the difference by 25c per kWh and you'll see the benefits of buying a higher priced but more efficient model.

    I'll take that challenge.

    $382 - 245 litre 1.5 star Lemair Fridge. Label says 310kWh per year, or $77.50 per year to run.
    http://www.appliancesonline.com.au/245l-lemair-fridge-rs245s…

    That is the cheap fridge. The next cheapest model up which is a brand name, and similar size is:

    $749 - 240 litre 2 star Westinghouse Fridge. Label says 265kWh per year, or $66.25 per year to run.
    http://www.appliancesonline.com.au/240l-westinghouse-fridge-…

    So, with the fridge which costs $367 more to purchase, you save $11.25 per year in running costs. That means you'll break even in 32 years!

    If someone can point out something wrong with my calculation, please let me know.

    • 

      sparkles on 12/07/2012 - 01:01

      You could have also invested the $367 difference in Apple shares for 32 years and end up a millionaire! Or something.

• 

  UFO on 11/07/2012 - 22:55

  1.5 star energy rating, and user manual here: http://www.hegroup.com.au/manuals/avita/Avita%2085L%20Freeze…

  I'd rather spend a little more and get better quality to be honest, but each to their own.

• 

  ibfragalot on 11/07/2012 - 23:16

  +2

  ^^^ The thing is, there is no "a little more". If your after a quality unit (brand) with a decent star rating, your looking at twice the price. That's not a little more, otherwise yeah obviously I'd go for that.

  Regarding the star ratings - yeah, you'd think its smarter to buy the one with a few extra stars right?

  I did the calculations when I bought my main fridge (a $1500 unit)

  To my surprise I actually found it took 10 years to recoup the extra money you'd spent, via electricity savings. Is that really worth spending several hundred more upfront? Not for me anyway.

  Not sure if its the same with these little fridges, but I'd imagine so.

  I was also surprised by this:

  http://www.hegroup.com.au/manuals/avita/Avita%2085L%20Freeze…

  Apparently it uses 0.49kWh per 24 hours, or 178.85kWh per year.

  A 2.5 star unit, branded, at least according to the below site uses 228kWh per year. I'm not sure how that works out, except the westinghouse is a tiny bit bigger.
  http://www.appliancesonline.com.au/90l-westinghouse-vertical…

• 

  clandestino on 11/07/2012 - 23:48

  +6

  The comments in this thread encapsulate everything that is good about Ozbargain !!!

• 

  greenlantern on 12/07/2012 - 00:36

  +1

  Where's "realfamilyman" at ?

  • 

    sparkles on 12/07/2012 - 01:07

    +5

    Yes, we need a true analysis of potential savings by buying in bulk compared to the difference extrapolated in Woolworths Everyday Rewards and Coles Fly Buys points and projected electricity price rises based on future world events and the intrinsic value of brand name products measured against your happiness quotient.

    Also, it helps if the freezer looks good.

• 

  hello007 on 12/07/2012 - 01:24

  And what happens to fridge running costs if Iran closes the gates of the Persian Gulf, blocking the oil supertankers and causing world energy prices to soar?

  Food for thought…

  • 

    maldrat on 12/07/2012 - 07:53

    +1

    Oil only accounts for 1% of Australia's total electricity generation.

    • 

      krisspy on 12/07/2012 - 09:05

      I love how people always assume oil is the main fuel for electricity and not coal.

    • 

      barefoot on 12/07/2012 - 09:19

      Okay then, what happens when China needs more coal (to power their booming cheap-fridge-building industry), and offer to pay Clive Palmer $200/tonne for it?

      Do you reckon he'll keep taking the $87/tonne he currently gets by selling it to the local power generators?

      The point is, energy prices are rising, and will continue to rise. Calculating lifetime energy costs for a (hopefully) durable appliance, at today's energy price, is unrealistic. Not claiming that there actually is an economic case for paying more for a more efficient unit, but you need to make reasonable assumptions if you're going to do the calculation and work it out.

      Another hint - small freezers make very efficient fridges if you turn the thermostat up (which may require hardware modifications). They are much better insulated than cheap fridges.

  • 

    ibfragalot on 12/07/2012 - 09:04

    +2

    And what happens to fridge running costs if Iran closes the gates of the Persian Gulf

    Not much. Any attempt to blockade the Gulf will result in them getting blown away by the US Fifth Fleet.

    Iran doesn't have the capability to blockade the Gulf for more than a few days at most. Regardless, pipelines are being built on land to lessen the importance of that route.

• 

  greenlantern on 12/07/2012 - 01:52

  Ha,ha,ha… I love OzB :)

• 

  huntress_love on 12/07/2012 - 10:32

  does this small fridge use the same compressor as a bigger litre one?

  i was reading somewhere that the compressor is the power drainer and if it uses the same compressor in a bigger size it's better to get a bigger one as it's power the same but just bigger chest size!

  hopefully that makes sense, correct me if i'm wrong!

  • 

    barefoot on 12/07/2012 - 10:55

    The compressor is the ONLY thing that uses any significant amount of power in a fridge/freezer.

    But it doesn't run all the time.

    If the fridge is well insulated, it says cold, and the compressor doesn't need to run very often. When it's not running, it's not consuming electricity.

    Fridges get low star ratings by having poor insulation. That's done partly to save cost, and partly to save space (get the maximum usable fridge space for a given external dimension).

    A more efficient compressor will save a bit of power, but that goes out the window pretty quick if it's running continuously because heat keeps soaking in through the walls.

    • 

      bamzero on 13/07/2012 - 00:30

      Though in auto-defrosting freezers it's actually the heating element that uses the most power. How often it runs and how much effect that has on the power usage can vary.
      ( For example in my side by side, the compressor uses ~120W, the heater uses ~700W.

• 

  huntress_love on 12/07/2012 - 10:39

  aldi may have something coming up, it's been a while and it's usually cheaper i think

• 

  AntMan76 on 12/07/2012 - 20:18

  Regardless of the energy efficiency and costs, if you are getting a standalone freezer then get a chest freezer. As soon as you open the door on this one the cold air will fall out and the compressor will have to kick in often. With a chest freezer the cold air will stay in unless disturbed. That's why there are commercial freezers without a door/lid that can still keep food frozen but be open to the air.

• 

  bamzero on 13/07/2012 - 00:33

  This looks will insulated, might be good contender for conversion to fridge too