Everyone who owns a refrigerator is concerned about its power and energy consumption, affecting the electricity bill. If you live in the hotter regions or need colder water or ice usage regularly, even before and after the summer, the power and energy consumption by the Refrigerator become concerning. So you might want to know exactly how much energy and amperes your refrigerator uses but don’t know how to check it.
No worries. We have compiled this post to help you in checking the power and current consumption of the refrigerator. So keep reading if you want to know more about the 50 amp breaker wiring diagram and power consumption of the refrigerator. In this post, we have shared how many amps a refrigerator uses to help you calculate the amp of your refrigerator.
Factors Affecting the Ampere Consumption of Refrigerators
Ampere is the unit of flow of electricity current. Several factors affect the amperes usage and consumption of the devices.
1. Internal factors that affect the ampere consumption of the refrigerator: The type of wires used, their thickness, the material of wires, resistance, resistivity, and voltage. There are more crucial electrical factors that work during the working of the electrical and electronic devices.
2. External things and factors that affect the amperage consumption of a refrigerator: The size of the refrigerator, its working efficiency, age, continuous usage, regionals locality, and humidity also decide the amperes consumption using the power and voltage.
When leaving the refrigerator door open, the amperage consumption rises rapidly because the efficiency decreases during that moment. So always keep the refrigerator door closed tightly when not in use.
Average Range of Ampere Consumption for Refrigerators
Most refrigerators consume ampers from 3 to 6 amperes. The Mini refrigerators use 1 to 2 amperes usually. And the big refrigerators use somewhere around 5 to 8 amperes. The consumption of some refrigerators can also rise and go up to 18 amperes depending on other external factors, as described above.
Most refrigerators have crucial information stuck to the refrigerator regarding the usage of voltage, power, and current. If the refrigerator is new, these details tell about the extreme condition details, considering the internal amperage consumption factors and ignoring the external factors. So, you will not get the average ampere consumption details of your refrigerator, but it will give you a rough estimation of the approximate value.
For safety purposes, avoid using refrigerators in power extensions or two heavy-duty electrical devices in the same outlet, like two refrigerators in one outlet or one refrigerator and another bug device that needs more power to avoid overloading issues and electrical fire accidents.
Measure Amperes Consumption with a Clamp Meter
To read the electric current, there is a specific and specialized electric tool known by the name clamp meter. For usage purpose, it is connected to the power cords that run from the outlet and connects a specific device. Wait for a few seconds, and it will reflect the rating and consumption of ampere by the device. So, to calculate the consumption of ampere by the refrigerator, put the clamp meter on the power cord that runs from the outlet to the refrigerator and wait until it reflects the Amperage consumption units.
Dedicated Refrigerator Circuit
Sometimes, there are frequent changes, like the power overload on the main supply. Also, the refrigerator doesn’t always consume the same power and amperes, depending on its efficiency, age, working condition, and many other factors. So, in such cases, you can’t measure the amperes consumption accurately from the main power supply circuit.
For the precise measurement of amperes taken by your refrigerator, a dedicated circuit is always helpful. For this, you can connect a dedicated circuit breaker from the main power supply branch circuit and finally to the connection with the refrigerator. Now, you can measure precisely the ampere consumption by your refrigerator from the dedicated circuit connected to your refrigerator.
Calculate Amps from Power Meter
Figure out the Voltage that is constant for a refrigerator. You will find it on the refrigerator, where manufacturing details are mentioned. Pick up the power meter to measure the power and energy consumption of the refrigerator.
Divide the power consumption of the refrigerator by voltage to calculate the amperage.
Ampere = Power / Voltage.
While calculating the ampere, always take three to four readings, at least for the accuracy of the ampere reading. Because when you start the refrigerator, it consumes around three times more amperes than the time duration when it is constantly powered on.
By using this formula, you will be able to calculate how much Ampere your refrigerator is using. You can also divide the monthly or yearly power consumption units with the voltage and time to calculate the ampere consumption by your refrigerator. Ensure that while calculating the ampere consumption, the energy usage you have taken is in the KW/hr, or the power is in the Watts.
Final Thoughts
Everyone is getting conscious and serious about the expenditure of energy, power, and money. So people are becoming more aware of the environment and energy conservation, and keeping a check on your electrical devices is the first step to taking action towards saving. Measuring the current from devices like an Ampmeter or a dedicated refrigerator circuit can help you figure out exact amp units.
This post showed you How many amps a refrigerator uses to help you measure the unit of your refrigerator if you want more ways to add value to your lifestyle and camping experience, sign up and get our best tips, tricks, and strategies sent to your inbox.