Leave the refrigarator on/off

[ruby9red]

Just trying to get a feel for what you snowbirds do about your refrigarator durning the summer months when you go north. I left mine on this past summer because we didn't want to waste the food, etc in it.
We left ours on last summer and when we came down this winter we found the food spoiled because the compressor broke, apparently due to a power surge.
So we bought a new refrigarator and trying to deciede if we want to leave it plugged in or not. What do others do?

[billethkid]

it is better for the refrigerator to be running.

Once there is no one around to open and close the door it will settle down to a maintenance of temp mode.

We have been doing it for years in multiple homes.

btk

[philnpat]

We also keep our's running. We have a spare one in the garage that we mainly use for drinks that we empty , unplug and leave with the door propped open.

[rjm1cc]

Guess they are unplugged in the store.
I would empty out all the food and leave running on the highest setting or turn off and leave the doors open. Turning off would be my preference.

[hoseman]

Unplug it,
Should You Unplug a Refrigerator for a Long Vacation? | eHow.com (http://www.ehow.com/info_8018393_should-unplug-refrigerator-long-vacation.html)

[CFrance]

Both up north and down here, we have always unplugged ours and left the doors open, turned water off to the ice maker, etc. Aside from the added cost of electricity per month to run, I don't want to come back to any unpleasant surprises.

We do have whole-house surge protection, but compressors do fail on their own sometimes.

[Bill-n-Brillo]

We leave our fridge plugged in with the temp controls set to 2 (out of max of 5) when we're away between trips to TV.

In addition to having SECO's whole house surge protection device at the service entrance/meter, we've also bought a number of these for various items in the house - fridge, garage door opener, washer, dryer (gas), microwave, irrigation transformer:

Belkin Single Outlet Wall - Mount Surge Protector-F9H101aCW-DP at The Home Depot (http://www.homedepot.com/p/t/100663225?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&keyword=belkin+surge+protector&storeId=10051&N=5yc1v&R=100663225#.UUkGGTe6qF8)

Bought at the Lady Lake Home Depot.

I hope they'll be of some additional help if a spike gets past the meter.

Bill :)

[CFrance]

We leave our fridge plugged in with the temp controls set to 2 (out of max of 5) when we're away between trips to TV.

In addition to having SECO's whole house surge protection device at the service entrance/meter, we've also bought a number of these for various items in the house - fridge, garage door opener, washer, dryer (gas), microwave, irrigation transformer:

Belkin Single Outlet Wall - Mount Surge Protector-F9H101aCW-DP at The Home Depot (http://www.homedepot.com/p/t/100663225?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&keyword=belkin+surge+protector&storeId=10051&N=5yc1v&R=100663225#.UUkGGTe6qF8)

Bought at the Lady Lake Home Depot.

I hope they'll be of some additional help if a spike gets past the meter.

Bill :)

I suppose if we went back and forth more frequently it wouldn't bother me to leave it on. But we're 8 months here and 4 up there. Both those amounts of time are too long for my comfort zone.

[Barefoot]

We used to unplug the refrigerator when we left for six months. Then a "Fridge Expert" told me that leaving the door open would dry out the seals. Now we turn the temperature down, remove the icemaker, and leave the fridge on. I think it costs about $5 per month. We store any spices, wine, unopened products in the fridge.

Of course we have a Homewatch person who checks the house weekly, runs the dishwasher, etc. And our humidistat saves us a ton of money on electricity.

[justjim]

Leave the Frige on----Best to keep it running. Dishwasher, disposal and washer should also be run while you are gone----golf cart too. In order to do this hire a Home Watch Service. A good Home Watch will have a check list and work with you so your big investment will be protected until you return. Lightning could strike or you could have a power surge so you need someone to be watching your house IMHO. Unexpected things can happen.

[Barefoot]

Leave the Frige on----Best to keep it running. Dishwasher, disposal and washer should also be run while you are gone----golf cart too. In order to do this hire a Home Watch Service. A good Home Watch will have a check list and work with you so your big investment will be protected until you return. Lightning could strike or you could have a power surge so you need someone to be watching your house IMHO. Unexpected things can happen.

I totally agree! We have always hired a Home Watch company, money well spent. They take care of our interior, flush toilets, check security, etc. If we leave in a rush and forget to unplug an appliance, they check and make sure everything has been done. They run our golf cart occasionally. If our lawn or pest contractors need to be called, they'll take care of it. They even tell us if we have faulty sprinkler heads!

[wesmin]

We put jugs ofwater in freezer and fridge to help it stay cold it will not run as often

[CFrance]

I totally agree! We have always hired a Home Watch company, money well spent. They take care of our interior, flush toilets, check security, etc. If we leave in a rush and forget to unplug an appliance, they check and make sure everything has been done. They run our golf cart occasionally. If our lawn or pest contractors need to be called, they'll take care of it. They even tell us if we have faulty sprinkler heads!

Does your home watch company actually do the calling? Or do they notify you that it needs attention and then you place the call Just curious.

[bluedog103]

We leave the fridge on. Freeze a small dish of water and put a dime on top of the ice. When you return check the dish. If the dime is still on the ice you've had no problems. The freezer never defrosted. If the dime is at the bottom of the dish out everything goes. You know that something as happened while you were away and the ice melted.

[Barefoot]

Does your home watch company actually do the calling? Or do they notify you that it needs attention and then you place the call Just curious.

They will follow whatever instructions we leave. For instance, if they see insects inside the house, we've asked them to immediately call Pest Control.

We leave the fridge on. Freeze a small dish of water and put a dime on top of the ice. You know that something as happened while you were away and the ice melted.

We're on budget so we use a penny. :duck:

[Donvito]

Just trying to get a feel for what you snowbirds do about your refrigarator durning the summer months when you go north. I left mine on this past summer because we didn't want to waste the food, etc in it.
We left ours on last summer and when we came down this winter we found the food spoiled because the compressor broke, apparently due to a power surge.
So we bought a new refrigarator and trying to deciede if we want to leave it plugged in or not. What do others do?

I was a snow bird for over 10 years in another part of Florida. If you plan to stay away for 5 months or longer, unplug the refrigerator and leave the doors open by placing something like a towel in the inside of the doors so they can't close. You don't have to think about it while your gone and you will save a little money too. Also most foods will be a little too old.

[CFrance]

I was a snow bird for over 10 years in another part of Florida. If you plan to stay away for 5 months or longer, unplug the refrigerator and leave the doors open by placing something like a towel in the inside of the doors so they can't close. You don't have to think about it while your gone and you will save a little money too. Also most foods will be a little too old.

This is what I do as well, but the consensus of opinion from another thread on this topic is to keep it running. However, even with a home watch I would just worry about it all the time. And they aren't cheap to replace.

We're either 8 months here & 4 up north or 7 & 5. Just long enough that I feel better unplugging it. You will have many people tell you that experts told them to leave it running. But I had an expert tell me to unplug it! So I think there's no proof of either--just opinions.

Up north (MI) we have many summer cottages that are shut completely down for the winter, and they always have their water heaters & pipes drained and their refrigerators shut off, because the electricity is shut off as well.

[Heartnsoul]

Just trying to get a feel for what you snowbirds do about your refrigarator durning the summer months when you go north. I left mine on this past summer because we didn't want to waste the food, etc in it.
We left ours on last summer and when we came down this winter we found the food spoiled because the compressor broke, apparently due to a power surge.
So we bought a new refrigarator and trying to deciede if we want to leave it plugged in or not. What do others do?

Empty and off

[chuckinca]

We are gone for close to 4 months so we leave it on and save buying new mayo, mustard, ketchup, etc. (probably break about even)

.