With small size, low cost and energy saving, compact refrigerators are becoming more popular. They can meet the demands of many people to store food, drinks and snacks. What should you consider before choosing a new mini fridge?
Compact fridge: advantages & disadvantages
Compact fridges are designed with small sizes that most convenient for narrow spaces. They have both pros and cons as below:
Advantages
- Small and compact size: Mini refrigerator has a small capacity suitable for narrow spaces, room corners and personal use. It is also light and easy to move from place to place.
- Reasonable price: Due to the small capacity and the use of simple cooling technology, mini refrigerators are usually much cheaper than other types of refrigerators.
- Low power consumption: Power consumption of compact fridge is lower than conventional fridge that can help to save electricity costs.
- Convenience: With a mini fridge in office, you can store coffee, milk, snacks or even lunch to help you well-fed and full of energy. throughout the day. It can also be used as bar fridge to keep drinks in bedrooms.
Disadvantages
- Limited choice: Compared to conventional fridges, mini fridges have fewer models and brands to choose.
- Small storage capacity: With small size, the mini refrigerator cannot store a lot of food and drinks.
- Less investment in technology: It seems that most mini fridges use direct cooling technology and do not have anti-freeze features. Also, the refrigerator is not equipped with antibacterial and deodorizing functions, so users need to clean the refrigerator manually.
What are compact fridge sizes?
Compact fridge is a usually designed with a small capacity from 0.14 cubic feet to 4.5 cubic feet that meets the needs of personal storage and cooling needs as well as suitable for small spaces like kitchens, offices, or bedrooms. Besides, there are some compact fridges with bigger capacity for customer’s demands.
The size ranges for compact fridges include:
Mini size (Less than 15″ H): 0.14 to 0.7 cubic feet.
Small size (15″ H – 30″ H): 1.7 to 3.2 cubic feet
Medium size (31″ H – 40″ H): 3.2 to 4.5 cubic feet
Large size (41″ H and above): over 5.0 cubic feet
Further reading: The Ultimate Guide to Compact Refrigerators
What to consider when choosing a new mini refrigerator
You may find it not easy to choose a compact fridge because of many types and features are available. Once you decide to buy new fridge, here are the factors you should take into consideration.
Where to place the mini fridge
You must decide what room to put the fridge and make sure you measure the area correctly to avoid the unpleasant result.
Some fridges can stand alone anywhere, others can be put on top of the cupboard, or some fridges are convenient when put under the desk.
What is the right size?
Refrigerator size also affects the quality and performance of your mini fridge, so choosing the right size is necessary. It depends on how much room is available and how much food or drink you are going to store.
Mini size fridges suit the specific type of drink and exact items they can store, like 6 cans or 24 bottles.
Small size refrigerators are perfect for narrow spaces and better options for storing a limited number of essential items.
Usually, refrigerators with medium size are preferred by many consumers because they are equipped with extra insulation to preserve food better.
What types of food and drink you are going to store
Some mini fridges are designed more suitable for particular types of drinks. For example, models with 3 shelves usually fit the canned beers and best as home bars.
With wine bottles, you need the deeper models that provide horizon storage.
If you want to store both food and drink, fridges which have cool compartments and freezer are good choice because they can fit different sizes and shapes.
What features you need in your mini fridge
It is highly recommended to buy the mini fridges with following characteristics.
- Separate freezer and cool compartments: This will help preserve food better, especially fresh foods or vegetables. At the same time, it also helps to avoid freezing when used with only one compartment.
- Preservation mode: This mode can help to slow down or stop most bacteria from spreading or multiplying in the fridge. The more you care about controlling temperature levels, the better your food will be preserved.
- Low noise level: Surely you will not want to buy a fridge that emits too much noise during operation, because it will significantly affect the quality of your sleep as well as the daily life of your family.
- Removable shelves: Refrigerators with removable shelves will help you easily clean and widen the space according to your purpose.
- With a lid for the shelves: Shelves equipped with lids will keep the flavors of foods longer and prevent their savor from mixing. This will make your mini refrigerator always clean and not haunted during storage.
- Shelves made of good materials: Some types of shelves made of tempered glass or super durable plastic will help you store more food as well as prevent food from falling during storage.
- Save the energy: Besides the diversity in features, a mini fridge with energy saving mode is also a good choice to consumers.
How is the budget?
In general, mini refrigerators do not differ much in price, but knowing your budget will help you balance financial plan and make use of your money most effectively.
Besides, you should consider the factors like electricity consumption and how the compartments are designed to make comparison and come to the right decision.
You may also like: Best Mini Fridge Under $200
FAQs
Does a mini fridge increase electric bill?
Yes, but not much. With common sizes from 1.7 cubic feet to 4.5 cubic feet, a compact fridge may raise the electric bill about 20 USD to 50 USD per year. However, it also depends on the insulation levels and your using habits.
How can you save power consumption for a mini fridge?
- Do not open and close the refrigerator too often. This will cause the cold air escape and the fridge will have to use more electricity to cool down the internal temperature.
- Adjust the cabinet temperature to the right level: Depending on the cooling and storage conditions, you can adjust the temperature at the most suitable level. You should read the instructions and use a thermometer.
- Never put hot food into the refrigerator: The heat will make the fridge use more power to cool the temperature.
- Do not place the refrigerator close to the wall: The fridge will not be ventilated well, then it will affect the cooling function and make the refrigerator more power consuming.
- Do not put too much food in the refrigerator: It will affect the circulation of air flows in the refrigerator.
- Clean the refrigerator regularly: This will help the refrigerator works better and more efficiently.
What are the best brands of compact fridges?
Top mini fridge brands as below:
- GE
- Magic
- Frigidaire
- Galanz
- Cooluli
- RCA
- Danby
These brands may have flexible warranty policies and attractive promotions.
Product recommendation
RCA RFR321
Dimensions: 20 x 18 x 32 inches
Capacity: 3.2 cubic feet
Weight: 45 pounds
Finish Type: Glossy
Energy Star: 5 Star
Inverter: Yes
This RCA mini fridge has many color varieties with different prices. Its inner space is about 3.2 cubic feet, and the freezer takes up 0.2 cubic feet.
The reversible door is the outstanding feature that makes it suitable for any location in your house. Additionally, RCA offers a compressor and adjustable thermostat so that you can change any setting easily.
It also has two durable wire shelves as well as door storage. Thus, the fridge is spacious enough to keep many kinds of items.
Galanz GLR46TRDER
Dimensions: 19.17 x 23.31 x 50.45 inches
Weight: 76.1 pounds
Form Factor: Stand Alone
Capacity: 4.6 Cubic Feet
Certification: Energy Star
Defrost: Partial auto defrost
Galanz offers several retro mini fridges in different colors such as white, red, black, blue, and green. It has only one drawer but up to 4 glass shelves to contain divided food simply. Besides, a side-out shelf can bring you more ways to arrange your food and drink options.
It is also easy to manage the temperatures with the knob in your fridge. Its temperatures range from – 32 to 42 degrees Fahrenheit for the cooling compartment and zero or below degrees for the freezer.
Additionally, this model is widely common for higher efficiency but lower consumption of energy. It means that it can make your food cool quickly with much lower energy.
Nostalgia Coca-Cola CRF32CK
Dimensions: 19 x 18.5 x 31.75 inches
Weight: 52 pounds
Capacity: 3.2 Cubic Feet
Defrost: Manual Defrost
Door Hinges: Left
Door Material: Plastic
Nostalgia offers you two removable glass shelves, door storage as well as an ice cube tray. And, it does support manual defrost instead of automatic option so this can become its big disadvantage.
One of the most impressive features of this mini fridge is that it has a unique handle on the plastic door designed as the classic Coca-Cola bottle. It would make your room more attractive and stunning.
Reference
1. Pros and Cons of Mini Fridge,
2. Things To Consider When Buying A Mini Fridge, Peyton Robinson, Sep. 04, 2020
