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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jul 2017
    Location
    USA
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    Turning Refrigerator Off in Hot Climate



    Refrig. repairman said we should not shut our refrig. off in hot climate. States that ***** runs about 5 lbs. of pressure when refrig. is running. When it is turned off and the doors left open and the house warms up to 95 to 100 inside the house that the ***** could increase to 160 lbs. of pressure and that could break lines. No one else has heard of this. Is this true?
    The house is using the humistat on the AC. When the humidity inside hits 65, the AC turns on and the temp is set at 70 degrees and runs until that temp is reached thereby reducing the humidity.



  2. #2
    Join Date
    Dec 2007
    Location
    australia
    Posts
    3,356
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    39

    Re: Turning Refrigerator Off in Hot Climate

    sunshinOH,
    He is right to a certain degree, as if turned of pressures will build up in evaporator or freezer compartment.
    Fridge components are designed to handle these pressures & more.
    The refrigerant used does not have high pressures.
    It does seem true in some cases that it is better to keep it running but set to a higher temperature in fridge section.
    New modern fridges only have a limited life these days, so it is what it is, so turn off, leave on, probably does not matter except to your power bill.
    Some moist areas where steel tube is may rust faster.
    Think of your car or house air con, it can be turned off in boiling weather & it survives.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Sep 2010
    Location
    Dorset
    Age
    76
    Posts
    209
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    Re: Turning Refrigerator Off in Hot Climate

    Yes the pressure could increase but the system pipework should be designed for ambient temperature changes.

    Check with the design specification of the unit.
    Brian, retired in Devon.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Aug 2006
    Location
    england
    Age
    49
    Posts
    3,874
    Rep Power
    46

    Re: Turning Refrigerator Off in Hot Climate

    I have seen it a couple of times in commercial kitchens when the refrigerators have been turned off during a deep clean of the kitchen only for them to fail to work when turned back on, one of these was due to a corrosion pin hole in the evaporator piping, the theory being it had corroded to being paper thin and the extra pressure that the system saw during the cleaning process was enough for the pinhole to burst and let the refrigerant out.
    Luckily I managed to repair this one and it has been working for a couple of years since. In the other case the refrigerator was replaced.
    Mostly found in Oxfordshire, UK :)

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