An Australian inventor, Tom Chalko, has converted a deep freezer into an incredibly efficient refrigerator.
Although not a new idea to have a fridge in this sort of format as we’ve seen fridges in a “drawer” format before and, before the global economy collapsed, F&P were intending to launch something along these lines, this is proof (to us) that better insulation equals better energy efficiency.
Most fridges waste at least 30 kwh of energy a month – this usually occurs when the door is opened.
Cold air trapped inside is heavier, and falls to the floor as the door is opened, leading to the empty space being filled with warm air. With Chalko’s top-loading device, gravity keeps the cold air inside the fridge, even when the door is kept open.
We’d also imagine that the much thicker insulation used for a freezer normally and, especially a chest freezer, is a massively contributing factor. But, don’t expect it to fit into a standard sized European kitchen space.
There would also have to be some sort of clever basket or storage system to enable people to store different foods at the correct temperature and humidity, that could prove a challenge.
Chalko’s chest fridge apparently only needs to run for about 90 seconds a day (using 100 watts of power) to maintain normal temperatures. That’s as much power that a 100 w light bulb burns in one hour.