[Greenbuilding] Refrigerator cabinet?

[LarenCorie]

Ah! I think I heard my name...over the internet. :O)

 I first designed my Passive Annual Refrigerator
System, based on the historic temperature data
for my own climate, which is close to that of
Vermont, New Hampshire, upstate NewYork,
Wisconsin, Minnesota, the Dakotas, etc..  It
needed enough capacity to handle about six
month.   The rest of the time there should be
sub-freezing outdoor temperatures, so either
direct venting, or simply placing bottle out-
-doors, should suffice.

 Beside frozen water, there would be bottles
of brine solutions, so that the system could
serve as freezer, as well as the refrigerator.
This means that the storages would need
to be separated from each other.

  Cooling was to take place like in an
"Ice Cave" with passive natural venting
out the top.  The ideal location would be
at the bottom of valley, but I designed it
for the vent to be on top of insulated berms
around the ice storage.   Ground coupling
would serve to create a cooler environment
that summer air. The insulation would still
need to be a foot of dense packed cellulose.
My calculations suggested a 4ftx4t x8ft box.
I have written quite a bit on the subject,
which can be found in the opening posts of
the RefrigeratorAlternatives YahooGroup,
which I founded especially to archive
information on this general subject.  There
is a lot of very interesting stuff there.  The
group also covers natural air conditioning.

-Refrigerator Alternatives-
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/RefrigeratorAlternatives

  As for my own personal opinion of what is the best
way to go, for energy efficient refrigeration.     There
have been such impressive advances in the efficiency
of standard refrigerators, over the past fifteen year
(and continuing) that I no long feel that annual storage
is a practical approach.      Modern refrigerators are
using only $35 of electricity a year (with it going for
resistance space heating in the winter), and there are
design innovations that can improve that.   However,
there are still two strategies that I feel can work very
well, especially in colder climates.

      The first is venting.   This is particularly good in
houses that do not require conventional backup heating.
For houses that use conventional heat, the heat coming
off the condenser exactly equals the heat absorbed by
the refrigerator box, and the energy used to run the
compressor, is equal to its electrical input, in resistance
heating. However, a vented system effectively increases
the surface area of the house interior, that is exposed to
outdoor temperatures. When the door is opened it is like
opening an exterior door, and when the gaskets leak,
which happens 24/7, it is a heat loss to outdoors, instead
of an electric bill cost.  So, most of the grandiose claims
of saving for vented systems, fail to mention the increased
space heating loads, that they create.

  If we can call that strategy the "forced air" one,
then we might call the other one "hydronic" and it
also carries the same caveat about increasing the
space heating loads. This one is very simple. Place
Simply place a few two-liter soft drink bottles out-
-side your door, to freeze a night.    Placing them
inside of the refrigerator will keep it from turning
on as much.   However, be aware that when the
refrigerator does not turn on, the freezer usually
does not either. In very cold weather, this can be
done with brine bottles, for the freezer, but the
suggested freezer temperature is less than 5°F,
so the opportunity to use such a strategy is rare.
Freezer access is not needed as much as refrig-
-erator access.  If you have a separate freezer,
you probably do not need the one in the fridge
and can do without it during the winter months,
so the bottles on the porch, will work fine.

 What I am personally preparing, which
will not be attract to all that many people,
is that I simply unplug my compressor
refrigerator in winter, and then use it as
a convenient pantry during those months.
I am building a vented, well insulated,
cabinet, which is my winter refrigerator,
and my summer pantry. I will also have
a small vented freezer. which may actually
set, down between my floor joists, to save
space in my "LittleHouse". Both the freezer
and fridge will have space for a few two-liter
water/brine bottles, to carry the functionality
of the system into the milder months, when
ambient temperatures are not as consistently
cold.

-Laren Corie-
Natural Solar Building Designs, Since 1975
www.LarenCorie.com

-LittleHouses- http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LittleHouses

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