How to Clean Fridge Coils

You probably don’t spend a ton of time thinking about it, but your refrigerator is one of the most important appliances in your home.

Not only is your fridge important to preserve food and reduce waste, but replacing it is kind of expensive. It makes sense to take steps to keep yours running smoothly, and that involves taking care of your refrigerator coils.

Like many other appliances and items in your home, your fridge also needs regular maintenance to prevent future issues. It’s up there with cleaning your dryer vent and maintaining your HVAC system. It only takes you a bit of time, but saves you a lot of hassle in the long run.

What are fridge coils?

Refrigerator coils are small metal wires that run the length of your refrigerator and help to cool the food inside.

Dirty fridge coils can cause your food to spoil. When they’re caked with dirt and grime, they need to work harder and longer than they’re designed to. Long-term, this can cost you a lot in inefficiencies and even result in a broken fridge.

It goes without saying that cleaning your fridge coils just makes sense. So, let’s talk about how to clean them.

How to clean your fridge coils

Dirty fridge condenser coils aren’t efficient. 

When your fridge has to work harder, you waste more energy, shorten its life, and end up paying more on your bills. Luckily, cleaning your fridge coils isn’t hard. You only have to do it two or three times per year, and you shouldn’t have to hire a professional. 

But before you get started, you’ll want to gather:

• The vacuum
• Small brush
• Rag or cloth

1. Move and unplug the fridge

Before you can clean the fridge coils, you need to be able to access them. 

While it depends on your particular model of fridge, the coils are probably on the back or the bottom. It’s easy to locate the coils on the back, but it’s a tad bit more challenging if they’re on the bottom. There’s probably a panel that you can take off so you can vacuum them.

Before you do anything you should unplug your fridge. Once it’s unplugged you can slowly and gently move it away from the wall–you don’t want to damage your floor or the fridge. 

With the fridge moved away from the wall you can locate the coils. 

2. Vacuum the coils

Chances are you don’t want to spend your entire afternoon cleaning your fridge coils–that’s where the vacuum comes in. You can cut down on your cleaning time by first vacuuming the dust and dirt off the coils and surrounding area. 

The brush attachment of your vacuum cleaner will probably be the easiest tool for the job. However, you can find specific vacuum attachments that are made for cleaning fridge coils. 

You want to do this gently enough that you don’t break anything, but use enough force that you get the dirt off.

3. Brush off leftovers

Chances are your vacuum won’t get everything off the coils, so you’ll have to add a little elbow grease into the mix. You can use the coil brush to remove any debris that is stuck on there. In cases where this doesn’t work, you can use a slightly damp rag to help wipe off the extra dirt. 

By running over the area with a brush and cloth you can help reduce the amount of debris that accumulates between now and your next cleaning.

If you are dealing with a model that has the fridge condenser coils on the bottom, this step might be a tad more challenging. Make sure you’re careful, and use a flashlight to help you properly see.

4. Clean up

With the condenser coil clean, it’s time to clean up the area before you start putting things away. You already have the vacuum out, so put it to good use by giving the floor a once-over. There’s no need to push your fridge back over a pile of dirt!

5. Put everything back

Once you’ve vacuumed the area, it’s time to move the fridge back into place. Once again, you’ll want to do it carefully so you don’t damage anything. If your fridge has bottom condenser coils, make sure to replace the panel before you push the fridge back into place. Oh and don’t forget to plug the fridge back in, otherwise your ice cream will be soup soon!

Using your fridge properly

Cleaning your refrigerator coils can seem daunting, but it’s really not that hard. Taking these five simple steps two or three times per year can help ensure that your fridge is spic and span.

Clean fridge coils help you cut down the amount of energy you use, making your life a tad bit more sustainable. Not only that but staying on top of preventative maintenance can help make sure that you keep your fridge in working condition for as long as possible. This will save you money on energy consumption as well as delay that big ticket purchase for a new fridge in the future.

If your fridge is running smoothly, you have less chances of having your food spoil prematurely. This helps reduce food waste which is a huge issue in Canada. We love it when it’s a win win situation!

Need a nudge to remember household tasks like these? Download the GarbageDay app. We’ll send you a note about it as part of our seasonal reminders.