If you have thoughts about buying a refrigerator, you just need to know what the No Frost system is so often voiced by home appliance managers. What this means can be understood, even based on a literal translation.
So, No Frost is translated into Russian as "without hoarfrost." That is, during the operation of the refrigerator, a snow-ice cap will not form on the inner surfaces, which must be manually chipped off and removed from the freezer. But such an ice outgrowth has an extremely negative effect on the freezing qualities of the chamber and significantly increases the energy consumption of the refrigerator.
No Frost system - what is it?
A large number of users and potential buyers of household appliances think that frost, therefore, the ice cap in the refrigerators of the No Frost system does not form at all.
In fact, everything happens differently. So, warm and humid indoor air, falling on the freezer of the refrigerator of absolutely any system, condenses and cools, turning into frost. That is, no matter what technology is used (whether it be Frost Free, No Frost or Full no Frost), frost will still form. It’s just that the above types of equipment cooling use ultra-modern evaporator thawing systems.
The main differences between No Frost freezers
No Frost freezers have a number of differences from refrigerators that use a conventional cooling system. The main distinguishing feature is the absence of an evaporator (air cooler) in non-linear devices, which is usually located only in the freezer of a conventional refrigerator and is a metal plate of small thickness.
In the droplets, however, there is no evaporator in the refrigerator. I immediately recall the “beautiful” moments of the defrosting of the refrigerator with puddles on the floor and frozen hands.
Therefore, buyers of household appliances have a question: "Which of the refrigerators is more practical: drip or No Frost?" Therefore, it is necessary to consider in more detail both systems of equipment.
The structure of refrigerators with drip thawing
This type of refrigerator is one of the most common today. In this system, the main part of the air cooler is located in the freezer, and its auxiliary part is in the medium temperature compartment.
The auxiliary evaporator, often referred to as the petal of the evaporator, can either be located directly on the rear surface of the chamber (conventional type) or mounted in it (recessed type).
The mechanism of operation of refrigerators with a drip system
In this type of equipment, the freezer is defrosted in manual mode. That is, about once every six months (very rarely compared to old-type refrigeration units ), the user will have to defrost an icy freezer on his own.
Thawing of the petal of the cooling system of the medium temperature compartment occurs automatically. The compressor of the refrigeration system has two cycles of operation: active and passive phases. During the active phase, the compressor runs and the lobe cools. In this case, an ice crust forms on its surface. When the temperature in the compartment has reached the required level, the compressor switches off. The evaporator will begin to heat up under the influence of air from the working chamber of the refrigerator compartment (the temperature in the working chamber never drops below zero), respectively, the ice on its surface will melt. Melted moisture flows through special tubules into a container above the compressor, from which it subsequently evaporates.
The structure of refrigerators that use the No Frost system
The main structural difference between the “filling” of the anti-icing system is the structure of the evaporator itself. Most often, it is located either in a special recess or on the back wall of the freezer compartment, has the shape of a coil with ribs.
A special ventilation mode is also used in No frost refrigerators. What does it mean? Each representative of this system has a built-in fan, which drives warm air through special channels to the evaporator, and then cooled down - back to the refrigerator. This is the highlight that No frost refrigerators differ from drip counterparts.
Mechanism of operation No Frost
As with the old defrost system, frost will also form on the evaporator of the NoFrost freezer. However, a constructive solution of the following kind was invented: a special electric heater is used to periodically defrost the evaporator system. So, every 10-12 hours, the compressor turns off and the heating elements (thermal electronic heaters) are turned on, which defrost the existing layer of ice and remove the liquid outside the freezer. If a fan is installed on the evaporator, it will be called an air cooler.
Features of Frost Free and Full no Frost systems
These systems have some technological differences, but are built on the same principle as No Frost. What are these developments, we will consider further in the article.
The Frost Free system uses elements of both No Frost and drip defrosting. So, a coil with a fan (No Frost) is installed in the freezer, while an element of a flap evaporator is installed in the medium temperature chamber.
A feature of Full no Frost is the presence of two completely separate evaporator thawing systems, one for each functional chamber of the refrigerator (freezer and medium temperature).
That is, both systems use the same No Frost technology, only in different shapes and volumes.
Sometimes you hear from your friends that they will not buy a refrigerator with the No Frost system, that this is an extra waste of money. However, in order to evaluate all the pros and cons of this technology, it is advisable to compare it with a traditional drip defrosting system.
Positive points of using No Frost system refrigerators
1. Food freezes at a very high speed. Many models have an instant freeze function (for example, in LG No Frost).
2. Thermoregulation in the refrigerator takes place at a high speed. That is, for such an aggregate it will not be a problem to frequently open the door or load a large number of non-cold products.
3. In contrast to the drip system, the temperature difference over the entire volume of the freezing chamber or a chamber with a medium temperature regime is extremely low and amounts to approximately one degree.
4. The most important plus, of course, is the automatic defrosting of the evaporator. The user, for example, SAMSUNG No Frost does not need to spend his time and energy on the time-consuming defrosting of the refrigerator freezer with his own hands.
Problems Using No Frost Refrigerators
1. When using this system, the internal volume of the cooled chamber is slightly reduced.
2. Due to the continuous operation of the fan, the humidity inside the chamber decreases, which threatens the weathering of the products. However, this can be easily avoided by using special containers or cling film for packaging products.
3. A slight increase in noise when using refrigeration equipment.
4. The increase in energy costs due to the need to ensure the operation of the air cooler motor. However, in the total amount of electricity consumed per apartment, this increase is almost imperceptible.
5. Refrigerators of this type are more saturated with technical elements, which theoretically can affect their reliability. But this is not necessary.
conclusions
Despite the fact that the system is called No Frost, it does not mean the complete absence of frost in the refrigerator. It is simply hidden from the user's eyes and forms behind the back wall on the evaporator. Once or twice a day, the ice is thawed by using a special electric heater, which is located under the evaporator or directly on it. When the temperature reaches a certain level, the compressor shuts off and cooling stops. When operating refrigerators equipped with this system, you will never have snow in the freezer. So, if you have a need to purchase refrigeration equipment, you just need to read the contents of this article again, weigh all the pros and cons of each type of equipment and make a decision that will take into account all your wishes and functional needs. After all, a refrigerator is a technique that will faithfully serve more than one year.