If you have thoughts about buying a refrigerator, you just need to know what the No Frost system, so often voiced by home appliance managers, is. What this means can be understood even from a literal translation.
So, No Frost is translated into Russian as "no frost". That is, during the operation of the refrigerator, a snow-ice cap will not form on the internal surfaces, which must be manually chipped off and removed from the freezer. But such an ice build-up 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, and therefore an ice cap, does not form at all in refrigerators of the No Frost system.
In fact, everything happens differently. So, warm and humid air inside the room, getting into the freezer of the refrigerator is absolutelyof any system, condenses and cools, turning into frost. That is, no matter what technology is used (be it Frost Free, No Frost or Full no Frost), frost will still form. It's just that the above types of refrigeration equipment use state-of-the-art evaporator defrosting systems.
Main differences between No Frost freezers
No Frost freezers have a number of differences from refrigerators that use a conventional refrigeration system. The main distinguishing feature is the absence of an evaporator (air cooler) in frost-free devices, which is usually located only in the freezer of a conventional refrigerator and is a metal plate of small thickness.
In drip, there is no evaporator in the refrigerator. I immediately remember the “beautiful” moments of defrosting 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, both equipment systems need to be considered in more detail.
Structure of drip defrosting refrigerators
This type of refrigerator is one of the most common today. In this system, the main part of the air cooler is in the freezer compartment, and its auxiliary part is in the medium temperature compartment.
Auxiliary evaporator, often referred to as the evaporator blade, can be located directly on the rear surfacecamera (regular type), or be built into it (recessed type).
The mechanism of operation of refrigerators with a drip system
In this type of equipment, the freezer is defrosted manually. That is, about once every six months (very rarely compared to old-style refrigeration units), the user will have to defrost an icy freezer on their own.
The defrosting of the refrigeration pad of the medium temperature compartment is automatic. The compressor of the refrigeration system has two cycles of operation: active and passive phases. During the active phase, the compressor works, and the petal is cooled. In this case, an ice crust forms on its surface. When the temperature in the compartment has reached the required level, the compressor is switched 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 will flow through special channels into a container above the compressor, from which it will subsequently evaporate.
The structure of refrigerators using the No Frost system
The main structural difference between the "stuffing" 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, it has the shape of a coil with ribs.
Also uses special treatmentventilation in refrigerators of the No frost system. What does it mean? Each representative of this system has a built-in fan that drives warm air through special channels to the evaporator, and then the already cooled air back to the refrigerator. This is the highlight that distinguishes No frost refrigerators from drip counterparts.
No Frost mechanism
As with the old defrost system, frost will also form on the No Frost freezer evaporator. 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) turn on, which defrost the existing ice layer and remove the liquid from 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 they are built on the same principle as No Frost. What are these developments, we will consider later in the article.
The Frost Free system uses elements of both No Frost and drip defrost. So, the freezer has a fan coil (No Frost), while the medium temperature compartment has a petal evaporator element.
Full no Frost features two completely separate defrosting systemsevaporator, one for each functional compartment of the refrigerator (freezer and medium temperature).
That is, both systems use the same No Frost technology, only in different forms and volumes.
Sometimes you have to hear from your friends that they will not buy a refrigerator with the No Frost system, that this is a 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 defrost system.
Positive aspects of using No Frost refrigerators
1. Food freezing occurs at a very high speed. Many models have an instant freeze function (for example, LG No Frost).
2. Thermoregulation in the refrigerator takes place at a high speed. That is, for such a unit, frequent opening of the door or loading a large amount of non-cold products will not be a problem.
3. In contrast to the drip system, the temperature difference throughout the entire volume of the freezing chamber or 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. A user, for example, SAMSUNG No Frost, does not need to spend his time and effort on the laborious defrosting of the refrigerator freezer with his own hands.
Problems when operating refrigerators No Frost
1. When using this system, the internal volume of the cooled chamber is somewhat reduced.
2. because ofconstant operation of the fan reduces the humidity of the air inside the chamber, which threatens to weather the products. However, this can be easily avoided by using special containers or cling film for packaging products.
3. Slight increase in noise when using refrigeration equipment.
4. Increased 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 at all.
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 is formed 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 is turned off and the cooling is suspended. When operating refrigerators equipped with this system, you will never have snow in the freezer. So, if you 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 willtake into account all your wishes and functional needs. After all, a refrigerator is a technique that will serve faithfully for more than one year.
