Appliances eat up a lot of your household’s energy- especially refrigerators. There are several things you can do to make sure your fridge is running efficiently and not using up more energy than it needs.

1. Give your fridge some breathing room. One of the easiest things you can do to increase efficiency is make sure there are a few inches between the wall and the refrigerator. This will keep air circulating around the condensing coils.

2. Keep the coils clean. Dust, dirt and pet hair can clog the coils and prevent them from working efficiently. To clean them, simply remove or flip up the grill. Use your vacuum cleaner’s brush attachment to gently remove any debris. Check your owner’s manual for details. If you have lots of pets you may want to do this step more often.

3. Check the temperature. If your fridge is too cold, you could be wasting energy. The recommended temperature is between 37 and 40 degrees Fahrenheit. The freezer should be set to about 5 degrees.