Fridge Thermodynamics: Why Does Room Heat?

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SUMMARY

When a refrigerator door is left open, the room heats up due to the refrigerator's mechanism of heat transfer. Refrigerators do not create coldness; instead, they extract heat from their interior and expel it at the back, resulting in a net increase in room temperature. This process is similar to household air conditioning systems, which require an external unit to release waste heat effectively. The operation of the refrigerator machinery also contributes additional heat to the room.

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  • Understanding of thermodynamics principles
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  • Knowledge of heat transfer mechanisms
  • Basic concepts of household HVAC systems
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This discussion is beneficial for students of physics, HVAC technicians, and anyone interested in understanding the principles of thermodynamics and heat transfer in household appliances.

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when we leave the door of a fridge open,the room heats(according to what i read).how does this happen?pls explain?
 
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Ever held your hand to the back of a refrigerator? It's warm, warmer than the air in the room.

A refrigerator doesn't create coldness, it moves heat around. To be precise, it takes heat from the inside of the refrigerator and pumps it out the back, thereby making the inside of the refrigerator colder. But it dumps this heat into the room, along with some extra heat generated by the working of the refrigerator machinery itself - and the net effect is to increase the total amount of heat in the room.

This is why household air conditioning systems, which are basically refrigerators used to cool the inside of a house, have to have an outside unit - they need to be able to dump the waste heat outside the house to do any good.
 

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