Selection Criteria for Beverage Coolers

Methodology

Topten.eu presents the most energy efficient beverage coolers on the European market. All listed products use natural climate-friendly refrigerants.

Scope

The beverage coolers listed:

• are plug-in cabinets (remote cabinets are not considered)
• have forced-air circulation or are capable of pulling down temperature within 4 hours, respectively
• are available on the European market

Technical criteria

All models on Topten.eu meet the following criteria:

• Natural refrigerant with global warming potential (GWP) ≤ 3 (e.g. R290/propane, R600a/isobutane, R744/CO2)
• Energy class B or better (maximum EEI of 20)
• The devices must not be ‘open’. This means they have doors or a lid.

Energy consumption

• According to the European standard for beverage coolers (EN ISO 22044)
• Measurement at CC1 (EN ISO 22044) / climate class 3 (EN ISO 23953) -> both at 25°C, 60% relative humidity
• Temperature class must be one of the following: K1, K2, K3 or K4 (EN 16902); M1 or M2 (EN ISO 23953)

Data sources

Data according to the above standards is provided by manufacturers.

Calculation of the energy efficiency index (EEI)

EEI = (AE/SAE)*100 = (TEC * 365 / ((M + N * Y) * 365 * P * C)) * 100

TEC = energy consumption over 24h
Veq = GrossVolume * ((25-Tc)/20) * CC with Tc and CC defined in the tables below

Order of presentation

Products are ranked according to energy efficiency index (EEI). The order of presentation can be changed by selecting the sort order on the top right above the lists.

Glossary

Brand, Model, Series products

Brand with link to website. All other models (different sizes etc.) that are named meet the Topten technical criteria as well and can be shown individually by checking the box "Show Series Products" on top of the list.

Electricity costs

Costs for electricity during product's life time. Assumptions:

• Typical life time: 8 years
• Annual energy consumption: Value from product list in kWh/year
• Tariff of electricity: 0.3 €/kWh (there however can be large differences depending on country or electrical utility)

Net volume, Gross volume

Net / gross volume in liters.

Storage temperatures

Storage temperature range in °C.

Temperature class

Temperatures measured inside the cabinet during the energy consumption test.

According to the EN ISO 22044 standard for beverage coolers:

Energy

Annual energy consumption in kWh/year. Accepted measuring protocols see above.

Refrigerant

• R600a (isobutane, natural climate-friendly refrigerant)
• R290 (propane, natural climate-friendly refrigerant)
• R744 (CO2, natural climate-friendly refrigerant)
• Inefficient models: R134a, R404A or R507 (fluorinated refrigerants with high global warming potential)

Cooling

• Static
• Forced-air

Ambient temperature

Suitable ambient temperature range in °C as recommended by the manufacturer.

Dimensions

Width x depth x height in cm.

Countries available

This item displays the availability of models in European countries according to producers’ information. "EU" means that the model is available in all or most European countries. If the model is available in a number of countries only they are indicated by country codes according to ISO. "On demand" means that producers could not indicate the availability and that consumers have to ask in their countries on their own.

Infoplus

Publications

• The first energy labels for professional cooling appliances - lessons learnt. Steffen Hepp, Maike Hepp. EEDAL 2022, Paper and presentation
• Topten Summary on Energy Labelling and Ecodesign Regulation for refrigerating appliances with a direct sales function, Nov. 2020
• Memo on product declaration to Topten
• ProCold Publishable Report, project results 2016-2018, July 2018
• ProCold Technical Report, market overview and development 2016-2018, April 2018
• Commercial and Professional Refrigeration Products: Promoting Energy Efficiency with Legislation, Empowered Stakeholders and Rebates. Eva Geilinger, Eric Bush. EEDAL 2015, presentation and paper

Standards and labels

• EN ISO 22044 Commercial beverage coolers - Classification, requirements and test conditions
• European Committee for Standardization (CEN) and European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization (CENELEC), CEN-CENELEC

Energy label and ecodesign requirements:

• Commission regulation (EU) 2019/2018 on energy labelling of refrigerating appliances with a direct sales function
• Commission regulation (EU) 2019/2024 with regard to Ecodesign requirements for refrigerating appliances with a direct sales function, 05.12.2019
• Topten Policy Recommendations for refrigerating appliances with a direct sales function from December 2018

Other public product lists with standard data:

• The Energy Technology List ETL: Product lists 'Professional Refrigerated Storage Cabinets' and 'Refrigerated Display Cabinets'.
• Energy Rating Australia / New Zealand: Product lists 'Commercial Refrigerators'

Links

• Energy efficiency measures by the European Commission.
• eceee, the European council for an energy efficient economy, provides a status overview on all products in the Ecodesign & Energy Labelling process.
• Coolproducts informs about the EU ecodesign process. It is a coalition of NGOs' campaign for a stronger, fast Ecodesign Directive to save the climate and money.
• ECOS (Ecostandard) is an international NGO with a network of members and experts advocating for environmentally friendly technical standards, policies and laws.
• EPREL (European Product Registry for Energy Labelling) is the European product database. Products with an energy label are registered in EPREL in order to provide consumers with detailed product information.

Manufacturers and dealers are kindly asked to contact info(at)topten.info to inform about more products meeting the Topten selection criteria.

• Topten Check Excel Display Cabinets - easy check and energy class calculation for appliances
• Submission Excel Display Refrigerators for manufacturers - list your efficient products on Topten

05/2025 Hepp