basskisser,
The voltage will drop over a long run, if you don't deliver enough
voltage you might burn out the motor. A #14 awg (15 amps) or #12 awg (20
amps) extension cord should be sufficient. Most of those cheat extension
cords are #16 or 18 awg.
Paul

"basskisser" wrote in message
om...
"Gary Warner" wrote in message
...
My folks picked up a free used refrigerator and want
to put it in their garage for use in the summer for
extra sodas, leftovers, etc.

When we put it where it fits best the cord will not
reach to the nearest outlet. On the cord there is
a warning label stating to always use a grounded
outlet and NOT to put an extension cord.

I have a heavy duty cord that is about 12 feet
long. The cord does have three wires in it and
it does have the third grounding pin. And the
outlet it will be going into is a properly grounded
three pin plug.

The cord seems heavy duty. It is the "flat type"
where you can see the three wires. (Not the
bare wire, but the you can clearly see the coating
where three seperate wires run.) And it is not
one of those cheap light duty cords.

I'm figuring that if the cord is heavy duty enough
to carry the current that a refrigerator can draw,
what is the harm in using it?

Is this just a warning to protect themselves legally
or is their some good reason to never use an
extension cord on a refrigerator??

Thanks,
Gary

It is my understanding that, given a long enough run, the amperage
will drop. I know that before I had a gas blower, my electric one
would work fine with a hundred foot, 12 gauge extension cord, but if I
used two of them, the motor would slow considerably. This effect might
cause the refrigerator motor to get hot?? I really don't think that
12' would be a problem, though!