With the growing popularity and number of warehouses that sell food in bulk, you
do not have to have a large family to require a freezer separate from the one integrated
into your refrigerator. Whether you buy food in bulk, have a hunter in the family,
or like to make dinners in advance and freeze them for ease and convenience, a separate
freezer will help tremendously in organizing your food storage. And with models
ranging from 2.2 cubic feet to 25 cubic feet, you can find the size and price that
is right for you.
What to Consider Before Buying a Freezer
There are two types of freezers: upright and chest. As you look at the two types
of freezers, it’s a good idea to know where you can put a freezer in your home,
its purpose, needed capacity, and to understand the amount of care and maintenance
required.
Where in your home do you have space for an additional freezer? Ideas include the
kitchen, a large pantry, the basement or garage. You often find built-in upright
freezers in the kitchen and the more utility-based chest freezer in a basement or
garage. Obviously the footprint of each are very different, with the upright having
a much smaller footprint, but more vertical space and the chest having a larger
footprint with less vertical space.
The next thing to consider is function. Will you use the freezer daily, once a week,
once a month? If it’s used daily, you want it to be as close to the kitchen as possible.
An upright freezer is more functional in that it has shelves and baskets for dividing
food and easy access. If you simply want to store meat or bulk items that are used
less frequently, then a chest freezer tucked away might just do the trick.
Now, for capacity, you can find various sizes in both types. 1 cubic foot equals
about 35 pounds of food, and most experts say that you should plan on 1.5 cubic
feet per member of your household.
Care and maintenance should also be considered. Whether it's stainless steel
or another exterior, be sure to have the right cleaner on hand for maintenance.
The type of defrost also affects how much maintenance
is required. Most high-end built-in models have a frost-free feature; equaling low
maintenance. On the other
hand, a chest freezer that has manual defrost is more maintenance intensive.
Upright Freezer
An upright freezer looks much like a refrigerator and takes up the same amount of
space, both in its footprint and vertical height. Upright freezers tend to be more
functional for everyday/weekly use than chest freezers. With upright freezers it’s
easier to see everything that is in the freezer and if you have a large enough kitchen
or pantry, you can easily keep it in that space.
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Chest Freezer
Chest freezers have a larger footprint, but do not take up as much vertical space.
They are more utility oriented and you often see them in garages and basements.
They are great for bulk food items and meats. Chest freezers may or may not come
with a basket, so to keep track of where things are; you need to be organized in
separating your own sections.
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Freezer Features
Lock
A lock is a good idea for a couple of different reasons.
One, if you have children, it will help keep small ones out of harm's way. In addition,
it ensures that the freezer is shut and sealed properly.
Interior Light
An interior light is nice especially in chest freezers
that are often stored in dark places like garages and basements.
Warranties
Standard warranties are around 10 years; but you can
find warranties that will cover expenses, if something were to go wrong and all
of your food spoiled.
Manual Defrost
Most chest freezers are manual defrost, which means
about every 6 months you need to remove the food and allow any built-up ice to melt.
This will contribute to the freezer running efficiently. You’ll want to make sure
that the melting ice has a place to flow—either through an attached hose to a basement
drain or outside.
Frost-Free
Frost-free freezers take care of the defrost cycle on
their own—automatically preventing ice from building up. You never have to worry
about freezer burn with a frost–free freezer. If you don’t have a frost-free freezer
there are other measures you can take to prevent freezer burn; like wrapping food
in aluminum foil and protecting it with bags designed for the freezer.
Energy Efficiency
If you are mindful of how much energy you and
your family uses, then you want to pay attention to making sure you buy a model
that will meet your energy efficient standards. Manual defrost models use about
40% less electricity than frost-free models. Other factors that affect the energy
cost of a freezer include how much food you have in it (they operate best when 2/3
full), and how long you keep the door open when retrieving food.
Fast Freeze Section
Many of the newer, advanced models have a fast
freeze section; this is a section in the freezer to use when you’re putting in newly
prepared or purchased food. This helps preserve the quality of the food and ensures
that the interior temperature of the freezer does not become too warm. Some of the
more elite models have a sensor that will kick-in if the temperature reaches a certain
point and automatically goes into fast freeze mode.
Adjustable Temperature Control
Freezers are often equipped with
an adjustable temperature control on the inside of the freezer, but some of the
newer, more expensive models have exterior thermometers so that you can easily keep
tabs on the freezer's temperature.
Price Ranges
Depending on the type of freezer and your capacity needs, freezers can range from
affordable to expensive. Upright freezers are typically more expensive than chest
freezers, but they are also more convenient. But chest freezers have their own set
of pros, like their ability to hold large amounts of bulk food and they are more
energy efficient.
You can find additional freezing space for under $250. For example, Silver King
has a small cube front loading freezer that is well insulated for under $100. This
might be perfect for a home bar area, office, or child’s dorm room.
Move into the $500 to $1000 price range to find standard features like frost free,
adjustable thermostat, fast freeze, interior lights, and large upright freezers.
Woods has a 20.1 cubic foot upright freezer with all of these features for under
$800.
Perhaps you’re buying for a restaurant or you like to be able to see what you have
in the freezer without opening it. Arctic Air has a glass top chest freezer for
under $1000.
If you like the glass top idea, but want to step it up a bit, Summit has a deluxe
chest freezer with a manual defrost unit and glass top for just over $1000. In the
$1000 to $2500 price range you also start seeing more stainless steel exteriors
and interiors. Perhaps you like the footprint of a chest freezer, but prefer the
layout of an upright; for just over $2000, Coldtech has a stainless steel freezer
that looks like a chest freezer, but is front loading with shelves.
In the $2500 to $5000 price range you start seeing both commercial type freezers
and custom built-in freezers for the home. Thermador has a built-in freezer with
internal ice maker, and super freeze function; with custom wood paneling to match
cabinetry. This price is just over $3000. Viking makes a beautiful professional
series stainless steel built-in freezer for just under $5000. This type of built-in
is for a professional or custom, gourmet home kitchen.
Smaller than the Viking professional series, but just as elegant and functional,
is the built-in by Northland with stainless steel interior shelves and door bins.
It also includes interior lighting and is just over $5000.
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