Thinking of getting a freezer

[modhatter]

I have been contemplating getting a freezer. I have a second refrigerator, but could still use more freezer space.
Have gotten into making home made soups and other meals that I'd like to store and not have to cook every night. Also could take better advantage of sales and bulk buying.

I like the idea of an upright because of convenience and are usually frost free (but more expensive and use considerably more electric) I'm wondering how many of you have a separate freezer and if so what size and what kind. Also, any input to help me make up my mind?

 

[Khan]

Had a separate freezer for a while. But now with only one person found it not worth electric cost.

 

[Gumby]

The young wife and I got this small upright freezer last year. Danby DUF408WE 4.2 cu. ft. Upright Freezer with 2 Wire Shelves, 3 Door Shelves, Manual Defrost, Mechanical Thermostat and Scratch Resistant Worktop
We got a $50 government funded energy efficient rebate, but I don't know if the program is still going.


We keep the new freezer in the garage, although would easily fit in the house if we needed to put it inside. Now that we have it, we can buy the larger, more economical packages of chicken breast, pork chops etc. when they are on special sale. We break them up into one meal-sized portions, rewrap them and freeze them. We also make our own soups and casseroles in larger portions and freeze some for later. And, of course, there's more room for the ice cream.

 

[RAE]

I have two freezers, a big chest freezer and an upright freezer. We freeze a lot of garden produce, and also a lot of meat (wild game, lamb that we buy from a nearby farmer, etc). I definitely prefer the chest freezer. It's more frost free than the upright, and it's not that difficult to keep things organized in it (there are seperate sections with wire baskets). One thing about a chest freezer is that once the lid is down, it's definitely closed (and sealed). With the upright, more than once I have gone to get something out only to discover that the door wasn't completely closed earlier by someone (kids, in our case), and of course the freezer then ran all night and accumulated a ton of frost to clean out (not to mention the half-thawed out food). Not much fun. If I just needed one small freezer, I would get one of the small chest models. They make some really nice ones that are relatively inexpensive, and relavitely low-cost to operate.

 

[REWahoo]

We had a small chest freezer for years. DW talked me into keeping the old refrigerator when we purchased a new one and I agreed on the condition we 86'd the separate freezer. The problem we had was filling it with leftovers and bargain buys then forgetting what was buried below the top two layers.

 

[KB]

I have a 14 cu foot upright frost free from Sears. I replaced my old one with this almost 7 years ago. There are 2 of us and occasionally a 3rd eating here. I freeze a lot of soups and buy in bulk. I've been freezing multiple gallons of milk lately since I'm trying to go to the store only a couple of times a month.

I think when both kids move out, I might only use the freezer in my side by side fridge. But until them, I really get a lot of use out of my freezer.

 

[NW-Bound]

I have been contemplating getting a freezer. I have a second refrigerator, but could still use more freezer space.

Am I the lone dissenter here?

I have two refrigerators. The main one in the kitchen is 32 cu.ft. The smaller one in the utility room is 25 cu.ft. Between these two, I suspect we need to organize an archaeological campaign to see what is stored in the back of their freezer compartments. I really want to get rid of the smaller and older refrigerator, but run into resistance from my wife.

In this suburb of a metropolitan area, within 5 mi from home, we have 6 or 7 large grocery chains whose competition means we have constant sales every week of the year. There is really no need for us to stock up, I keep telling my wife.

Your mileage of course varies.

 

[LOL!]

We don't have a big fridge and we don't have a freezer. We just don't have any need. We don't like to cook every night, so we get take-out. I expect that our take-out costs less than a freezer and the electricity to run it amortized over 15 years. If food isn't worth eating in 3 days, it ain't worth freezing either.

Every now and then, someone will give us something frozen like championship steer parts from the rodeo. We just grill 'em and eat 'em that week.

Sometimes a hurricane causes folks to lose electricity. That's when we hear about all the non-savings that folks have with freezers. It's amazing what thaws and is never eaten.

 

[youbet]

Am I the lone dissenter here?

I have two refrigerators. The main one in the kitchen is 32 cu.ft. The smaller one in the utility room is 25 cu.ft. Between these two, I suspect we need to organize an archaeological campaign to see what is stored in the back of their freezer compartments. I really want to get rid of the smaller and older refrigerator, but run into resistance from my wife.

In this suburb of a metropolitan area, within 5 mi from home, we have 6 or 7 large grocery chains whose competition means we have constant sales every week of the year. There is really no need for us to stock up, I keep telling my wife.

Your mileage of course varies.

No, you're not the only dissenter. We get by fairly well with just the freezer in our typical freezer-on-top refridgerator. It only gets tight in the autumn when we typically have 20 - 30 lbs of walleye filets in there.

Admittedly we live in suburbia and within 2 - 3 miles of at least a half dozen major gorcery stores and dozens of specialty shops. I'm an informed shopper and seldom need to look hard for bargains at any time of year. And I'm a flexible meal planner and enjoy going with the seasons.

I'm sure if we lived in a more rural area where it is more difficult to shop we'd feel differently, but not here.

 

[freebird5825]

I have a standard kitchen refrigerator with small freezer on top and refrig on bottom. I use the small freezer for short term storage items and leftovers.

I have a standard single door upright in the garage (insulated and part of the raised ranch style house). I keep it at -5F for long term storage of bulk purchase items like meat, fruit, bread and rolls, butter, cheese, etc. All bulk items are divvied up and stored in quart size Ziplocs or plastic containers. Every package is dated. I put newer items in the back and move older to the front.

I move small portions of deep freeze items to the smaller one as needed. That means I open the door to the deep freezer very infrequently.

Both are low cost no frills Kenmore freezers.

 

[youbet]

bulk purchase items like meat, fruit, bread and rolls, butter, cheese, etc.

What do you do with all that? Unless you have a platoon of new recruits from the local military base stopping by for dinner every night, it sounds like you're trying to limit shopping to one trip a year....... I enjoy prowling around the markets for meal ideas.

With just DW and myself at home, I make one trip per week (or so) for fresh dairy, baked goods, fruit and veggies. Anything low in the freezer or pantry gets replinished then.

Not saying that what you're doing isn't the right thing for you, just that I can't imagine making bulk purchases for just the two of us. As it is, I need to dig around every couple of months and make sure I'm not overlooking items in the freezer or pantry that are getting old.

 

[FUEGO]

No, you're not the only dissenter. We get by fairly well with just the freezer in our typical freezer-on-top refridgerator.

Another dissenter. We have a family of 4 (2 young kids). In spite of that, we still don't go through the bulk food items to justify the cost of a deep freeze (mainly $75-100/yr in electricity). And more importantly, the frozen food we already buy gets at risk of freezer burn most times we buy it (on sale, of course). Sales run frequently enough that we don't have to stock up much. And in our regular freezer, we can store quite a bit of food. Right now we have 6 lb shrimp, 8 lb BBQ (homemade), 2 lb butter curry chicken, 1 lb fish, 3 lb chicken breasts, 5 lb cooked pumpkin, 3 lb taco meat, 4 lb sausage patties, 8 lb assorted vegetables, plus a bunch of convenience foods (meatballs, chicken nuggets, corn dogs, frozen pizza, french fries, tater tots). And other stuff I'm forgetting. The point is that we already fit more than 1-2 months worth of meat into our existing partially filled freezer that is part of our regular fridge (22 cu ft combined IIRC). I would have a hard time cycling through any more frozen food if we had more space. Most likely, any cost savings would be lost from spoiled food. Who wants six month old freezer burnt chicken or veggies or steak?

And we like to not feel like we constantly have to eat the frozen food we have at home. If we are out and see a good deal on some fresh meat or seafood, we can buy it and cook it fresh and not fret over "rotating stock". No worries that we are indulging in, say, fresh pork tenderloin as the three month old chicken breasts turn 4, then 5, then get tossed out.

 

[Sue J]

My in-laws gave us an upright freezer as a gift about 20 years ago. MIL always had one and used it a lot with a family of 7. I kept it in the basement and tried to use it but it just wasn't needed. When she'd come to visit I'd go out and buy some things to make it look like we used it all the time.

We ended up giving it to DHs brother and SIL. They paid for us to rent a trailer and we drove it out to them, two states away. She is a chef and they do catering. I think they use it and appreciated it more than we did and we got to keep it in the family.

I have a normal sized freezer on my refrigerator and I buy some meats in family sized packs or when it's marked down and I vacuum pack it with a Foodsaver. Things last a long time with that.

 

[Dimsumkid]

We have 2 freezers, 18 cu ft Whirlpool upright frost free from 1991, came with the house and the door gasket is a little off at the bottom, so I push my bowling ball against it to keep it secure. The other we got about 6 months ago during the govt rebate program, it's a 16 cu ft Frigidaire chest, not frost free but the energy cost is around $36/yr. There's only 3 of us and we have trouble not keeping them full. Keeps the food costs down for sure. We bought the new one because our original upright frost free (also Whirlpool and dated 1991) started making all kinds of noises and I noticed the energy draw was really high, so we traded it to the electric company for a $25 check.

We were doing bad things like loading up on free bread when they ran a special here, so we got over 30+ loaves of whole grain breads that we stuffed in there from this summer. Everytime there's a good meat sale, we load up too. When 5lbs of ricotta goes on sale, I buy use what I need and freeze the rest. With a kid in school, every little bit counts.

I think you can tell with 2 old 1991 Whirlpool units, I got really good use and no trouble from them, other than 1 finally having a compressor issue, but it last longer than most cars do. The Frigidaire is new, but I think the build quality is lower than the Whirlpools. Just make sure to get the best energy efficient unit for the type you want to buy. We got the chest type because we figure we'd defrost maybe 2 times at most per year.

 

[NW-Bound]

Another dissenter. We have a family of 4 (2 young kids). In spite of that, we still don't go through the bulk food items to justify the cost of a deep freeze (mainly $75-100/yr in electricity). And more importantly, the frozen food we already buy gets at risk of freezer burn most times we buy it (on sale, of course). Sales run frequently enough that we don't have to stock up much. And in our regular freezer, we can store quite a bit of food. Right now we have 6 lb shrimp, 8 lb BBQ (homemade), 2 lb butter curry chicken, 1 lb fish, 3 lb chicken breasts, 5 lb cooked pumpkin, 3 lb taco meat, 4 lb sausage patties, 8 lb assorted vegetables, plus a bunch of convenience foods (meatballs, chicken nuggets, corn dogs, frozen pizza, french fries, tater tots). And other stuff I'm forgetting. The point is that we already fit more than 1-2 months worth of meat into our existing partially filled freezer that is part of our regular fridge (22 cu ft combined IIRC). I would have a hard time cycling through any more frozen food if we had more space. Most likely, any cost savings would be lost from spoiled food. Who wants six month old freezer burnt chicken or veggies or steak?

Oh man! I was thinking about showing your post to my wife and said "Honey, let's go do a similar inventory of our [-]freezer burnt[/-] wonderful frozen food that YOU got on sales [-]in 2000[/-]", but then decided against it. We have no idea what is in the two refrigerators of ours. My wife claims she does, but if I say I suspect she doesn't, well, you know...

Would not want to start up a fight on a day just after New Year Day.

 

[kumquat]

We have two freezers, one a chest and one an upright. We got the chest about 30 years ago when our first kid was born. Great to be able to buy in bulk, keep stuff, make things out of leftovers etc.

We got the upright about 15 years ago when our kids (and their friends) were eating us out of house and home. Still a good idea. If you are consuming in bulk, buy in mega-bulk.

Now we are DCKF (dumb couple kid free) but still have both and both are full. We like to buy bargains (50% off steaks that might be slightly discoloured) and pop them in the freezer. Trouble is, we buy more than we can eat and sometimes it gets freezer burn. Easy to handle, freezer burned food can be turned into soup and still taste ok. Now freezer is filled with uneaten soup AND more bargains.

It gets to the point where DW will ask "do we have a beef roast in the freezer?". I'll say "I think so" and have a look. I can't get to the bottom and say "can't find one, I'll go get one". So, I go to the store, find a few on sale, buy them, eat one and the freezer is even more filled with stuff we may never eat.

I'd buy a SMALL upright. Small so that you don't do what we do, upright because it's easier to find stuff. YMMV.

 

[NW-Bound]

I didn't know you need freezers up there. I thought as long as it was left outdoors, it would be frozen, and only needed protection from the polar bears.

 

[kumquat]

I didn't know you need freezers up there. I thought as long as it was left outdoors, it would be frozen, and only needed protection from the polar bears.

Good point. Freezers are the only thing those damn bears can't get into. BTW, we have to plug the damn things in for about 3 months every year.

 

[chris2008]

We are 2 persons and have a chest freezer.
IMO the key is "know your lifestyle" and good organisation.
I like cooking and things like roasts, soups, shaghetti sauces, stews, casseroles are better to be made in large portions. So we cook and freeze a lot.

DH comes home for lunch regularly while I am back for dinner.
Our freezeer gives us lots of food choices for lunch and dinner and we hardly ever buy take out or convenience food.
When we eat out we go for something that cannot be made at home in same or better quality.

We have the chest freezer completely filled with baskets in 3 layers and use these for organisation (one b. for bread, one for soups, one for fruit...). We label every item properly.
We also have a list of the freezer content outside on the lid of the freezer. Whenever something goes into it, we make an entry on the list, including the freezing date. Whenever something goes out, we cross it out on the list. So we do not have to dive into the freezer to make our choices.
2x per year we do a quick inventory and print out a new list. It only takes 30 min. and prevents forgotten treasures...

 

[bruce1]

I am trying to cut down from 2 to one freezer. I have 12 cubic foot that is four years old and an old 8 cu foot. Every summer I freeze much fruit and some veggies. Then I put a dozen or so free range chickens that are the size of small turkeys in. Add some on sale beef and pork and I have two full freezers. Just remembered some frozen Black Currents that I am supposed to convert to Jam. May be Thursday's job. Breakfast Friday will be good.

 

[travelover]

No freezer here, but we did just buy a larger refrigerator, which seems more than large enough, including the freezer section.

One thing that surprised me was how much refrigerator efficiency has increased since we bought the old refrigerator in 1987. Power usage is about 1/3 the old one. So if you have an old fridge grinding away in a basement or garage, you might find that you are wasting a lot of electricity.

 

[modhatter]

Well. Some very diverse opinions. Now I'm really confused!
Anyone have both a chest type and a stand up want to offer an opinion of which one you prefer and use most? I know it's energy costs versus convenience I guess.

 

[Rustic23]

We have a 14 cf upright Frigidaire. We use it a lot! However, we live 30 miles from the closest Walmart, and fifteen miles from the closest grocery store. We buy in bulk. We do, however, tend to loose things amongst the clutter now and then.

 

[REWahoo]

One thing that surprised me was how much refrigerator efficiency has increased since we bought the old refrigerator in 1987. Power usage is about 1/3 the old one. So if you have an old fridge grinding away in a basement or garage, you might find that you are wasting a lot of electricity.

+1

There was a big effort in the early 90's to improve refrigerator efficiency and what you buy today will use half or less the energy of a fridge made before 1990.

 

[kumquat]

Well. Some very diverse opinions. Now I'm really confused!
Anyone have both a chest type and a stand up want to offer an opinion of which one you prefer and use most? I know it's energy costs versus convenience I guess.

See post 16.