Terry Coombs wrote:

> On 9/1/2019 12:05 PM, jmcquown wrote:
> > Okay, whatever type of freezer works for you, chest or upright,
> > works for you.Â* My upright freezer is about 13 cu. ft. (I'm
> > slightly taller than it is).Â* It's a Fridgidaire and I paid about
> > $400 for it.Â* No drawers but plenty of storage on both the door
> > and on the wire shelves. There's a basket in the bottom that holds
> > a bag of ice and I store loaves of bread down there, too.Â* IIRC I
> > bought it from Lowe's.
> >
> > Here's a rare glimpse of what's in my freezer:
> >
> > https://i.postimg.cc/MpVF0yR4/freezer-inside.jpg
> >
> > And some of the stuff on the shelves on the door:
> >
> > https://i.postimg.cc/13mvFLmg/freezer-door.jpg
> >
> > Butter, cheeses, a carton of cream.
> >
> > Seems like the longest time I've spent with the freezer door open
> > and cold spilling out was the time it took to take these pictures.
> > LOL
> >
> > Jill
> >
>
> Â* Jill , it's nearly empty ! You might want to put some jugs of water
> in there to freeze . They act as a thermal storage mass and will
> moderate the temp swings and will probably lower the electricity
> usage of the freezer . A full freezer actually uses less electricity
> ... ours is stuffed with meat and a few bags of frozen
> berries/muscadines .

True for efficiency. We deliberately lighten the load come hurricane
season so now with Dorian expected to make us wet and windy (no worse
in Virginia Beach expected for now), we added jugs of water.

Here's an old trick. Take a mug and fill it 3/4 with water. Freeze it
solid. Once solid, add a quarter on top. If the quarter sinks, you
have some level of food spoilage. If it hits the bottom, toss it all.