Trying to get a consensus of what you guys recommend for
food storage.

Thanks,

Jim

Jim wrote:
> Trying to get a consensus of what you guys recommend for
> food storage.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Jim
>
I have a frost free upright that takes up very little room in our
pantry. We like it quite well and it holds about 14 cubic feet of food.
I've had both frost free and the regular and got really tired of
defrosting the other type. We've also had both upright and chest,
ranging from 5 cubic feet to 30 cubic feet and, in our elder years, have
settled on the 14 cf upright as being handiest. YMMV

George

In article >,
Jim > wrote:

> Trying to get a consensus of what you guys recommend for
> food storage.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Jim

Consensus? There's a joke. "-)
I have an upright that I defrost once a year. I have memories of my mom
standing on her head to get into the bottom of the big chest freezer we
had when I was a kid. Mom was a short woman. I prefer an upright. A
chest type is probably more efficient and cheaper to operate; I need the
convenience of an upright.
--
-Barb, Mother Superior, HOSSSPoJ
http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/amytaylor
She's had good news! Hurrah!

Melba's Jammin' wrote:
> In article >,
> Jim > wrote:
>
>> Trying to get a consensus of what you guys recommend for
>> food storage.
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Jim
>
> Consensus? There's a joke. "-)
> I have an upright that I defrost once a year.

> I prefer an upright. A
> chest type is probably more efficient and cheaper to operate; I need the
> convenience of an upright.


I agree with Melba. Once a year defrosting is usually
sufficient
if certain people remember to close the door tightly.

I have enough trouble keeping track of what's in the upright.
I know I'd never be able to remember to use what's on the
bottom
few layers of a chest model.

In addition, I have read (Consumer's Guide, maybe?) that a
frost free freezer tends to cycle enough to affect the
quality of
the food. I.E. if you don't use things quickly they get
freezer
burn from the defrost cycle. YMMV

gloria p

Jim wrote:
> Trying to get a consensus of what you guys recommend for
> food storage.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Jim
>
I agree with Barb, what's a consensus?

Course I gotta be different.

We prefer the chest, defrost yourself once every other year or so.
Freezes harder, and when you need to rearrange, doesn't lose the cold
like the uprights do. Cold settles, so you can leave it open longer.
To defrost, a hair dryer and a little hot water in a ice cream pail gets
it done in about 10 minutes. Hardest part is unloading to defrost.

Just my opine. YMMV
Mark

Puester wrote:
> Melba's Jammin' wrote:
>> In article >,
>> Jim > wrote:
>>
>>> Trying to get a consensus of what you guys recommend for
>>> food storage.
>>>
>>> Thanks,
>>>
>>> Jim
>>
>> Consensus? There's a joke. "-)
>> I have an upright that I defrost once a year.
>
>> I prefer an upright. A chest type is probably more efficient and
>> cheaper to operate; I need the convenience of an upright.
>
>
> I agree with Melba. Once a year defrosting is usually sufficient
> if certain people remember to close the door tightly.
Unless you have a door gasket that is slightly askew.
>
> I have enough trouble keeping track of what's in the upright.
> I know I'd never be able to remember to use what's on the bottom
> few layers of a chest model.
We have a list taped to the door of the upright and did the same with
our old chest type. Lists shelf, front, rear, side, contents of bags,
which are labeled. The chest type had the same thing on the door and the
goodies were in movable wire baskets that could be lifted out quickly
and replaced.
>
> In addition, I have read (Consumer's Guide, maybe?) that a
> frost free freezer tends to cycle enough to affect the quality of
> the food. I.E. if you don't use things quickly they get freezer
> burn from the defrost cycle. YMMV

Not if you use vacuum bags. I've taken fish and meat out of the frost
free upright that have been there two years with no degradation of meat
or taste.
>
> gloria p

George

pheasant wrote:
> Jim wrote:
>> Trying to get a consensus of what you guys recommend for
>> food storage.
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Jim
>>
> I agree with Barb, what's a consensus?
>
> Course I gotta be different.
>
> We prefer the chest, defrost yourself once every other year or so.
> Freezes harder, and when you need to rearrange, doesn't lose the cold
> like the uprights do. Cold settles, so you can leave it open longer.
> To defrost, a hair dryer and a little hot water in a ice cream pail gets
> it done in about 10 minutes. Hardest part is unloading to defrost.
>
> Just my opine. YMMV
> Mark
Any freezer will freeze the goods harder just by setting the thermostat
to a lower temperature. I keep the upright at -20F with no difficulty.
Non-defrost freezers have a minor advantage over auto defrost types in
that they use a very little less energy to maintain temperature.

My opine too and YMMV.

George

I agree, that a chest freezer holds the cold better especially when the
door is opened. I am just 5" tall so the bottom is hard to get at but I
handle that by putting the items in a plastic grocery bags when I put
the things in the freezer that way I can move larger quantities at one
time and its easier to reach ( and doesn't cost anything). I normally
sort stuff by the bag -chicken in one bag, gr beef in one and so on.
The one I have now is over 32 years old and still working, knock on wood.
Connie TC
pheasant wrote:
> Jim wrote:
>> Trying to get a consensus of what you guys recommend for
>> food storage.
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Jim
>>
> I agree with Barb, what's a consensus?
>
> Course I gotta be different.
>
> We prefer the chest, defrost yourself once every other year or so.
> Freezes harder, and when you need to rearrange, doesn't lose the cold
> like the uprights do. Cold settles, so you can leave it open longer.
> To defrost, a hair dryer and a little hot water in a ice cream pail gets
> it done in about 10 minutes. Hardest part is unloading to defrost.
>
> Just my opine. YMMV
> Mark

On Thu, 10 Apr 2008 10:04:45 -0500, Connie TenClay
> wrote:

>I agree, that a chest freezer holds the cold better especially when the
>door is opened. I am just 5" tall so the bottom is hard to get at but I
>handle that by putting the items in a plastic grocery bags when I put
>the things in the freezer that way I can move larger quantities at one
>time and its easier to reach ( and doesn't cost anything). I normally
>sort stuff by the bag -chicken in one bag, gr beef in one and so on.
>The one I have now is over 32 years old and still working, knock on wood.
>Connie TC

You might want to check out the energy costs for your 32 year old
freezer.
We had a 20 cubic foot chest freezer of about the same age that was
also working just fine. It would hold -20ºF with no problem but I was
interested in what it was costing to operate. I bought one of those
energy meters that you plug in to a receptacle and then plug an
appliance into it. I used it on the old freezer for thirty days and
then multiplied the reading by 12 to get the yearly cost. What a
shocker that was!! Over $290.00 a year in energy. I immediately went
out and purchased a new, slightly larger (22 cubic feet) chest
freezer. Used the same energy meter on it for thirty days and
multiplied that reading by 12. Less than $60.00 a year!! It sure won't
take long to pay for the new freezer in saved energy costs.

Ross.

hmmm, I hadn't thought about that. Thanks
Connie TC
> On Thu, 10 Apr 2008 10:04:45 -0500, Connie TenClay
> > wrote:
>
>> I agree, that a chest freezer holds the cold better especially when the
>> door is opened. I am just 5" tall so the bottom is hard to get at but I
>> handle that by putting the items in a plastic grocery bags when I put
>> the things in the freezer that way I can move larger quantities at one
>> time and its easier to reach ( and doesn't cost anything). I normally
>> sort stuff by the bag -chicken in one bag, gr beef in one and so on.
>> The one I have now is over 32 years old and still working, knock on wood.
>> Connie TC
>
> You might want to check out the energy costs for your 32 year old
> freezer.
> We had a 20 cubic foot chest freezer of about the same age that was
> also working just fine. It would hold -20ºF with no problem but I was
> interested in what it was costing to operate. I bought one of those
> energy meters that you plug in to a receptacle and then plug an
> appliance into it. I used it on the old freezer for thirty days and
> then multiplied the reading by 12 to get the yearly cost. What a
> shocker that was!! Over $290.00 a year in energy. I immediately went
> out and purchased a new, slightly larger (22 cubic feet) chest
> freezer. Used the same energy meter on it for thirty days and
> multiplied that reading by 12. Less than $60.00 a year!! It sure won't
> take long to pay for the new freezer in saved energy costs.
>
> Ross.

On Wed 09 Apr 2008 02:04:23p, George Shirley told us...

> Jim wrote:
>> Trying to get a consensus of what you guys recommend for
>> food storage.
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Jim
>>
> I have a frost free upright that takes up very little room in our
> pantry. We like it quite well and it holds about 14 cubic feet of food.
> I've had both frost free and the regular and got really tired of
> defrosting the other type. We've also had both upright and chest,
> ranging from 5 cubic feet to 30 cubic feet and, in our elder years, have
> settled on the 14 cf upright as being handiest. YMMV
>
> George

We've had all combinations, too, but now have a 16 cf frost-free upright
and I won't be going back. I really couldn't practically use a manual
defrost model now that we live in AZ. It's never cold enough outside to
put the food while defrosting. In OH that was no problem.

--
Wayne Boatwright
-------------------------------------------
Friday, 04(IV)/11(XI)/08(MMVIII)
-------------------------------------------
Countdown till Memorial Day
6wks 2dys 7hrs 20mins
-------------------------------------------
Unqualified superlatives are the worst
of all.
-------------------------------------------

wrote:
> You might want to check out the energy costs for your 32 year old
> freezer.
> We had a 20 cubic foot chest freezer of about the same age that was
> also working just fine. It would hold -20ºF with no problem but I was
> interested in what it was costing to operate. I bought one of those
> energy meters that you plug in to a receptacle and then plug an
> appliance into it. I used it on the old freezer for thirty days and
> then multiplied the reading by 12 to get the yearly cost. What a
> shocker that was!! Over $290.00 a year in energy. I immediately went
> out and purchased a new, slightly larger (22 cubic feet) chest
> freezer. Used the same energy meter on it for thirty days and
> multiplied that reading by 12. Less than $60.00 a year!! It sure won't
> take long to pay for the new freezer in saved energy costs.
>
> Ross.


That sounds like a fun toy for a cheapskate like me!

Is it something Radio Shack would have, or where would you look for one?

On Thu, 10 Apr 2008 07:01:06 -0500, pheasant > wrote:

>We prefer the chest, defrost yourself once every other year or so.

I also prefer a chest. I don't open it all that often. I bring things
upstairs in batches. I've had it about 10 years and I have not yet had to
defrost it.

Don <www.donwiss.com> (e-mail link at home page bottom).

On Sat, 12 Apr 2008 05:33:26 -0500, pheasant >
wrote:

wrote:
>> You might want to check out the energy costs for your 32 year old
>> freezer.
>> We had a 20 cubic foot chest freezer of about the same age that was
>> also working just fine. It would hold -20ºF with no problem but I was
>> interested in what it was costing to operate. I bought one of those
>> energy meters that you plug in to a receptacle and then plug an
>> appliance into it. I used it on the old freezer for thirty days and
>> then multiplied the reading by 12 to get the yearly cost. What a
>> shocker that was!! Over $290.00 a year in energy. I immediately went
>> out and purchased a new, slightly larger (22 cubic feet) chest
>> freezer. Used the same energy meter on it for thirty days and
>> multiplied that reading by 12. Less than $60.00 a year!! It sure won't
>> take long to pay for the new freezer in saved energy costs.
>>
>> Ross.
>
>
>That sounds like a fun toy for a cheapskate like me!
>
>Is it something Radio Shack would have, or where would you look for one?

If you are located in Canada, it's available at Canadian Tire. Priced
at CDN $24.99 or, wait 'till they're on sale like I did, $14.99.
http://tinyurl.com/5ul2x6
There is another meter on the market called Kill-A-Watt, I did a quick
Google search and found them available from several sites with quite a
spread in price. The original Kill -A-Watt P4400 doesn't have the
ability to program in your local electrical rate while the new
Kill-A-Watt EZ Model P4460 does have this function. That way, you can
have the meter read out directly in dollars and cents. Lots of them
listed on eBay.
Using one of these units will surprise you on how much energy is being
wasted in some areas of your home. We have a small indoor pond in our
sunroom with a HID grow light over it so my wife could maintain her
tropical water lilies over the winter. Turns out that light was
costing about $38.00 per month to operate 16 hours a day. Much cheaper
to buy new water lilies each spring!!

Ross.

> wrote in message
...
> On Sat, 12 Apr 2008 05:33:26 -0500, pheasant >
> wrote:
>
> wrote:
> >> You might want to check out the energy costs for your 32 year old
> >> freezer.
> >> We had a 20 cubic foot chest freezer of about the same age that was
> >> also working just fine. It would hold -20ºF with no problem but I was
> >> interested in what it was costing to operate. I bought one of those
> >> energy meters that you plug in to a receptacle and then plug an
> >> appliance into it. I used it on the old freezer for thirty days and
> >> then multiplied the reading by 12 to get the yearly cost. What a
> >> shocker that was!! Over $290.00 a year in energy. I immediately went
> >> out and purchased a new, slightly larger (22 cubic feet) chest
> >> freezer. Used the same energy meter on it for thirty days and
> >> multiplied that reading by 12. Less than $60.00 a year!! It sure won't
> >> take long to pay for the new freezer in saved energy costs.
> >>
> >> Ross.
> >
> >
> >That sounds like a fun toy for a cheapskate like me!
> >
> >Is it something Radio Shack would have, or where would you look for one?
>
> If you are located in Canada, it's available at Canadian Tire. Priced
> at CDN $24.99 or, wait 'till they're on sale like I did, $14.99.
> http://tinyurl.com/5ul2x6

Amazon sells these:

http://www.amazon.com/Energy-Meter-L.../dp/B000RKVK52

However it is also easy to calculate usage with a clamp-on ammeter,
which most handy persons probably already have. If you want to
use it for an energy meter you just take the current measurement and
multiply that by voltage and you have your wattage usage, which you can
use with your electric bill to compute the cost of the device.

In any case, there are also some things you can do with an older freezer
to cut your bill, other than replacing it. First, if it has external
condensor
coils, clean them! Blow them off with compressed air (in a can which you
can get at any electronics store) Also, if it has external coils, you can
glue styrofoam insulation to the sides and back and top. But the biggest
thing you can do is move the freezer to an unheated garage or basement
(assuming your not living in Arizona)

Ted

"Wilson" > wrote in message
...
> sometime in the recent past Jim posted this:
> > Trying to get a consensus of what you guys recommend for
> > food storage.
> >
> > Thanks,
> >
> > Jim
> >
> I own two uprights - an old Kenmore 'frost-free' and a new Kenmore manual
> defrost. I chose the manual after having the frost-free model building up
> ice in areas that I couldn't reach, the drain plug freezing over and in
> general (having the manual freezer to compare it to) taking 2 times longer
> to defrost when the frost-free feature fails. Granted, the older
frost-free
> model is almost 25 years old.

That has nothing to do with it. We have a 7 year old refrigerator that is
frost
free and we have had that problem as well. We get ice build up in the
chamber
between the freezer portion and the refrigerator portion that does not get
melted during the defrost cycle. Once that happens the refrigerator does
not
get as cold no matter how low you set the temp. Defrosting it to get that
ice
out takes a minimum of 24 hours. This is just a known problem with
frost-free
models in certain climates. Most people likely don't even notice because
they
don't have a thermometer in their refrigerator.

Ted

On Sun, 20 Apr 2008, Ted Mittelstaedt > wrote:

>Amazon sells these:
>
>http://www.amazon.com/Energy-Meter-L.../dp/B000RKVK52
>
>However it is also easy to calculate usage with a clamp-on ammeter,
>which most handy persons probably already have. If you want to
>use it for an energy meter you just take the current measurement and
>multiply that by voltage and you have your wattage usage, which you can
>use with your electric bill to compute the cost of the device.

That won't work for an appliance that cycles its compressor on and off.
Only a device that measures over time will get you a useable result.

Don <www.donwiss.com> (e-mail link at home page bottom).