DomesticDiva Posted August 17, 2012 Share Posted August 17, 2012 Hello everyone, I’m in need of a freezer for my kitchen. We have several food allergies in our family and are needing to adhere to a rotation diet. So, I would really need to keep everything organized by days such as day 1, day 2, etc. And I would also need to freeze ingredients individually rather than the totally prepared soups, stews, casseroles, etc. I would prefer the manual defrost chest freezer due to the less cost factor and they offer more space. I’m thinking due to the space constraints of my kitchen that it would need to be no more than 20 cubic feet. I’m really not sure what the ideal size should be. We are a family of four. I’ve read that on average the freezer size should be 1.5 cubic feet per family member. I’ve also read in an older version of the Joy of Cooking that it should be 3 cubic feet per family member. Do you guys have any favorites? Any least favorites? Any suggestions and advice would be appreciated. Thanks in advance. CW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fraidycat Posted August 17, 2012 Share Posted August 17, 2012 I would get the biggest one possible that would fit within the space you have for it. Sorry, I can't help with which kind. After having my upright, you would have to pay me a lot of money to go back to a chest freezer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mumto2 Posted August 17, 2012 Share Posted August 17, 2012 I really have no brand advice, but after having 2 different chest style freezers, I would simply get the one that fits your space. Staying organized is going to be a huge challenge with one. Things fall to the bottom and stay there. I always kept frozen turkeys bought cheap at Thanksgiving on the bottom.:lol: I am not sure how many days you need to plan ahead for but you are probably going to need a method of keeping each days food together--a giant zip lock or you will go nuts. I hope your diet rotation goes well. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
besroma Posted August 17, 2012 Share Posted August 17, 2012 I agree with fraidy cat on getting the largest that will fit into your space. I would definitely by an upright. We have owned our Kenmore for over eleven years with no problems. I like the fact that I have never had to defrost it, or dig around in the bottom looking for something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KarenNC Posted August 17, 2012 Share Posted August 17, 2012 (edited) I really want to replace our chest freezer with an upright when we can afford to do so. I'm on the short side (5'4"), so I have significant trouble reaching the bottom of it. Sometimes I have to just wait until my (taller) husband gets home to ask him to find something. I can't even threaten to dangle my child by the ankles and dip her in to reach stuff at the bottom anymore!;) Trying to keep it organized has been rather a nightmare. The best we've done so far is to put cardboard boxes in to kind of create zones (though not terribly effectively). I also bought cheap nylon tote bags at the dollar store to try to color code---green for veggies, blue for dairy, red for meat, pink for other stuff, etc. It's helped a little but not really enough. As for size, think about how you will use it. If you buy (or want to buy) bulk meat (say a portion of a cow), this site says a side of beef needs 7.5 cf http://www.millerfarms.com/8.html, which you will need clear all at once. Do you have a large garden (or want to or participate in a CSA)? Will you be likely to be freezing excess produce? Do you regularly buy things on clearance or good special and freeze it? We're a family of three and I think ours is 15 or more cf, IIRC. I've regularly had it full in addition to the one in the fridge. We used to buy a quarter cow at a time, I made a lot of things like veggie soup from excess produce, buy several turkeys when they're cheap at Thanksgiving, buy cheap bread from the bread store several loaves at a time and freeze them to keep them fresh, Girl Scout cookies;), meat that I find on clearance, lots of shredded cheese when it's cheap, make broth from poultry carcasses and freeze in ice cube trays then put in large baggies, etc. What I haven't done yet is can anything, so freezing is my long-term storage solution. Do be sure to label everything! I've ended up with numerous ziploc bags of mystery food because my husband stuck them in the freezer. If you are more organized than I am, a freezer inventory can be invaluable. I always start one with good intentions........ Edited August 17, 2012 by KarenNC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KatieJ Posted August 17, 2012 Share Posted August 17, 2012 After having my upright, you would have to pay me a lot of money to go back to a chest freezer.[/QUOTE] :iagree:Keeping an upright organized is a piece of cake after having a deep chest freezer for 30 years. I won't go back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisa in Jax Posted August 17, 2012 Share Posted August 17, 2012 It's this one: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Frigidaire---16.7-Cu.-Ft.-Convertible-Refrigerator/Freezer---White/8825587.p?id=1207352527693&skuId=8825587 There's a button inside that switches it from freezer to fridge. When you'd like to use it as a fridge (when you have guests at Thanksgiving, for example), you can do that, and when you want to use it as a freezer again, you just flip the switch back. :) We have two of them. We use one as a extra fridge, and one as an overflow freezer. I love them. Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
besroma Posted August 18, 2012 Share Posted August 18, 2012 I agree with fraidy cat on getting the largest that will fit into your space. I would definitely by an upright. We have owned our Kenmore for over eleven years with no problems. I like the fact that I have never had to defrost it, or dig around in the bottom looking for something. This is absolutely unbelievable!!!!!! The alarm on our freezer started going off. It looks like we have a bad compressor, so now I am shopping for a replacement. :glare: It's this one: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Frigidaire---16.7-Cu.-Ft.-Convertible-Refrigerator/Freezer---White/8825587.p?id=1207352527693&skuId=8825587 There's a button inside that switches it from freezer to fridge. When you'd like to use it as a fridge (when you have guests at Thanksgiving, for example), you can do that, and when you want to use it as a freezer again, you just flip the switch back. :) We have two of them. We use one as a extra fridge, and one as an overflow freezer. I love them. Lisa Thanks for posting......I will be checking this out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarlaS Posted August 18, 2012 Share Posted August 18, 2012 This is absolutely unbelievable!!!!!! The alarm on our freezer started going off. It looks like we have a bad compressor, so now I am shopping for a replacement. :glare: Thanks for posting......I will be checking this out! We've owned our Kenmore upright since 1992. Now I'm getting a little nervous! lol! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenn- Posted August 18, 2012 Share Posted August 18, 2012 I will be the dissenting voice on uprights. We had one that was notorious for building up just enough ice that you would think you closed the door but it would actually bump back open. If one was lucky, one would remember this little tidbit. We weren't lucky and after the 4th time we lost the entire contents in our upright, we gave the sucker away and bought a chest freezer. Yes stuff goes in and occasionally stays in the bottom way too long, but only on occasion. Typically we keep several milk jugs filled with water at the bottom, so everything is raised up just a little bit and there is a bit of protection to the contents if we lose power. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shellers Posted August 18, 2012 Share Posted August 18, 2012 Up until recently we had three freezers, all manual defrost. We used to butcher a steer and two hogs every fall. I have an old Montgomery Wards chest freezer. I also have a big upright Kenmore freezer, which is my favorite. We used to have the biggest Kenmore chest freezer. A few months ago it started beeping so we changed the battery. The freezer ended up dying while we were on a road trip to Texas. We came home to a stinky mess! The Kenmore freezers are the same age. The dead chest freezer had a hard life on our porch, it gets 100+ in the summer. I wouldn't hesitate to buy another Kenmore freezer, and I highly recommend an upright. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tap Posted August 18, 2012 Share Posted August 18, 2012 We have a Gibson chest that is 18 yo (this week in fact) that we keep in the garage. LOL A few features that I required. A lock. Movable racks. We use a few heavy boxes in the bottom to sort our beef. We get boxes that they use to pack meat in. I premake meals in rectangular glass Pyrex dishes and stack them. Since they are all the same shape they are easy to manage, and the go directly into the oven from the freezer (or the fridge to defrost-depending on what it is). In the racks I keep jars of homemade freezer jam, juice and smaller bags of frozen items that could get lost in the bottom. Using the cardboard boxes make it so that I don't lose items and it is pretty easy to see what we have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
besroma Posted August 18, 2012 Share Posted August 18, 2012 We've owned our Kenmore upright since 1992. Now I'm getting a little nervous! lol! Evidently, our model (253) had issues with oil plugs related to the compressor (something like that :tongue_smilie:). Basically, there are numerous incidences where owners notice the alarm sounding sometime after a power outage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
besroma Posted August 18, 2012 Share Posted August 18, 2012 OP, my research is pointing me toward Frigidaire and Whirlpool, if that helps. Lowe's has free delivery and free removal of the old appliance right now, plus 10% off appliances. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarlaS Posted August 18, 2012 Share Posted August 18, 2012 OP, my research is pointing me toward Frigidaire and Whirlpool, if that helps. Lowe's has free delivery and free removal of the old appliance right now, plus 10% off appliances. When we do need to replace ours, it will be with a Frigidaire. Everything in my kitchen is Frigidaire except for the dishwasher. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hthnmamax2 Posted August 18, 2012 Share Posted August 18, 2012 I've had a Kenmore upright since 1998. That freezer has been through so much that I'm surprised it hasn't run away. Multiple military moves, being plugged into a power converter that didn't work quite right for years, sitting in storage for months in 120 degree heat, multiple power outages due to hurricanes, ice storms etc. Love my upright and wouldn't give it up for anything. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
besroma Posted August 18, 2012 Share Posted August 18, 2012 I've had a Kenmore upright since 1998. That freezer has been through so much that I'm surprised it hasn't run away. Multiple military moves, being plugged into a power converter that didn't work quite right for years, sitting in storage for months in 120 degree heat, multiple power outages due to hurricanes, ice storms etc. Love my upright and wouldn't give it up for anything. :D OP, if you are interested in a Kenmore, you can tell the manufacturer by the three-digit code in the model number (like 253 or 160). You can Google it and find out who made it for Kenmore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lcelmer Posted August 18, 2012 Share Posted August 18, 2012 I would get the biggest one possible that would fit within the space you have for it. Sorry, I can't help with which kind. After having my upright, you would have to pay me a lot of money to go back to a chest freezer. :iagree: If you do go with a chest freezer, get a movable rack/basket one or budget some $ for organizing maybe in milk crates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarlaS Posted August 18, 2012 Share Posted August 18, 2012 OP, if you are interested in a Kenmore, you can tell the manufacturer by the three-digit code in the model number (like 253 or 160). You can Google it and find out who made it for Kenmore. :iagree: And this is important because as my appliance repair guy told me (when he was working on my washer) "Kenmore doesn't make anything but money". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DomesticDiva Posted August 21, 2012 Author Share Posted August 21, 2012 who responded. I will sit down, grab a cup of tea, and read. I have to make a decision soon. Thanks again. CW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.