What size freezer should i get

Because it is so wide open--a couple of baskets rather than shelves--a chest freezer has greater capacity than an upright and can easily handle food items of odd sizes and shapes, such as a large turkey. But if you keep that turkey or anything else at the bottom of the freezer, it will be hard to reach and maybe even forgotten. Those are unlikely problems with an upright model. Because of its low profile, a chest freezer can be placed under a window.

But because a chest is as wide as uprights are tall, it won't fit into all spaces. And uprights are designed to fit through doorways more easily. Operating manual. Chest freezers tend to be more energy efficient because the cold doesn't escape easily when you open the lid; food tends to keep longer as a result.

Cooling coils are built into the walls, so no fan is required to circulate cold air. Most chest models defrost manually, while most uprights have an automated-defrost function that increases the incidence of freezer burn and requires more energy. Compact five cubic-foot freezers are available either with refrigerators or as stand-alone, chest and upright freezers.

This freezer size will hold a capacity of approximately pounds of frozen food. Top-freezer refrigerator models typically provide between four cubic-feet and five cubic-feet of freezer capacity. These models tend to fall on the smaller end of standard refrigerator dimensions , ranging between 28 and 32 inches wide, 61 and 66 inches tall, and 28 and 34 inches deep. Click here to find this top-freezer refrigerator by GE at Walmart.

Compact chest and upright freezers, between three cubic-foot and five cubic-foot capacity, use minimal space to conveniently boost your frozen food storage in addition to that of a refrigerator with a freezer.

Click here to find this five cu-ft chest freezer by Arctic King on Amazon. A seven cubic-foot freezer falls within the small freezer size category. It can hold as much as pounds of frozen food. Small-sized freezers are available on refrigerators with a freezer models and as stand-alone, chest and upright freezers. Both types of side-by-side and bottom-freezer refrigerator models can provide ample space, between six cubic-foot and nine cubic-foot of freezer capacity. These fridges tend to fall on the larger end of standard refrigerator dimensions.

Side-by-side models have a refrigerator on one side and a freezer on the other. Dimensions range between 32 and 39 inches wide, 65 and 71 inches tall, and 29 and 31 inches deep. Bottom-freezer refrigerators can have either a top door or French doors. Dimensions range between 29 and 36 inches wide, 67 and 70 inches tall, and 29 and 34 inches deep.

Click here to find this bottom-freezer refrigerator by GE at Walmart. If you already have a relatively large refrigerator, but the freezer seems to be overflowing, adding a small chest freezer to your home will help to manage frozen food storage. Small chest freezers can be either top-loading or upright.

Typical small 8. Food left in a freezer for more than six weeks begins to dry out and is susceptible to freezer burn, though meat pieces individually wrapped and frozen by a butcher can last a year. The quality and nutritional value of the frozen food begins to wane after this time period; once this happens, the frozen food has a tendency to be discarded rather than used.

Factor in how much frozen food your family consumes within that six-week period and stock the freezer accordingly. Use this six-week formula with the other considerations when choosing an upright freezer.

HOMETIPS also suggests making sure the upright freezer has the shelves and baskets you need to successfully organize your food for maximum storage space. By design, an upright freezer is less efficient than a chest freezer.

Each time the door is opened in an upright, all of the frozen air leaves the freezer interior and drops to the floor. The freezer must make up for that air loss by creating more frozen air. By keeping a freezer well stocked, you can minimize the amount of frozen air required to keep the food frozen.