Search engine visitors - click here to access entire "$ensible Home" web site


Click to back to Main Tips List

Dulley's Money-Saving Tip #1086

Keep freezer at least half full

(related column topic links - (660)

People often make their refrigerator/freezers work harder and waste electricity with poor freezer practices. Most refrigerator/freezers cool the freezer area and then the cold air moves into the refrigerator area. How you fill your freezer can affect this and your electric bills.

You should keep your freezer at least half full at all times. This minimizes the amount of freezer air lost every time you open the freezer door. If you do not have enough frozen food for this, put some plastic bags filled with ice cubes in the freezer. This also is helpful to keep the foods frozen if the electric power goes off for any extended period of time.

On the other hand, do not pack the freezer completely full. You should always be able to see at least some of the back wall. When it is tightly packed with frozen foods, the necessary cold air flow around the foods is impeded and the temperatures inside the freezer will not be even.