As we’re nearing end of summer you may find yourself with an abundance of fresh vegetables, fruit and herbs from your garden. There’s nothing better than eating food you grew yourself and the taste is amazing. Freezing excess fruit, veggies and herbs throughout the summer is a great way to ensure you can enjoy your bounty throughout the fall and winter as well. Today I’m talking about measuring for the perfect chest or upright freezer to store your garden extras and not have any go to waste.
Measure your space
When purchasing a new freezer, you’ll want to measure your space first and foremost. It’ll save on a bunch of rearranging should you happen to get one home only to find out its too big for your chosen space. The space you measure also needs to accommodate for the freezer door opening and closing.
Freezers can be noisy so it may be best to have it in a basement or garage if possible and of course it will need to have an appropriate outlet to be plugged into close by. You want to make sure you don’t place your freezer pushed flat right up against a wall either, they require a little extra space for ventilation. Once you’ve measured out the perfect space in your home, it’s time to think about measuring the space on the inside. Which freezer style will suit your needs and fit all your frozen goods?
Chest freezer
While the chest freezer takes up more floor space then an upright, it does typically hold more food which is great for larger families or people who like to stock up and shop less. This is the style we always had growing up and it had sliding baskets at the top for quick and easy access to foods we frequently used and then the deeper bottom section for foods that would be frozen longer term or eaten less frequently.
Some pros of the chest freezer are that it’s friendlier on the pocket at purchase and energy wise and they freeze foods more solidly which is great if you experience power outages where you live. Some cons are that the bottom of a deep freeze will be difficult for children, people in wheelchairs or with limited mobility to reach into and they take up more floor space.
Upright freezer
Upright freezers look just like a standard refrigerator and I would say they allow for easier access to foods. Just like a fridge they have adjustable shelves to fit your foods and compartments on the doors to hold smaller items. To be extremely organized you can sort your frozen goods by shelf by designating one shelf for meats, one for fruits, one for veggies, etc.
Pros of an upright freezer are that it’s much easier to view and remove what’s inside and they take up less floor space which is great for homes with limited space to begin with. Some cons are that they are less energy efficient than the chest style, your foods won’t get quite as frozen as they would in a chest style freezer and they often lack overall storage space.
Once you’ve taken measurements of your freezer space and decided on the style of freezer that will suit your needs all that’s left is to make the purchase. Some extra tips for freezing your foods are to label and date your food which will lead to less waste long term. Also, store your foods in an organized manner to help alleviate freezer burn and if you can, vacuum seal your food to help reduce moisture loss.
Check out Best Buy online for a variety of styles and sizes of freezers to suit your needs.
Main image: www.amana.com
This is important to think about. I recently bought a 7.2 cu ft chest freezer, which is great for me.
nice fridge
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