Defrosting a freezer question

[Tarheel Tink]

I really, really need to defrost my upright freezer. Badly. My problem is I can not turn down a good meat sale and have no control. I find myself yet again with a full freezer after an incredible boneless chicken sale and chuck roast(s).
Does anyone have any suggestions? How long are frozen items good in a cooler if packed in together while I do the defrosting? I remember my mother speeding up the process with baking pans of warm water set in there- is that safe to do? I don't have any info on the freezer- I inherited it and it is at least 20 years old and a Whirlpool. I've had it 7 years and I have to get this done.

 

[Art 1]

Put the frozen goods in a cooler with ice or outside if it's very cold, or a friends freezer. Unplug the fridge, open the doors and let it sit. Use a hair drier if you wish. Do not poke at the ice with a sharp instrument.

 

[Tarheel Tink]

I'm embarassed that I had not even thought of putting the frozen items outside! What better thing to take advantage of than this cold weather? I'm going to shoot for a freezing cold night, put them on my sun porch and proceed as you suggested. Thanks!

 

[Muushka]

Hey Tink

I defrost my upright freezer about once a year. I like to do it when it is a little warm outside though. Also, mine is in the garage where it is a little warmer than the house.

I place all my frozen food in laundry baskets and cover them with blankets. Ice cream goes into the freezer in the refrig. Then I get my box fan and blow the hot air into it. It defrosts very quickly (maybe 45 minutes) and it is all clean and ready for the laundry basket food to get back into the freezer before it even thinks of defrosting.

Just a little FYI. I replaced our 12 year old freezer with one that is 50% larger than the old one and our electric bill went down $10 a month! Old freezers are energy drainers.

 

[piglet50]

i defrost my upright once a year. i put all of the food either in a cooler, or in a laundry basket covered with towels like previous poster. turn the freezer off and put pots of hot (boiling) water inside and close the door. usually by the time the water is cool, most of the frost is gone or can be scraped away with a spatula. do not use a knife or anything sharpe and don't mess with the sides. for lots of ice, this will take longer. i use microfiber cloths to soak up the water from the bottom of the freezer. my freezer is older but still going strong. i would like to get a newer more efficient one but not in the budget right now. good luck.

 

[Tarheel Tink]

Thanks all! Great suggestions; I'm eager to get this off my to-do list. It has been one of those things bugging me and everytime I open the door to it I wince.

 

[disneymarie]

I do it a bit different, I bring a large pot to boil, lay a bath towel in the bottom, then place the pot in there and clost the lid. the steam and heat loosen everything.

I had a lovely jerk of a fridge repair guy come once when the freezer in the upright frosted over and would not cool in the bottom....
It needed a timer or something under it
this idiot that should have known better chipped away at the ice....well then he made a hole, the refridgerent came out and the thing was junk at that point. Only 3 years old.....

Never returned my calls and I ended up buying another refridgerator.

 

[Tarheel Tink]

disneymarie- That is everyone's repairman nightmare; I had a cable guy put his foot through my kitchen ceiling and "not notice it" and then "wanted to fix it on his own" and then "his kid broke his leg" and so forth.

 

[Katieinwonderland]

Um...can I ask a stupid question? When are you supposed to defrost a freezer? And what does that mean???!!!

DH and I bought our first house this year and this is our first freezer (the old ones belonged the apartment complexes we were in previously). I had to idea I had to do anything with my freezer!!!

 

[Muushka]

Um...can I ask a stupid question? When are you supposed to defrost a freezer? And what does that mean???!!!

DH and I bought our first house this year and this is our first freezer (the old ones belonged the apartment complexes we were in previously). I had to idea I had to do anything with my freezer!!!

I will take a guess that your freezer is frost free, you don't have to defrost it.
Or ice has not had a chance to build up yet. You can tell, if the walls have no frost on them, frost free.

 

[golfgal]

We just defrosted our freezer a couple weeks ago. We put everything outside-as it was below zero so we were safe . Frozen food put into a cooler will keep for a very long time-at least enough to defrost.

If you haven't done this in 7 years, expect it to take a good part of the day to defrost.

 

[Katieinwonderland]

I will take a guess that your freezer is frost free, you don't have to defrost it.
Or ice has not had a chance to build up yet. You can tell, if the walls have no frost on them, frost free.

Great! Thank you!!