GRRR! Freezer door left open!

[4luv2cdisney]

My DH left me a note this a.m. "not to worry, everything was still frozen". Apparently he left the freezer door slightly open last night and this a.m. there is frost all over everything in the freezer.

Now, I KNOW he didn't feel every item in there to make sure it was all ok. On the other hand, we do have a temperature alarm on our fridge. It is supposed to alarm if the temp becomes lower than what we have it set on. As far as I know, the alarm did not sound. I was still up when he went to bed (though not often on the 1st floor) but I think i would have heard it. I don't know that it would stop sounding anyway. It is a pretty new fridge, so I don't know everything about it yet or how accurate it is. Have to read the manual after kids get off to school.

Will the frost go away or do I have to wipe it all out?

Buy new groceries or not???? I am very careful about food...not a risk taker!

 

[Gigi22]

I gather this is a refrigerator freezer? Do you happen to have any ice cream in it? I would look at the ice cream and see if it had melted--if it had, I would be tempted to do a purge. Your manual might have some guidance, a 1-800 number you can call or a website you can check for more information.
From our experience in the ice storm years ago, I do know that a chest freezer will keep food frozen for 24 hours without electricity, if the door is unopened--but I haven't had your experience.

 

[v.t.]

Happens at our house all the time. The alarm will keep going off until you turn it off or the freezer returns to the proper temp. Gigi is right, check the ice cream. That is your best guide. I worry about food too, especially ground beef and chicken. You could always cook those items and re-freeze them, they should be fine.

I think you will have to clean off all the frost, I always do.

 

[TheRatPack]

We have a ziploc baggie with ice cubes in it for this very reason. That way when we're away from the house on vacation (if the power goes out), or someone leaves the door cracked (thankfully that's not happened in a while) we can check the baggie of ice cubes and see if they are still separate ice cubes or a refrozen blob LOL. That lets us know that it melted enough we should throw things out.

If you have another freezer you might want to transfer everything out of that one and let it defrost....I know when ours has been left open that's the best way to get all the frost off everything and the ice maker/water back to normal.

 

[cyndik1111]

my husband left the freezer open for like 8 hours. Lots of stuff melted, or partially melted. We had a big BBQ that night- with lots of left overs. But i also re-froze some stuff and we are all alive and well to talk about it. But any doubt- pitch it.

 

[Hannathy]

If it was only open a crack I wouldn't worry about it. The freezer has a thermostat to keep it at a certain temp so that would work. It just would keep running or run a lot more to keep the temp down. A crack isn't going to let enough hot air in unless you also have a sauna next to it and left that door open also! to thaw anything deep in the freezer. Something on the door might have warmed a bit but I doubt that even.


You may notice your electric bill being a bit higher if it ran steady all night. Refrigerators are one of the biggest users of electricity in a house.

 

[girli565]

I'd wipe off the frost because that creates mess later on, I hate pulling something out of the freezer and having it "snow" on the floor in front of the fridge lol.

As for the items in the freezer, if they were still frozen I'd leave them be. What I would do is as I defrost things to use them make sure they smell fine and look like they should. You can smell bad pork and chicken a mile away.

 

[POOHDRMR]

OMG I thought I posted this and forgotI woke up this morning to my dd saying mom something is wrong with the freezer there is fir on everything.We just got the fridge 2 months ago when my fridge of 6 years broke and I lost everything.Nothing is melted but the light is not working now-there is ice on the bulb.I am watching it carefully to make sure it was just that it wasn't closed all the way and nothing else.Good luck

 

[thebeesknees]

Happens to us ALL THE TIME - our freezer doesn't stay shut on its own very well, so I have actually taken to taping it shut with packing tape! Anyway, I'd do as the others have stated. Check to see how far thawed your ice cream is, if the meat is soft to the touch, cook it right away and you should be able to refreeze it afterward. Hope you don't lose too much. And while you are thinking of it, throw a couple ice cubes in a baggie and leave them on the door. That way if it happens again, you'll be able to immediately see if the cubes melted entirely or not so it will be easier to see if the stuff inside stayed cold enough.

 

[luvmy3]

I wouldn't worry about it. I take stuff out of the freezer and stick it in the fridge for 1 to 2 days to thaw. I doubt your freezer's temp fell below the temp of the fridge.

 

[4luv2cdisney]

Thanks everyone! If it had been ME who found it this morning, it would not have been a problem. It's just by the time I found out about it, my DH had closed it up and 2 hours had gone by. Anything that may have been partially thawed would have been refrozen.

Anyway, I have to believe that the temperature alarm would have sounded and he swears it was not when he got up. The manual said it wouldn't shut off by itself. So, I bet it just used a ton of electricity last night to maintain that temp, but my food should be ok. The funny thing is, the only thing my DH cares about in the freezer is the ICE CREAM! So, I'm sure he checked that! Actually, it was when he put the ice cream back last night that he did not shut the freezer drawer all the way!

I think I'm going to put a couple ice cubes in a baggie anyway in case there's a next time! That's a good idea.

 

[jas_mom1]

Happens to us ALL THE TIME - our freezer doesn't stay shut on its own very well, so I have actually taken to taping it shut with packing tape! Anyway, I'd do as the others have stated. Check to see how far thawed your ice cream is, if the meat is soft to the touch, cook it right away and you should be able to refreeze it afterward. Hope you don't lose too much. And while you are thinking of it, throw a couple ice cubes in a baggie and leave them on the door. That way if it happens again, you'll be able to immediately see if the cubes melted entirely or not so it will be easier to see if the stuff inside stayed cold enough.

We have the same problem so I use an appliance latch from the baby department to keep our freezer door closed. Whenever someone closes the fridge, the freezer would pop open. (I think the floor is uneven...another issue altogether!) The latch we use is just a silicone strip. It loops over a piece on the door that attaches with double sided tape. Simple solution.

 

[hollypoast]

We have a ziploc baggie with ice cubes in it for this very reason. That way when we're away from the house on vacation (if the power goes out), or someone leaves the door cracked (thankfully that's not happened in a while) we can check the baggie of ice cubes and see if they are still separate ice cubes or a refrozen blob LOL. That lets us know that it melted enough we should throw things out.

If you have another freezer you might want to transfer everything out of that one and let it defrost....I know when ours has been left open that's the best way to get all the frost off everything and the ice maker/water back to normal.

Wow, I'm impressed. Never would have thought of that.

 

[cm8]

Wow, I'm impressed. Never would have thought of that.

, Thanks for the tip

 

[shortbun]

Our icemaker would tell us in a second if everything had thawed. The cubes would be a blob. Before the icemaker, I'd turn a cube tray upside down; if the tray was empty, the freezer had malfunctioned in some way.

 

[DisneyCowgirl]

Don't you have ice in your freezer? Did it melt?

 

[4luv2cdisney]

Don't you have ice in your freezer? Did it melt?

It is a French door fridge/freezer with an icemaker in the door. The icemaker is in the refrigerator, not the freezer.

Well, my DH ate the ice cream yesterday and is fine today, so I guess all is well!

 

[thebeesknees]

We have the same problem so I use an appliance latch from the baby department to keep our freezer door closed. Whenever someone closes the fridge, the freezer would pop open. (I think the floor is uneven...another issue altogether!) The latch we use is just a silicone strip. It loops over a piece on the door that attaches with double sided tape. Simple solution.

Good idea! Why didn't I think of that? We actually used one for its intended purpose at our old house when my son was a baby. May have to go out and get another one, as I am sure it will be more reliable and look better than the tape!