Save electricity in winter: Now is the best time to defrost the freezer

Created: 01/11/2023, 12:30 p.m

By: Andrea Stettner

Freezers and chest freezers turn out to be real power guzzlers if they are not defrosted regularly.

Winter is just the right time for this.

It doesn't matter whether it's an ice compartment, freezer or chest freezer: Almost everyone has a freezer at home to freeze deep-frozen pizza, ice cream or leftovers.

However, as soon as a thick layer of ice forms, you should defrost it - before the device mutates into the biggest power guzzler in the household.

Defrosting your freezer regularly saves electricity.

© Antonio Gravante/Imago

Freezer: A thick layer of ice increases electricity consumption

Older freezers in particular tend to form a thick layer of ice quickly.

As a result, the device has to cool even more and thus consume more power to reach the desired temperature.

“Even one centimeter of ice can increase power consumption by 10 to 15 percent,”

quotes BUND Hessen as saying.

The wrong location of the freezer can also increase electricity consumption by 3 percent.

If you want to pay attention to your power consumption, you should also keep an eye on the size of new devices.

"100 liters more volume increases electricity consumption by 25 percent," informs the consumer advice center.

As a rule of thumb, you should calculate a usable capacity of approx. 50 to 80 liters per person.

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Defrost the freezer quickly – this is how it works

If you defrost your freezer in the conventional way, you simply have to wait until the ice melts when the appliance is switched off.

However, depending on the thickness of the ice layer, this can take several hours.

It's faster with this trick:

The defrosting process can also be accelerated with a hot hair dryer, but it is not advisable: water could drip onto the hair dryer – and that would be dangerous.

In addition, the hair dryer also consumes electricity, which is contrary to the actual goal.

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Winter is the best time to defrost the freezer

The ideal would be to empty the chest or freezer before defrosting and use up all the food so the cold chain is not broken.

However, this is not always possible so quickly.

The best time to defrost is therefore in winter: if the temperature outside is below zero, you can simply temporarily store the frozen goods on the balcony or terrace.

Some even use the freezing cold in winter to switch off the refrigerator and thus save even more electricity - not always a good idea.

Alternatively, you can ask neighbors to temporarily store your frozen food, or use a cool box for freezing temperatures.

In any case, the refrigerator is not suitable as a storage place - the frozen goods would thaw too much here at around 7 degrees.