Finding "treasure" in the freezer

[LoudMusic]

We're going through the freezer contents, forcing ourselves to make meals out of what we find in hopes of emptying it and being able to defrost it soon. We've only owned the boat a little over two months and already found items in the freezer that are from our original provisioning run. I'm curious what others have discovered buried deep in their freezer, long forgotten.

Also, how often do you defrost? I try pretty hard to keep moisture to a minimum, but it's kind of hard when I'm using the freezer to make ice in trays. Frost build up can weaken the insulation and seals of the freezer, making it less efficient.

[senormechanico]

Not a boat story, but in 2000 when my old fart nieghbor died, his family emptied out his garage freezer.

It was a real old energy hog vertical thing whch ran 24/7.
Towards the back, they found several ziploc bags which were labeled,


"Coleslaw, 1982"

[Paul L]

Defrosting shouldn't take you very long. You can empty the freezer contents into a insulated shopping bags or an esky box, defrost and then stick everything back in.
We probably need to defrost once a month and actually do it every 6 or 8 weeks.

[StuM]

Defrosting when the freezer is reasonably full is better than when it is empty if you have a good esky/chilly bin/cooler box that's similar a volume to the freezer (We've got a 50l "5 day" one that holds a freezer full). The frozen stuff stays frozen longer. (I keep a layer of frozen water bottles in the bottom of the freezer - they are the last things to come out and sit on top of the frozen food .


Once I've taken the food out, I sit a table fan so that it blowing down into the freezer. It doesn't take long for the built up ice to melt when the air temperature is in the high 20's/low 30's °C



Since I do this every month or so (whenever the lid starts to bind from ice buildup), there are no "buried treasures".

[Jim Cate]

Originally Posted by senormechanico

Not a boat story, but in 2000 when my old fart nieghbor died, his family emptied out his garage freezer.

It was a real old energy hog vertical thing whch ran 24/7.
Towards the back, they found several ziploc bags which were labeled,


"Coleslaw, 1982"

Shucks, that's nothin'! when we emptied out my dear old Mom's freezer, there was a Wooly Mammoth leg roast in the bottom!

Just kidding, of course, but there was some pretty old stuff in there. We solve the problem by not having a freezer on board.

Jim

[2big2small]

I’ve always been wondering. What makes boat refrigeration different from regular home refrigeration that there is so much ice build-up? Is it just the more humid atmosphere or is there more to it?

[Pete7]

Originally Posted by 2big2small

I’ve always been wondering. What makes boat refrigeration different from regular home refrigeration that there is so much ice build-up? Is it just the more humid atmosphere or is there more to it?

Our frost free fridge/freezer at home has a small fan and a drain at the back which drips into a small tray and evaporates. The yacht fridge has the same but I put a bath plug in the drain to reduce the influx of heat to the fridge.

We use a couple of beer mats to keep the condensation down in the fridge but not sure what you could do about a freezer on a yacht.

[lovinlifebda]

The defrost mechanism in a refrigerator heats the cooling element (evaporator coil) for a short period of time and melts the frost that has formed on it. The resulting water drains through a duct at the back of the unit. Defrosting is controlled by an electric or electronic timer: For every 6, 8, 10, 12 or 24 hours of compressor operation it turns on a defrost heater for 15 minutes to half an hour. The defrost heater, having a typical power rating of 350 W to 600 W, is mounted just below the evaporator in top- and bottom-freezer models and below and sometimes also in the middle of the evaporator in side-by-side models. It may be protected from short circuits by means of fusible links. In older refrigerators the timer ran continuously. In newer designs the timer only runs while the compressor runs, so the more the refrigerator door is closed, the less the heater will be on and the more energy will be saved. A defrost thermostat opens the heater circuit when the evaporator temperature rises above a preset temperature, 40°F (5°C) or more, thereby preventing excessive heating of the freezer compartment. The defrost timer is such that either the compressor or the defrost heater is on, but not both at the same time.

Just an FYI, the freezer on our boat does not do this.....that is where I come in to do the defrost.

[Suijin]

I keep a small white board near the freezer on which I keep a list of contents with date added. Has helped to ensure nothing becomes an archaeological find.

For defrosting I just turn off the fridge (I have a freezer/fridge with spillover) when ever the fridge side contents get low. Move freezer stuff to it and when the ice is gone off the plates move everything back and turn back on. Conserves the cold in the system, is easy, and keeps all the food in good shape.

I used to do the hairdryer/heatgun thing but realized that was OCD and actually counter productive.

[Pete7]

Thanks, that is useful to know.

Pete

[wsmurdoch]

Originally Posted by LoudMusic

I try pretty hard to keep moisture to a minimum, but it's kind of hard when I'm using the freezer to make ice in trays.

If you are using horizontal ice trays, there are trays with covers. Just Google "covered ice trays". If you are using the AB Verticube trays, a piece of 1/2" thick closed cell foam cut from a Wal Mart camping sleeping pad will plug the top.

[Outlaw7]

This is funny, we used to call the freezer on board "Bonaventure" the "History Section" as my wife was once a librarian.

[RickG]

We defrost our freezer every six weeks. We know it is time when the freezer temperature rises to 24F. We have a cold fan and a return fan cooling our refrigerator that brings moist air into the freezer. That builds the frost on the cold plates. I can also see that power draw on the freezer increase as frost increases - the compressor runs longer.

Cheers, RickG

[fatherchronica]

Was the coleslaw still tasty and crispy, otherwise I would probably not save it. But I am a notorious spendthrift.

[joel383]

Originally Posted by fatherchronica

Was the coleslaw still tasty and crispy, otherwise I would probably not save it. But I am a notorious spendthrift.

I would have tried it... After the old sniff test.