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Having high humidity food stored is one of the main causes leading to the phenomenon of freezer frosting up, reducing the efficiency of food freezing as well as consuming electricity.
1. Reasons why your freezer gets frosted up and how to deal with it
Having high humidity food stored is one of the main causes leading to the phenomenon of freezer frosting up, reducing the efficiency of food freezing as well as consuming electricity.
Almost everyone using a freezer will encounter the situation where the freezer gets frosted up. The thick frost layer hinders the circulation of cold air, leading to the freezer not being cold or consuming more electricity. Although this is a fairly common phenomenon when using a freezer for a long time and can be rectified by defrosting and cleaning the freezer. However, in cases where the freezer frosts up too quickly, you need to investigate and review the usage as well as check the operation of some parts of the freezer. This article will help you identify some basic reasons and how to deal with this situation.
Freezer frosted up thickly
This is the first reason causing the frosting up of the freezer but it is a fairly common habit and very easy to get into during the use of the freezer. When storing high humidity food or wrapping food that still has water in it in the freezer, it will increase the humidity inside the freezer. During the freezing process, high humidity and water from the food will create a frost layer around the food and inside the freezer. This causes the freezer to frost up quickly, making you have to clean it more often if you don't want the freezer's cooling ability to decrease as well as consuming more electricity.
High humidity in food is one of the main reasons why your freezer quickly frosts up.
To remedy this, you need to limit high humidity foods or reduce their moisture before putting them into the freezer using clean cotton towels or moisture-absorbing food papers. Additionally, to minimize freezer frosting, you should check and remove excess water from food packaging before storing it in the freezer.
Constantly opening the freezer door
Limiting door opening helps reduce frosting
Frequent or improperly closed freezer doors are also reasons why the freezer doesn't cool properly or frosts up.
Thus, with high-performance cooling devices like freezers, you should avoid opening the door too often. This is why high-quality products often come with safety locks on the door and rubber seals, ensuring a tight seal to prevent cold air from escaping. Additionally, to minimize freezer frosting due to frequent door opening, you need to manage your usage properly by controlling how often you open the door and quickly closing it after retrieving the necessary items. It can be said that the energy consumption of a freezer largely depends on your usage habits.
Damaged rubber seal or gasket of the freezer door
The rubber seal around the freezer door - also known as the sealing strip - plays a role in sealing cold air inside the freezer, preventing outside air from entering, and avoiding cold air loss to ensure food remains properly frozen. When this component is faulty or damaged, moisture from the air can enter the freezer, causing freezer frosting. A damaged seal will prevent the freezer from maintaining a safe temperature, not to mention that your electricity bill will increase because the freezer has to work harder to maintain the necessary temperature.
A damaged seal causes the freezer to not seal properly, leading to faster frosting.
The freezer seal is essentially a continuous strip of rubber attached tightly to the groove around the edge of the door. Sometimes, this seal may become misaligned and need to be repositioned. After adjusting the rubber seal on the freezer door, you can check by running your hand along the edge of the door when it's closed. If you feel cold air escaping, you can identify the misaligned rubber seal using this method. Then, use a cotton swab to apply some grease under the loose seal to push the rubber seal back into place more easily and use your hand to put the rubber seal back into its original position. If this method doesn't work, you should replace the rubber seal with a new one for the freezer to avoid frequent freezer frosting. Typically, you should check the condition of the rubber seal periodically every 12 months. Another simple check you can do is to place a piece of paper between the middle of the door and the freezer, close the door, and pull out the paper. If the paper slides out easily, it's time to replace the seal for your household freezer or industrial freezer you're using. Additionally, you should also replace the seal for the freezer if you see it cracked, torn, warped, or stiff rather than flexible with the naked eye. After installing the new seal, check to see if the freezer door is properly closed. After closing the freezer door, sweep from top to bottom. If you don't feel any cool air coming out, the freezer is sealed. If not, check again. If the rubber seal of the freezer door still has gaps or warps, warm the seal with a hairdryer. Thus, the seal will fit into the mold. Especially with dual-compartment freezers, you need to pay special attention because the cold temperature of the 2 compartments varies greatly. Therefore, a loose rubber seal not only causes the freezer to consume more energy, frost up, but also easily leads to the leakage of cold air from the freezing compartment to the cooling compartment, negatively affecting food preservation.
Clogged water drain hole
When the water drain hole in the water tray of the freezer is clogged due to long-term dirt buildup, the sealed freezer will prevent moisture and water from food in the freezer from draining out, causing freezer frosting. You should check the position of the water drain hole in the freezer, regularly clean the freezer, and ensure that the water drain hole is clear to prevent the freezer from being damaged and frosting.
Clogged water drain hole causing frost buildup in the freezer
Above are some reasons and solutions for the freezer frosting issue. Besides usage errors, damaged parts inside the freezer are also common causes of this problem. If you buy a second-hand freezer, a used freezer, or a cheap freezer, you are very likely to encounter this issue. Therefore, you should consider choosing quality freezer products from reputable brands to ensure reliable usage and warranty support in case of malfunctions.
