Let’s face it; defrosting a freezer isn’t fun. It’s wet, messy, frustrating and it’s no surprise that many of us put it off for far too long. I’ll hold my hands up; I am one of those people! So I’ve decided to give it a go. I’ve researched many possible methods and created the easiest and hassle free way to do it.
If you’re thinking of putting it off, allow me to scare you with some information. With excessive build up of ice, your freezer won’t be able to perform as efficiently as it should, consuming more power and running the risk of damaging in the future. Also, with the build up of ice you’ll find it increasingly awkward to open and close freezer drawers and possibly struggle to even close the freezer door. You owe it to your loved unit not to fall victim to these crimes against appliances.
It’s a messy job, but try to have some fun with it. Before you begin, you might want to choose some appropriate music to accompany you in your task. I recommend ‘Ice Ice Baby’ by no other than Vanilla Ice, ‘Cold as Ice’ by M.O.P, or my personal favourite, which is to substitute words in existing songs to fit the occasion. For example, “Thaw...HUH....yeah!...What is it good for? Making freezers better!” Now on to the nitty-gritty.
Step 1: Turning it off
Switch off the freezer, and make sure to unplug it from the wall. Simple enough.
Step 2: Empty your freezer
I would suggest doing this just before you restock your freezer; I tend to force myself to eat whatever is left or chuck the rest. It's a great way to keep the contents organised. Is my OCS showing a little? Remove the drawers and food, and store frozen goods in a cool bag.
Step 3: Facilitating the thaw!
Grab some dirty towels, no point in using clean ones, and cover the base of the freezer making sure to slide it under the front slightly. You can use newspaper if you like, but towels soak up more excess water and can be chucked straight into the washing machine when you’re done.
Step 4: The thawing process
There’s either the quick way, or the long way. Leaving the freezer to naturally thaw can take a few hours but requires less effort. If you want to get stuck in, pour some just-boiled water in a bowl, place it inside the freezer and let it do the trick. Dipping a cloth in warm water and dabbing the ice also helps.
Step 5: Cleaning time
When cleaning the inside of your freezer or even fridge, I find it best to stay away from kitchen cleaner or anything containing harmful chemicals. A mix of bicarbonate of soda, water and a few drops of lemon juice do the job equally well. It kills germs, leaves your appliance smelling nice and it doesn’t contain any harmful chemicals! (minus ten masculinity points for me) Make sure you clean the seal around the door, and rinse the freezer with some warm water when you are done.
Step 6: While you’re down there...
Since you are cleaning your appliance, it’s always good to pull it away from the wall and hoover the cooling elements in the back to make it more efficient and cheaper to run. When that’s done, return your appliance to its home, plug it in and your back in business.
And there you have it, a clean and hygienic freezer so good that even Kim and Aggie would be proud! If however, you find defrosting mind-numbingly boring and are looking for an easier life then I would definitely recommend investing in a frost free freezer, it will more than pay for itself! Check out the fridge freezers here and the freezers here.
Here's my before and after:
Let us know how you guys get on with undertaking your freezer task!