Freezer Manuals & Owner Guides

Upright vs. chest freezers

Upright

Shelves and door bins make food easy to see and rotate. Most are frost-free, and they take up less floor space for the same capacity.

Chest

Top-opening lid keeps cold air in when opened, fits bulky items and is usually manual defrost — typically the more energy-efficient choice per cubic foot.

Compact

Under about 7.75 cu. ft.; available as small uprights or chests for apartments, dorms and supplemental storage.

Built-in

Designed to sit flush in cabinetry, often as a freezer column paired with a matching refrigerator column, and frequently equipped with an ice maker.

How big a freezer do you need?

A common rule of thumb is about 1.5 cu. ft. of freezer space per person in the household, plus extra if you buy in bulk, hunt, fish or preserve garden produce. Each cubic foot holds roughly 35 lb of packaged food. A freezer that stays reasonably full holds its temperature better and wastes less energy than one that is mostly empty.

Manual vs. automatic defrost

Automatic (frost-free) defrost saves you the chore of melting frost but periodically warms the cooling coil, which uses extra energy and can dry out poorly wrapped food. Manual-defrost models hold a steadier temperature and use less energy, but need defrosting whenever frost reaches about 1/4 in. thick — usually once or twice a year for a chest freezer.

Reading freezer energy numbers

Annual energy use (kWh/yr) is measured under a standardized DOE test and compared with the federal maximum for the same product class. Multiply the kWh figure by your electricity rate to estimate yearly cost, and compare models of the same type and defrost method for a fair comparison.

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