Chest freezer or Upright freezer? Freezer Buying Guide. Getting your perfect fit.

Owning a freezer is both convenient and time-saving, it is a modern-day appliance that makes life a lot easier for us. We now have the luxury of being able to bulk buy, cook ahead, batch bake, and preserve our excess crops (or bargains from the supermarket) for as long as possible. Today, it can be difficult to imagine the home without at least one freezer.

The freezer is a relatively modern invention, only becoming widespread after World War II. They have become one of the most common ways for people to preserve meat and other foods. Freezing foods protects them from bacteria, mold, and rot. Many people prefer to shop less frequently and buy large quantities to save money and time.

Are you one of those people who likes to be prepared? Do you always make an extra pan of lasagna for last-minute dinner guests, stock up on budget-friendly bulk foods, or prep all of next week’s meals? If so, the freezer in your fridge can get pretty jam-packed. One savvy food-storage solution for you is a Stand-alone FREEZER.

Freezing food is not only very convenient and time-saving, but it also helps you to save a whole lot of money. Putting your food items in the freezer will make them last longer and provide for your family. Freezing food, you buy on sale or bulk buy saves you money because, it is usually cheaper to buy foods such as meat in bulk, and store them in the freezer for long-term use.

Another thing is that you can stock up seasonal fruits and vegetables so that you can enjoy them all year round even when they are out of season. You no longer need to fret when you have to host a party or special occasion in the future, as you can cater to these parties in advance and the foods stored until they are needed.

There is very little effect on the flavor, color, appearance, and nutritive value of most foods. Also, Left-over foods and items such as stock or fruit juice can be frozen for later use, to avoid wastage. Freezers are inexpensive to run and if used wisely, they don't make a huge dent in your electricity bill. They come in various sizes and types of the freezer, available to cater to varying needs and family size.

In this post, I would be talking about two of the most common types of Freezers: Chest freezer or Upright freezer.

You might be thinking, "they are both Freezers, how are they different from the other?"

What I can tell you now is that the major similarity, one might even say the only similarity between these two freezers is in their function, which is to freeze foods.

These Freezers differ from each other in terms of design and style, storage capacity, mode of usage, and so on. We would get on with discussing them now.

Chest freezer or Upright freezer, which to choose.

CHEST FREEZERS.

Chest Freezers are the most common type out of the two and it is more economical than other types of Freezers. It is called this because it is typically shaped like a large box or chest with a hinged lid that opens upward. Because of the lid, a chest freezer requires adequate space with plenty of headroom, for easy opening of its lid.

Like I said earlier, the chest freezer sits horizontally on the floor and is far deeper than the Upright freezer. Chest freezers tend to be wide in length and width, making finding a spot more difficult. Nowadays, there are portable, space-saving chest freezers available in the market and so even with limited space, one can still own a chest freezer.

Chest freezers are more energy-efficient than upright freezers. Generally, they cost a little amount of money to run per month and helps to save costs in the long run. These freezers use an airtight locking seal at the top to keep the food inside fresh and frozen. They also come with built-in sidewall insulation to hold their cold temperatures well for a longer period and therefore use the least-energy to function.

Even if you are facing a power outage which is very likely in this country, you can be sure that your chest freezer would keep the food items in it cold for almost three days, as long as the lid is closed. Chest freezers usually come with at least one wire basket to help you organize the contents. You can segregate types of foods using cardboard boxes to better organize freezer contents.

Chest Freezers are hard to beat when it comes to consumption of space as it can store an ample amount of food and other products. They usually offer very large storage capacity; you can get up to 750-litres storage space in some chest freezers.

Unlike Upright freezers, chest freezers allow you ample space to take advantage of storing seasonal berries and jams, to freeze bulks of meat together with the daily consumable items and make-ahead meals. They are also great for hunters or people that just love to keep a bulky supply of meat.

Chest freezers can accommodate odd-shaped, long, or large items more comfortably than upright freezers. This economical use of space frees up your refrigerator freezer for convenience foods. There are some models on the market that have a bottom drawer accessible from the outside of the chest freezer, but while this will also reduce capacity slightly.

Chest freezers tend to keep food at a more consistent temperature than upright freezers. This means that you can theoretically leave things frozen for longer periods without issue. This is because of their need for manual defrosting; there is less air circulating through the freezer, which keeps freezer burn to a minimum.

Because nothing is perfect, you would find out that there are a few cons to having a Chest freezer. Understanding the pros and cons of the chest freezer would help you make the perfect choice for your needs. Therefore, I have put together some of the cons of a chest freezer to help your decision making.

Cons of Chest Freezers.

• Chest freezers have only a wire basket inside them to provide organization, which means that other food items can become buried under one another. Also bending, lifting, and moving are required to find what you’re looking for. However, newer models have more storage baskets and compartments for easier organization.
• Defrosting Chest freezers can take a whole day as the majority of them require manual defrosting. This means thawing out the freezer, draining it, and then cleaning out the inside, which can be very tiring.
• Space can be an issue with Chest freezers, because they require more room, it is important to ensure that you have the right amount of space.

Here is our Chest freezer top 3 picks, these offer you all the features you would hope for in a chest freezer and even more at an affordable price.

The decision is totally up to you; we however want to make it easier for you.

The Haier Thermocool FREEZER CHEST SML 200 INTC R6 WHT is a 200L chest freezer that can accommodate your long shopping list and bulky food items comfortably. 

It features a super freezing function that allows your fresh food to be frozen as quickly as possible. It is portable enough to fit into a smaller space and it provides an extra tabletop surface that can be used in any home or restaurant.

Another is the LG 450 Liter Chest Freezer. This 452-liter chest freezer packs with it an amazingly large storage space that enables you to store more food items than ever in the coldest environment possible. 

And guess what! This freezer retains temperature which goes from -180C to -10C for up to five days! This is a big relief as you don’t have to worry about the length of power outage anymore.

The SCANFROST CHEST FREEZER SFL151 is another amazing chest freezer that promises to give you your money's worth.

This product comes in a moderate size thereby not consuming too much space and disrupting the décor and arrangement of where it is placed. It also offers a low noise operation.

Chest Freezer prices range from N68,000 to N400,000.

See here to go through our range of Chest Freezers.

UPRIGHT FREEZERS.

Upright freezers look a lot like conventional single-door refrigerators with shelves, drawers, and extra storage space on the door. They stand vertically and work in the same way that a fridge does to hold the items on the various shelves and compartments. They are more space-saving than chest freezers, which makes it easier to find space in the home.

Since an upright freezer looks like a refrigerator, it will seamlessly integrate into your kitchen or other high-traffic living space. They are also available in more colors than chest models. You may even find a few bright red upright freezers that will add a vintage look to your living area.

The Upright freezer has the best convenience feature out of the two freezers. This is its ability to better organize the frozen foods, making it easier to monitor and rotate contents to keep frozen foods current. Some upright models have versatile storage systems with adjustable and removable door storage bins, sliding, adjustable shelving, and pull-out baskets or bins.

An upright model is perfect for freezing foods that you need to be able to access easily. There is no need to bend down and dig through piles of frozen foods as you would with a chest freezer. Upright freezers are easier to organize, and finding items in an upright model is much like looking through a refrigerator.

Upright freezers are usually auto defrosting, which makes them much more easily maintained than chest freezers, and they are also much easier to clean. Proper and consistent defrosting eliminate ice buildup and keeps the unit operating efficiently. Self-defrosting freezers automatically run a defrost cycle about once a day.

Choosing a self-defrosting upright freezer would help you avoid adding another household chore to your already long list.

Just like the chest freezer, there are also some cons to consider before getting an upright freezer. One of them is the cost of purchasing one. Upright freezers are usually more expensive than chest freezers.

Some other cons are listed below:

• Upright freezers usually provide less usable storage capacity; a difference of about 10 to 15 percent when compared to chest freezers (but for more money).
• Upright freezers are typically noisier than chest freezers, this is because of their auto defrost cycles that constantly comes on and off.
• Higher incidence of freezer burn because more air circulates the food. For this reason, food items in upright freezers can't stay frozen for up to 24hours when there's a power outage.
• An upright freezer is less efficient than a chest freezer. Each time the door is opened in an upright, all of the frozen air leaves the freezer interior and drops to the floor. The freezer must make up for that air loss by creating more frozen air.

Here is one of the best Upright freezers out there. It offers you amazing features at reasonable prices. Remember that an Upright freezer may cost a little more than a chest freezer, but the convenience they offer makes the extra cost more than worth it. The price range for Upright freezers usually starts from N100,000.

The Scanfrost Upright Freezer SFVF-250K Silver cost close to N200,000. It has a 200-litre storage capacity and 6 freezer drawers for easy organization. 

This Scanfrost Upright Freezer has an easy to clean interior and it also comes with an interior light. Most of all, it has a fast freeze function that allows for fast and proper freezing of your food items.

See here for more information on our range of Upright freezers.

Whether Chest Freezer or Upright freezer, having a freezer at home is very important today. Freezers are wonderful things in that they provide ample room to store food for the whole family, allow you to take advantage of specials at the supermarket, freeze homemade foods for another day, and more.

If you like to take advantage of sales on meats and vegetables and then freeze them to use later OR maybe you somehow always get more groceries than your refrigerator freezer can hold. Your solution? Getting a dedicated freezer; either a chest freezer or upright freezer.

The type of freezer that best suits you depending on your particular lifestyle and needs. Some people prefer to have an upright for everyday frozen foods, while they store seasonal game/meat or special and seasonal baking in a chest freezer. Whichever one you want; the most important thing is that you get one that perfectly suits you.

Looking for where to get a freezer?

Look no further because, at Zit Electronic Online Store, you get the best price offers, original and long-lasting products, and the fastest deliveries so you can feel free to order away.