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Kitchen

Defrost a freezer

Thick ice wastes space and makes a manual-defrost freezer work harder. Defrosting it once or twice a year keeps it efficient.

2–4 hoursEasy5 steps

Tools you need

  • Coolers or boxes with ice packs
  • Towels
  • Shallow pans
  • Plastic scraper (never a knife)
Defrost a freezer
Photo: W.carter · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Steps

  1. Move the food to coolers with ice packs, or to a friend's freezer.

  2. Unplug the freezer and leave the door open. Put towels and pans down for the water.

  3. Let the ice melt. A bowl of hot water inside the freezer speeds it up.

  4. Lift away loose ice with a plastic scraper. Do not chip at it with a knife: you can puncture the cooling lines.

  5. Wipe the inside dry, plug it in and wait until it is cold before putting the food back.

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Steps written by Sureno. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited under each one.

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