How Much REFRIGERATOR Does a Home Need

[bradfordwhite]

Are you refrigerator RICH?

Refrigerators have been a status symbol for the last couple of decades for some reason.

I remember when refrigerators started getting unnecessary attention in the media in the early 90s. This was to help signal to people that hey.... this mere metal box that gets cold inside could be the ultimate tool to play one-upmanship games with your friends and neighbors.

Who could forget shows like Seinfeld, Caroline in the City, Coach, and other shows that had this set stealing double wide refrigerator in it? And the magazine articles displaying kitchens dominated by these behemoths.

Things have only got more ridiculous since then with the bigger-is-betterism spreading to stoves, countertops, taller cabinets, and microwaves.

I have seen some funny things over the years such as meeting a party living alone in the Boston metro with a slight hoarding tendency. Looked in his double wide GE frig that was loudly running- other than a can of coke it was completely EMPTY. I was stunned.

A friend I helped build a home for in 2000 I visited in 2002. He had a 21 c.f. top mount freezer frig with the icemaker thru the door. He had a few condiments in the doors, three things in the freezer, and a few things on the frig. shelves that he had neatly pushed all-l the way to the back top shelf corners. LOL. It was like he had got off on seeing the glass shelves.

Then there are those people who have so much frig and freezer space that they lose track of whats in there and it just becomes a mess.

How much space does one really NEED?

And how much space does a person really WANT?

Do you realize you have to pay monthly to afford these to run?

Do we realize that anything you spent money to buy or make and put inside is a cost REGARDLESS of whether one ever consumes said item(s)?

 

[mattl]

About 5-10x what you have. I stock up  on what ever is at a good price.  I also occasionally entertain, food prep can fill 2 1/2 of my 3 fridges. To each his own.  If you like living a minimalist life fine, I prefer comfort and flexibility. It's also nice to walk out to a full freezer and pick something out for dinner and not running to a store.

 

[parunner58]

We have have 3 adults in our house, there were 4 but my son in-law has passed away. We have a 27cu ft GE Profile Side by side in the kitchen and an 18cu ft top freezer in the garage. I am trying to talk my wife into letting get an upright freezer also. I like to go to the farmers market and buy bushels of veggies and freeze them, I love to make homemade tomato sauce. I am afraid of canning so I freeze things. I also like to go to Restaurant Depot and stock up on things. I would love to also have a convection/steam oven also. I have a Profile Convection oven but really could use a second one during holiday times.

 

[circlew]

I don't know why Keith (BradfordWhite) thinks it's any of his business what others have or don't have (of anything), unless he's buying it, as in like a gift.

 

[bradfordwhite]

#1

Yes, if one has more people living in their home or they entertain one could possibly need to store some food, especially if you aren't having it catered.

I don't live a minimalist lifestyle. I don't waste though and generally don't over consume. I only serve myself and for one person a 4.5 c.f frig and 3.5 c.f freezer is perfect. In fact I've been considering downsizing to a smaller freezer. At one point I made a 1.3 c.f. Haier freezer work.

One thing I can confirm: when I've had larger refrig. space, I filled it up.

I've also gone periods without a freezer just to see how it would impact my diet.

I've found that for someone like myself who enjoys eating at a healthy level (plus a bit), restricting freezer and frig space helps control eating too much. Most things that go in the freezer we really don't need to be consuming.

I wonder how many people with abundant refrig/freezer space ALSO deal with obesity. How many avoided answering this post because they know there is uncomfortable truths in the statistics.

It's no secret American's are the fattest on the planet. We have over production of food, the uncontrolled behaviors that promote eating, AND the means to store excess food. All working together to create a diabetes inflicted population with poor body imagery, and a whole basket of health problems.

Fat land: how Americans became the fattest people in the world - PMC

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

 

[appnut]

I'm physically challenged and can only drive during the day and not out of town. Since college I've had to keep well stocked. When I moved into my first apartment after college my parents gave me a 5 cu. ft. chest freezer. It got replace in mid 1990s. They also bought the 19 cu. ft. fridge when I bought my first house and it lasted 26 years. I currently have a 25 cu. ft. My pantry is overflowing due to special diet food issues at begnning of being sent home to work Spring 2020. Friends shipped me stuff I needed that I couldn't get in town.

 

[mattl]

Interesting, now body weight correlates with fridge space? I  have 3 fridges, my body fat ranges between 12-15% - what that correlation again?

 

[launderess]

@parunner58

" I am trying to talk my wife into letting get an upright freezer also."

You can't fail can you?

Upright or chest a separate stand alone freezer is quite handy.

Nabbed a small Midea chest freezer several years ago now and use it for over flow from main fridge/freezer. Also however got a Tila FoodSaver vacuum sealer set NIB at local Goodwill for very little money. Purchase meats, poultry, frozen veggies and other things when on sale. Meats and poultry go in food saver bags, vacuum then seal. Into deep freeze they go and if done well and properly things last far longer than one imagined.

Cleaned out that deep freezer last year and meats that one simply left in packaging from store were toast (freezer burn), but everything in vacuum sealed bags was good as new.

Check CL, eBay or auction places like HBid, often you can find chest or upright deep freezers going for very little money. Of course you'll have to go and fetch the thing usually...

 

[launderess]

Don't believe refrigerators are a any more of a status symbol than any other major appliance. If people are splashing out for TOL or whatever dishwasher, range, cooker, oven, etc.. why not spend on fridge as well?

As for size and features it really comes down to what one is used to and lifestyle I suppose.

Americans tend to prefer larger every thing for host of reasons. Kitchens in private homes here in USA tend to be larger than those often found in many parts of Europe, so fridges are bigger.

Also many in Europe keep to the old ways; they shop daily or every other day for fresh produce, meats, fish, poultry, etc... thus don't see need nor want a huge fridge.

Keep in mind well past WWII many people either with ice boxes or fridges were limited grocery wise to what could be carried home on foot or perhaps delivered. It wasn't until post war boom really took off with rise of automobiles, move to suburbs, those huge supermarkets and so on that people could buy lots of food at once, that of course meant larger fridges and perhaps a deep freeze to store it all.

Those larger fridges and or deep freezers also came in handy when families were large.

As for "status symbol" I'm sorry.... Kitchen appliances since electricity arrived long have been sold or advertised various ways including "status".

This series of adverts from General Electric (circa 1935) shows various ways of marketing appliances.

You can appeal to the housewife on matters of time saving, thrift, economy, labor saving and health of all she holds near and dear. Or, you can appeal to those who love luxury and are seekers of status.



A place for everything and everything in its place is not new marketing when it comes to fridges. General Motors (Frigidaire) and others were harping on about such things back in 1950's.



Ms. Betty Fruness is all her high heels and girdled glory makes pitch for Westinghouse.



Have a hate on against big built in fridges? Well not exactly new and while not built in Kelvinator's "FoodaRama" would likely give you a heart attack.



Frigidaire came for Kelvinator with their "Cyclamatic" Imperial fridge.

 

[dustin92]

We bought a 17.8 c.f. bottom freezer model in November when we bought this house (Somehow the massive Samsung side by side that was supposed to be included got sold) and I have commented several times how nice it is to -not- have room.. For things to get pushed to the back, forgotten about, and turned into science projects. I feel like the extra space is just wasted by rotten leftovers.. At least in our house. It's just my mom and I so we don't need a huge fridge. I've been thinking about cleaning out and unplugging the deep freeze because it's not even half full.

 

[bradfordwhite]

"I've been thinking about cleaning out and unplugging the deep freeze because it's not even half full."

I remember going through that with my parents when they lived alone the two of them. They had a large GE sXs and at least a 15 c.f. chest freezer. That freezer only had a few things in it that were recognizable and the walls were just covered in ice with various food items stuck into the ice. All that stuff was freezer burned and spoiled.

I just posted an ad on CL in the free section stating I was cleaning out a freezer and all the food was free. "bring your own boxes and take what you want" I got several calls and took people in order. I went through three different parties who came and took what they could use to get it all emptied out. The stuff didn't go to waste and I didn't have to touch any of it.

Then I took the top off and took the freezer outside, set it on it's side and took the hose and sprayed out all that frost and ice. Brought it back in, put the top back on, wiped it down, and left the top open so it could dry.

They never missed it. They couldn't even keep the frig clean. Having that freezer chugging away and drawing on the electric bill is just a waste.

Freezers and frigs can help people feel like they are no longer food insecure but... We're passed that point in our society.

 

[fan-of-fans]

As a kid I was fascinated by side by sides and thought anyone who had one with the ice and water dispenser was definitely high fallutin! LOL the dispensers were amazing to me and I loved the little dispenser door light and chrome drain cover for the dispenser spill catch area. My neighbor had an Amana with an automatic night light on the dispenser even.

I tried to get my parents to buy one but my dad refused to have anything other than a basic white top freezer fridge, as did my grandparents on both sides. Ours all however were middle of the range enough to have glass shelves and ice makers, and my grand mother even sprung for the largest model with a water dispenser in the fridge.

I still would like to have a side by side if I ever am able to buy a home. I wouldn’t mind one of those vintage GE Profiles with ice, water and the little drop down door on the outside of the fridge for your milk and sodas!

I like French door fridges too, but not as much as side by sides. Mainly because the pull out freezer seems a bit of a hassle to me, and having though the door I’ve on one is very complicated to do in order to defy the laws of thermal dynamics, and makes for lots of potential repairs. Lol

 

[fan-of-fans]

*through the door ice on a French door I mean. lol

 

[askolover]

I have always wanted an all fridge and all freezer sitting side by side but I don't have the kitchen space for them. I have considered getting two top freezer models and just sit them side by side but I love my ice and water in the door.

 

[combo52]

Best refrigerator designs for home use

Hi Cole, I agree a side-by-side if you want ice and water through the door is still the best arrangement for convenience, reliability function, etc.

Hi Greg, I do agree I still think the best arrangement overalls to have an all refrigerator and freezer, I have two pairs of all refrigerator and freezers in my kitchen and one in the main kitchen the other in the pantry around the corner it’s just terribly convenient. These are all super insulated, very efficient, refrigerators, and freezers.

The small refrigerators that Brad has actually use a lot more energy per cubic foot of space they don’t cool food evenly there’s no 0° freezer, etc.

I do not think the French door bottom freezers are ideal. Overall they’re convenient but there’s a lot of problems with the doors on the refrigerator section, there’s a lot of problems with the rollers and tracks as they age for the freezer. We do a lot of service calls were somethings not closing properly in the whole things filling with frost and ice .

Also, I would never get through the door dispenser system that dispenses ice in a bottom freezer refrigerator. It’s just a lot of problems to try to put an icemaker in the fresh food section of a refrigerator. There are quite a few bottom freezer models now that have an icemaker in the freezer and in the refrigerator because they know the one in the refrigerator can’t produce enough ice to satisfy normal demands so you have a lot of complication with two icemakers, water, filter, system, etc. it’s amazing how much trouble you could have with a refrigerator.

If you want to keep things simple there’s nothing wrong with a good old top freezer refrigerator that’s for sure and the idea of putting two of them side-by-side is also a very economical way to have a lot of storage capacity and few problems,

John

 

[bradfordwhite]

yeah

So ummmm, just to clarify for us John...

exactly how many appliances do you have that fit under the refrigeration category?

You stated "I have two pairs of all refrigerator and freezers" thats 4 appliance
then "one in the main kitchen" is this one set of 2?
and then "the other in the pantry" is this another set of 2?
hmmmmm. Is this 6 or 8 appliances?

Surely you must have a frig in a wet bar, bedroom, library, garage, bonus room somewhere? Maybe the basement....the sub-basement? Anything?

It's interesting because if I remember correctly you're as skinny as pole bean and don't really come across as being calorie overburdoned.


----

Now, I have ONE just the ONE 4.5 c.f. refrig and ONE 3.5 chest freezer.
Don't need any more, don't want anymore.  That freezer freezes hard as a rock and I've never had food spoilage in my frig.  Both work great.
I have NO doubt that yours collectively are more efficient than mine. nop-pe.

 

[henene4]

My mum's new kitchen will be delivered next week, however, she ordered a new fridge a few weeks back already as it was pretty heavily discounted.

It's a 24" wide, 79" tall 12,7cuft bottom freezer with a 3,5cuft freezer section.
That's about as big as you can get for freestanding standard size fridges over here and has always been enough.

But the trend does go towards wider models to the point we just launched extra wide built in models.

American style Side by Sides have become a bigger and bigger thing.
To the point our houses aren't build to have those moved into and people having to take them apart just to get them into their kitchens.
Those are "only" 22cuft over here, round about.

I guess everything is bigger in the US.
But given the overall health situation, the food waste situation, the fact more and more people in the US are supposedly dining out AND that fridges get bigger and bigger...

Yeah at some point it screams mindlessly buying the biggest thing possible without regard to any reason.

I don't see how a normal 4 people household going shopping once a week needs more than 20cuft realistically AND has fresh food regularly.

 

[lakewebsterkid]

Refrigerator

We just moved into a home with an 18 cu ft. Samsung french door counter depth fridge and we hate it. There is little to no storage space in the doors. No water dispenser. Believe it or not, the ice maker doesn't work either. Shocker. I looked to see what would fit, and a standard 36" wide fridge will fit perfectly fine. Not sure why you would limit yourself that much with purchasing a 30" wide and counter depth. Though, if we buy a new one, one concern would be energy consumption. However, the newer 36" fridges actually consume about the same, and in some cases less, energy as the smaller units. Not to mention that the smaller units tend to cost more as well. Therefore, I will buy the biggest one.

 

[estesguy]

Reply 17

Yeah, I believe it. My mother in law has a french door LG fridge the icemaker conked out on early on. Even when it did, the hopper held very little ice and ran out quickly for larger family gatherings. I think downsizing these ice makers to fit the smaller in door area seems to make them more unreliable, compared to the tried and true crescent shaped ones used in most other style of refrigerators