Phasing out of fast freeze switches on freezers

[Stompa]

'Fraid so. We had to warn anyone who stayed in our house not to worry about it.

We've now moved house and have a different Beko which doesn't gurgle, so it's not universal.

It was OK for the first 4 days. I'm not sure I want to know the answer, but now it's started gurgling is it likely to remain that way forever?

[swill453]

It was OK for the first 4 days. I'm not sure I want to know the answer, but now it's started gurgling is it likely to remain that way forever?

Don't know really. We left ours when we moved house. 10 years old and still gurgling

Scott.

[UncleEbenezer]

Worth checking the noise level when you buy a new fridge/freezer/either/both. Not a guarantee of anything: some noises are more obtrusive than others, but better than nothing. I checked when I bought the current fridge/freezer, and it is indeed quite a lot quieter than its predecessor. Not that it's really necessary here: the kitchen isn't open-plan to anywhere one sits.

[Stompa]

Worth checking the noise level when you buy a new fridge/freezer/either/both.

I did to the extent of noting that it was quoted as 41dB in the spec (which is relatively low), I'm not sure what else you can do?

Not a guarantee of anything: some noises are more obtrusive than others, but better than nothing.

Indeed, I've never encountered a fridge that made such gurgling noises before, so was completely unaware that it was a possibility. The first time it happened it scared Mrs S to death, as she thought it was about to explode. That was probably not helped by me opening the freezer door where clouds of what she thought was smoke (but was actually frozen water vapour) came drifting out as the freezer fan was running at the time!

[88V8]

Our frost-free makes a variety of flatulent noises. Baked beans anyone?
At least one does not suffer the accompanying aromas.

V8

[Bouleversee]

Having decided not to worry about the lack of fast freeze switch and just to limit the amount of food I freeze at one time and be thankful for the auto-defrost, I was going to order the Lec but thought to ask what would happen if the kitchen temperature fell below the 16 degree limit and the chap at Fields said the freezer would break at that point, not just temporarily cease to function perfectly and allow the contents to warm up a bit. He could be talking rubbish but I am still waiting for the technical people to answer queries I raised over a week ago. What a pain in the neck it all is, just to buy a fridge freezer. I don't want to put the wretched thing in a garage but I don't know how low the temperature in my kitchen would get down to, especially if my ancient c.h. boiler decided to give up the ghost, during the night in a particularly cold spell.

[6Tricia]

I'm no expert bouleversee, but my LEC freezer in the shed puts up with temperatures between 0C and well over 30C depending on time of year! There are two mini/maxi thermometers placed in the shed - one near the freezer and one by the door. Temperature variance between the two is never more than a degree or so.

Tricia

[PrincessB]

I was going to order the Lec but thought to ask what would happen if the kitchen temperature fell below the 16 degree limit and the chap at Fields said the freezer would break at that point, not just temporarily cease to function perfectly and allow the contents to warm up a bit.

Blimey, what a frightening salesman.

I would have been delighted to have heard a detailed description of the internal damage the fridge/freezer mechanism would suffer if it got a bit chilly in the kitchen.

Actually, the motor might not run for the correct amount of time and because you're not using the motor, the contents of the freezer will not be kept at the normal -18ºC and might warm above that point while still remaining frozen.

If it got really cold outside - ie. lower than the temperature the fridge thermometer is set to, the motor might not run at all and over a few days, the freezer section would defrost.

Most fridge/freezer units have a keep cold time in the specifications which will tell you how long your food would remain safely frozen for in the event of a power cut. From memory, it's going to be in the region of six or more hours and it should say in the instructions. By that token, if it gets a bit cold in the kitchen overnight but is generally over 16ºC you'll likely be fine.

The only set of curcumstances that would concern me occur if you were away from home with the heating off during a cold spell for a prolonged time. In that instance, I'd be a bit concerned about food integrity but overall, I wouldn't worry too much.

To jump off topic for a moment, I used to sell white goods a couple of decades ago and while refridgeration equipment is generally very reliable, I don't recall ever having a problem with a LEC unit.

Regards,

B.

[Bouleversee]

Thanks, B., for that reassurance which was welcome as I have just had the Lec installed as it was the only one which fitted the space and the kitchen temperature did go below l6 degrees last night if the new min-max thermometer I have bought, having dropped my old one, is correct. Everything seems to have remained frozen. It is a bit taller than my old one but although it is 50/50, the freezer compartment does not hold nearly as much as my old one as the drawers do not go back so far, especially the bottom one which holds hardly anything. I couldn't get everything back in I had taken out of the other one. I shall have to change my shopping habits and cooking in advance of entertaining will be impractical as large dishes will not fit into the deep freeze compartment but it will have to do. Looks nice and is very quiet.

It probably won't last as long as its predecessor but then I probably won't be around to complain!

Does anyone know if it is OK to put an ordinary min/max thermometer (as opposed to one designed for the purpose) into a freezer? It would be interesting to see what happens on the inside during a cold night.

[newlyretired]

Does anyone know if it is OK to put an ordinary min/max thermometer (as opposed to one designed for the purpose) into a freezer? It would be interesting to see what happens on the inside during a cold night.

Hi Bouleversee

If the min/max thermometer range goes as down as far as the freezer temperature then I can't see that it can be a problem

newlyretired

[Bouleversee]

Thanks. That's what I had assumed would be logical; just checking.

[UncleEbenezer]

For what it's worth ...

When I moved here, my fridge/freezer (which had been ideal for my previous place) didn't fit so well in my kitchen here. So I installed it in the covered area outside the back door from the kitchen. There is power and light, and the agent told me my predecessor here had had a freezer there, with separate under-the-worktop fridge in the kitchen. That was the beginning of May, so summer weather.

Come October, the conditions are becoming unsuitable for an appliance not rated suitable for outdoor use, so I brought it inside. That meant putting it immediately inside that back door (so it's a squeeze to get through - which is OK, I can use the front instead) and making an extension lead to plug it in. But perhaps because its time outside had taken its toll, it took to misbehaving, finally reaching a point where I had to replace it.

[Bouleversee]

Uncle Ebenezer:

What temperature does your kitchen get down to on a very cold night? Mine got down to l5C last night (one degree lower than the stipulated lowest ambient temperature) but so far seems to be working OK. Why anyone should design a f/f to operate at a min. temperature of l6C is beyond my comprehension, especially when the capacity of the freezer has been reduced hugely because of very thick walls, presumably due to extra insulation in order to reduce running costs. What has been achieved in terms of fuel economy if you have to leave the central heating on all night to stop it malfunctioning? In what way did yours misbehave? Did you let it stand for several hours before switching on after you had moved it which I understand is necessary to let the gases settle down after being disturbed?

[UncleEbenezer]

Uncle Ebenezer:

What temperature does your kitchen get down to on a very cold night? Mine got down to l5C last night (one degree lower than the stipulated lowest ambient temperature) but so far seems to be working OK. Why anyone should design a f/f to operate at a min. temperature of l6C is beyond my comprehension, especially when the capacity of the freezer has been reduced hugely because of very thick walls, presumably due to extra insulation in order to reduce running costs. What has been achieved in terms of fuel economy if you have to leave the central heating on all night to stop it malfunctioning? In what way did yours misbehave? Did you let it stand for several hours before switching on after you had moved it which I understand is necessary to let the gases settle down after being disturbed?

I don't know what temperature the kitchen gets to, but it's certainly a lot lower than 15 degrees. On a sufficiently cold winters day I'd probably need to be cooking something fairly substantial, probably in the oven, to bring it up to 15. I don't take too much notice of those ratings as such: the outside has more variables than just temperature!
And yes, I do leave it to stand before plugging in: a habit learned when I read TFM for the old fridge-freezer back in 2005, when I took delivery in the morning and powered it up in the evening.

[PrincessB]

Did you let it stand for several hours before switching on after you had moved it which I understand is necessary to let the gases settle down after being disturbed?

It's not so much the gasses as the oil.

Essentially, in those tubes is some refrigerant and a dollop of oil to lubricate the compressor piston. As I understand it, the oil gets caught up in the loop and sort of blobs its way around with enough knocking about at the bottom to keep everything moving smoothly.

The problems occur when some muppet has transported the unit upside down and then turns it the right way up and powers it on - At this point most of the oil is still glugging slowly from the top of the system to where it needs to be.

Result, shorter working life for appliance or BANG!

Incidentally, my kitchen went down to 15ºC overnight and I didn't notice any problems - If anything, the fridge bit of the F/F is running a bit too cold despite being set to +4ºC.

B.