To buy a big freezer or little freezer, that is the question???

**SHOPGIRL** · 08-16-2005, 11:47 PM

After much convincing, my husband agreed to buy me a freezer for the last Christmas.  I'm still waiting for Santa to bring it to me.

This is the problem.  What size should I get?  My husband wants to put it in the basement.  I think that would be great, but if we did that, we could only get a 13.7 cubic feet upright freezer.  That one would cost around $400 new.  If I got a freezer that could be stored in the garage, I could get a large one for around $500.  I could get around a 20 cubic foot freezer.

I looked into older freezers, although the price was right, I figured they wouldn't be energy efficient.

So, I plan on getting a frost-free, upright freezer.  I figure, this will save valuable space and it will be easier to find things in the upright freezer.

So, what do you think?  Should I settle for the smaller freezer in the convenient basement or go for the larger freezer in the garage?  The larger freezer is a better value, at least I think it is. 

**homesteadmamma** · 08-16-2005, 11:57 PM

I voted for a large freezer, however we have 5 in our family. We have a smaller freezer and when its filled with veggies from the garden there is hardly any room for anything else.

It also depends on how many are in your family and if you do a lot of stockpiling.

**SHOPGIRL** · 08-17-2005, 12:02 AM

Right now there is just me and my husband, but we would like to have kids. So, I'm thinking of buying a freezer for 4 instead of two.

**forestdale** · 08-17-2005, 12:15 AM

Shopgirl when our kids were little we had a big freezer. We then lived in a very isolated area and were three hours away from the nearest supermarket.

Now with just the two of us, we have a small freezer, plus the one attached to the top of the fridge. That does us well, but we don't eat any meat. We use it for a little bit of fish, bread, frozen vegetables from the garden, dog food, which I make myself and then freeze, and ice cubes.

If you're buying a brand new freezer and you plan on having kids, AND you are meat eaters, I think you should go for the big one. You can get some very good bulk meat deals and as the kids grow you'll need that extra space.

**psjkmom** · 08-17-2005, 12:26 AM

I agree with CJ and Rhonda. We have a small chest freezer and it's too small. I would stockpile so much more and buy more on sale if I had more room in the freezer. We have 4 small children, so our food needs are greater than yours, but you are wise to think ahead!

**SHOPGIRL** · 08-17-2005, 12:30 AM

Thanks for the input. Yes,I'm leaning towards a bigger freezer. My sister has a big freezer and her freezer is stuffed. I like to buy frozen vegetables when they are $1 a bag. I don't like canned vegetables so I need more freezer space for the vegetables. Yes, I'm a meat eater; fish, chicken, roasts, hamburger. When I have more money this fall, I would LOVE to stockpile more things. I really don't like going to the grocery store, so when I shop I like to buy a lot of whatever is on sale.

I'm also wondering, where does everyone keep their freezer? In the basement, the garage. . .???

**forestdale** · 08-17-2005, 12:32 AM

ours is in the laundry room under the folding bench and next to the washer and dryer.

**mom22grls** · 08-17-2005, 08:11 AM

we have 2. A big upright, and a small deep freeze. Mostly, the little one is turned off, but at harvest time & when we buy bulk meat, we turn it on.

Ours are both in the laundry room in the basement because it's actually easier to get to. If you have a de-tached garage, I'd suggest the basement.

**YankeeMom** · 08-17-2005, 08:22 AM

I'd also suggest the basement. Unless your garage is fairly weather-proof (ie. doesn't get below 50*F/above 75*F inside) your freezer will be working overtime.

I have a medium sized chest freezer. It's about 4ft long and 3 ft tall, I don't know the cubic feet because I bought it at a yard sale for $30

It's perfect size for our family of 6. BUT, I also have two refrigerators w/ freezers as well.

**Darlene** · 08-17-2005, 08:34 AM

My vote is for big and ours is in the basement.

Enjoy!

**Julia Kimber** · 08-17-2005, 08:38 AM

I voted for the big one. We have two large upright ones, my old one is in the family/dining room and is useful for freezing all sorts of things and my newish one is in the kitchen.

There's only the two of us but they're both usually full!

Julia

**Early Bird** · 08-17-2005, 10:27 AM

I agree with Yankee Mom -- the biggest you can get, but only if it's not in the garage!

**MandiDawn** · 08-17-2005, 11:41 AM

I say go with the big one. I reget it all the time that I bought the smaller one.
Every 2 weeks I go to the chest freezer, pull out meat for the next two weeks, and transfer that to the kitchen freezer, so you won't be traisping out to the garage all the time, just once every week or two. Oh, I keep my chest freezer in my mudroom (no basement or garage

) and it's not heated, but it works fine still.

**Chea** · 08-17-2005, 06:52 PM

I'm having this SAME debate. I can't bring myself to decide either and until I can make up my mind I can't buy one! I'm thinking a smaller one in my case but totally agree that an older freezer wouldn't be energy efficient.

**dutchwoman** · 08-17-2005, 08:43 PM

I think the chest freezers are more energy efficient, they don't lose their cool when opened like the uprights. And, if you get a large one, you can store TONS in there.