I have very limited space and an under-counter fridge with a freezer that simply doesn't freeze food, so I really needed a small freezer. I'm a researcher by training, so I needed to do a little research before making a purchase.

First, I read about optimal temperatures for refrigeration (under 40 F) and freezing (under 0 F) on www.fsis.usda.gov. Then I read reviews on ConsumerReports.org that suggested that in general, compact freezers don't keep adequately low temperatures. After reading these 2 items, I had a lot of misgivings about purchasing such a small freezer. However, the Summit cube freezers were described by the manufacturer as having a minimum temperature of -20 C (about -4 F), as well as being approved for medical use, so I decided to take a chance.

Once I received the freezer, I placed a thermometer that goes to -40 F inside the freezer to see if it really gets as cold as promised, and it does!! I've only had the freezer for about 2 weeks now, but so far so good.

The only thing I don't like about the freezer is that the adjustable temperature control is on the back of the unit, and until I got the setting right, I had to keep pulling it out from the wall to tweak it. But, once I got it right (set at about 5 for the temperature I wanted), hopefully I'll rarely need to move it out.

Of the three cube freezers I was considering (Avanti, Haier, and Summit) the Summit was the most expensive. But given that it freezes to a true 0 F and below, I'm happy. For someone considering a cube or compact freezer purchase, I would recommend Summit.

Let's face it. I am not Martha Stewart. Every member of my family, including myself eat different things at different times. We therefore, have a huge investment in our grocer's freezer, so we have to have one in our own too. We have a nice refrigerator, and an additional freezer. But this portable, upright freezer that is handy and easy to squeeze in is a nice extra when we need room after a huge sale.

The Sunpentown Upright Freezer UF-160 is 1.6 cubic feet and pretty deep. You can use this at home, give to a college student or someone who shares an apartment, or if you are going camping this time of year and have electric hookup. It is 1.6 cubic feet and can hold leftovers that you want to freeze, vegtables or fruit that you pick out of your garden. You can store it in a garage for extra brews for the boys football games, if you are having a party, a family get together or are like me and stock up at the grocery store on double coupon day!


OUTDOOR OR INDOOR?


This can be used indoors or outdoors. When we go camping, whether it is in a tent, or a cabin, we do sit it outside with the lock and key that came with it. It is not hard to transport, and is not too heavy to carry or to have sit on a countertop, picnic table or other surface. The door opens like a fridge, with a reversable door and inverted handle. It has one wire shelf, with it giving you two story storage. Storage is the key word here. There is not a lot of it. You can fit quite a few frozen meals, a gallon of ice cream, a few bags of chicken wings and some ice cubes with the ice cube tray that comes with it. It is not bad, and certainly great to have in temporary or last minute event situations. My main issue with the space is that because it is deep, rather than tall, you have to dig through quite a bit of things to find what you are looking for. It means a lot of mess and prep to get something quick on the grill. I like having things in my sight, so as long as you aren't stuffed to the gills, it should be ok.

It has a manual defrost, and we have not had any problem with frost or losing any food. The thermostat is adjustable if you have any problems. It stands on front legs that keep it steady, weighs 50 lbs, is 19.84" W X 19.45" D X 20.10 " H, so it is not awkward in it's appearance. The voltage is 115 V/60 Hz and runs quietly with a noise level of 39. It does not run the electricity bill up very much.


WHY IS MY LIFE BETTER OR WORSE FROM THIS PRODUCT?


It is better when traveling, or when in need of extra room, such as when the grocery store has a sale on frozen foods. There could be more room inside, but for such a small appliance, it is good to hold a few days worth of food! The things I do not like about it, is that sometimes it is hard to get odd shaped items to stay in place without shoving them all in, the door doesn't always stay shut and it is hard to clean with the limited elbow room. We use this for various acceptions, and one way or another, it is fine. It is not something I can't live without, but is also nice to have. Since I shop at a bulk food distributor, GFS, I need all of the space I can get! This is great for active families, single people who have roommates, or, if you have a large enough vehicle, for taking with you on roadtrips!

These days life of a freezer and refrigerator is around ten to twelve years ... and buying one is a a long term investment. Before buying them you should keep in mind certain things and certainly one should be clear with the question "Why Am I buying it?" and from whom will I purchase it? For these questions only few may have the answers? Usually contenders for this question will be people with large family, owners of the restaurants and grocery shops, it seems to be a feasible idea, but what about people who live alone and have small families. Only fractional of them have the idea about the use of upright freezers. Rest others are in dilemma of making a fresh purchase or want to know more about the upright freezers, here is the brief idea.



First and foremost thing is how to choose a freezer for your home? For this you should consider the space and smart looks. The upright models have shelves that can be used for storing different items. You need not bend and can organize the food easily in baskets and shelves. These are available in different capacity. They take less space and can be placed in a corner of your kitchen, garage and basement also. One can choose the upright freezers' model as per their needs. These include compact upright freezers, full size upright freezers, low temp upright freezers and under counter upright freezers.


Upright freeers are used for storing ice creams, popsicles, ice and other frozen food. They are designed to compliment any counter top, shelves, etc. Full size Upright Freezers have large capacity and do not take large amount of floor space. Special thing about them is that they come in indoor, outdoor, manual or frost free versions. Upright low temperature freezers are designed to hold vaccines and other items that need temperature below the conventional household freezers. Further to meet the needs of offices, restaurants, or business firms, bars and others there are under counter upright freezers.



Hence everything is dependent on you and your needs. But lets be very clear that there are number of companies offering different types of freezers. So, the features will differ from model to model. But always go in for branded ones. They are value for your hard earned money. Some of the brands that you can choose from include Sunpentown, Haier Appliances, Summit Appliances, Frigidaire, and others. For more information about the different types of upright freezers or selecting an appropriate model, visit Cooler Stores.

I shall give a 3 piece buying guide that has one main point - helping you to figure out what you need. It's not related to buying, not yet, because you need to know what you are looking for first and what kind of options you have concerning upright freezers.

The main concerns you probably have when deciding for a new upright freezer are size, features and the power it consumes. We will find out more about latter two in other posts, lets talk about the size first.

There are lots of different sizes to choose from and you will find upright freezers with 1.3 cubic feet as a starting point and you will also find a 6.2 cubic feet freezer that will satisfy all requirements. Now, depending on what you need and what amounts of food and drink you need to store, you will pick your freezer.

What happens usually is that people buy an upright freezer and use it only up to 50% of its possibilities. The cause of this is that people hope they will find some great offer and will need to store great amount of food all at once. But they usually do not use they experience and base their decision on a "what might happen" situation. Picking a larger upright freezer is not such a sin, but why waste money on more expensive product that will suck your electricity when you don't actually need it? Think about how much food you DO spend.

Besides the miscalculated quantity, people forget that they can't keep the food in an upright freezer for eternity. There is a period of 6 weeks that you should pay attention to and consume all the food in that time limit. After the 6th week, food becomes dehydrated and the nutritional value drops. Remember those ice crystals you notice on your meat or on ice cream? That is dehydration on work and it makes you throw away the food you've payed for. Calculate those 6 weeks along with the consumption, and you will get closer to what size of upright freezer you need.

Combining the food requirements and the 6 week period you can get to the size you need for a freezer. This should be two main points of your calculation. Mix them with the food consumption of your household and you will be one step closer to decide what upright freezer size you want.