Freezer in the barn?

Fritz Maurer · Oct 5, 2022

I have have freezer chests and uprights in the barn for years. Lately I have been told that this is bad for them, an internet search shows over 50% of articles are of this opinion. Some were discussing damage to the unit, others mentioned food spoilage because the cold weather ,, tricks,, the unit into not running, thus spoiling the food. Are modern units really this junky or is it hogwash? This latest unit is less than 10 years old... the IHC and the Whirlpool are in their 70s and run fine.

Steve@Advance · Oct 5, 2022

They should be fine.

It's refrigerator/freezers that get tricked into not coming on in cold weather because the thermostat is in the refrigerator section.

But any freezer is subject to failure. One failure could be a very expensive set back.

in-too-deep · Oct 5, 2022

Freezer will be fine and not hurt anything.

Tx Jim · Oct 5, 2022

I've had a freezer in an outside storage building for several yrs. None of the frozen food stored in it has spoiled to my knowledge

Ken Macfarlane · Oct 5, 2022

Our deep freeze has been in an unheated space for 10+ years. Only time it has trouble is frost build up in humid summer months and once when the thermostat stuck at defrost setting.

JMOR · Oct 5, 2022

(quoted from post at 11:25:25 10/05/22) They should be fine.

It's refrigerator/freezers that get tricked into not coming on in cold weather because the thermostat is in the refrigerator section.

But any freezer is subject to failure. One failure could be a very expensive set back.

y refrigerator/freezer wouldn't have that problem, Steve, as each compartment has its own compressor/evaporator/condenser & thermostat. $$$$

Richard G. · Oct 5, 2022

Fritz, I have a very old one in my shop which when we are not down there, gets to whatever the outside temp is.
Can get down to 10 F or lower several times a year.
Never had a problem.
Shop fridge with a freezer is the same way.

Jerrycpp · Oct 5, 2022

If you buy a new freezer, be sure it is one rated for a cold environment. Most of them will shut down below 50 degrees. I have one of those and have to run a space heater near it in the winter for it to work properly.

showcrop · Oct 5, 2022

You need to make sure that the unit is not exposed to temperatures above 110 F or below 0 F, because that may damage the freezer," says Larry Ciufo, who oversees the ratings for Consumer Reports freezer tests.

Geo-TH,In · Oct 5, 2022

I have a refrigerator inside unheated garage.
I have to put a light bulb inside the refrigerator to keep freezer cold.
Otherwise ice cream melts.

john in la · Oct 5, 2022

I thought this was more of a problem with a refrigerator freezer combo but not a stand alone freezer.

In a combo the thermostat is in the refrigerator. If the outside temperature gets below the refrigerator temperature the unit will not come on and the freezer temperature will rise to the outside temperature.

In a stand alone freezer the thermostat is in the freezer so the outside temperature doesnt effect it

Sleufoot · Oct 5, 2022

The issue really is when the temperature where the unit is located is cold but not cold enough to keep the unit from running it tries to start and the oil in the compressor is so thick that it can damage the compressor. The older units ran at a slower RPM then the newer units. The wise thing was to put a heat source (ie) a light bulb or something like that near the compressor to keep it warm. From a retired service tech. Tom in Mn

Bruce from Can. · Oct 5, 2022

I have had a freezer in my unheated garage for 18 years, and it works just as good as it ever has. The freezer its self is 60 years old.

cjunrau · Oct 5, 2022

We have a deep freeze outside in Manitoba Canada. Year round. In 30-40 years only had one quit working while outside. Dont think it had anything to do with being outside. I think more on mice chewed up the wiring.

gab · Oct 5, 2022

I have a 40-year-old GE chest freezer in the garage that works fine in the winter. Also have a 20-year-old Whirlpool up right self defrost fridge with freezer on top. It freezes the drain tube solid and some things get a little soft in the freezer, I just emptied it Monday and rolled it over to the door in the sun to thaw out.

I think the problem is the self-defrost, It worked ok when it was in the house.

Sleufoot · Oct 5, 2022

Whirlpool makes a heat probe that you attach to the defrost heater and it extends into the drain hole.

Fritz Maurer · Oct 6, 2022

Thanks for the replies, the freezer was a gift but the P.O. telling about cold weather freezer dangers was the first time I ever heard of such a thing.

INCase · Oct 6, 2022

yep

we do as well. its a 3 year old Whirlpool. the old units and some newer bigger high end units don't have this problem but the plain jane newer fridges do. our local hardware usually has a 15w night light bulb and i put that in a candle stick holder near the thermostat inside and it does the trick. pain in neck. some older fridges made a heater to do the same trick.

also those fridges you have to be very careful and not stuff the freezer full so the air from the freezer can get down to the fridge or the fridge gets really warm. ours will have the freezer ice ice cold and the fridge is at 60 degrees so i have to thaw the ports/air ducts between the freezer and fridge to fix it.

i 3D printed some grates to put over the ducts so if you get too much in the freezer there is more opportunity for air to still flow. only been in there about 6 weeks so we'll see if it fixes it.

Russ from MN · Oct 6, 2022

A barn is a building in which you house livestock, I wouldn't mix a freezer and livestock! We have one in a garage, but only use it in warmer weather. I have heard that some of them won't start in cold weather because the oil in the compressor is too thick. The solution is to put a small light bulb by the compressor.

Freezer in the barn?

Fritz Maurer

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Steve@Advance

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in-too-deep

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Tx Jim

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Ken Macfarlane

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JMOR

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Richard G.

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Jerrycpp

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showcrop

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Geo-TH,In

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john in la

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Sleufoot

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Bruce from Can.

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cjunrau

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gab

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Sleufoot

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Fritz Maurer

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INCase

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Russ from MN

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