It must be obvious to you-all.......

[tim]

....but I just cannot understand thermostats.

Immersion heater
Car radiator
Oil filled heaters
Oven
Ones body
Iron
Propagator ...to name but a few. They ALL work fine.

But our Freezer? Struggled to achieve -15 to -18C during our modest summer, but is now -25C.


I want at least -20C.
Surely a 'stat should be designed to adjust to normal circumstances??

[tim]

[Robert_Brenchley]

It may have been trying to get to -25 all along, and been unable to because of the summer temperatures. Just as this computer was struggling to keep itself cool all through the hot weather, but was overcome to the point where i had to keep a large fan on it all the time. It sounds as though your freezer was keeping itself cold enough to do the job, but this thing is going to be considerably revamped before next summer!

[muddy boots]

Tim, standard catering requirement is  -18.  You're not doing too badly  :)

[grawrc]

-18 is what it should be Tim. Anything lower is not helping the environment? Lots of factors in efficiency of freezers. for starters: How old is it? How efficient is it?(ie what efficiency rating?) Where is it sited?

[Barnowl]

Thanks for the info. My freezer, an upright with drawers, came with the recommendation of -22degC so I've been wasting a load of energy. >:(

[lorna]

On the same line can anyone suggest what temperature I should aim for to A. Kepp my food frozen B.My ice cream is always solid, impossible to use a scoop!!
Help please.
Lorna

[tin can]

When we bought a new chest freezer the guy in the shop asked if we were going to keep it in the house or garage as there are different types depending on the outside temperature range.
Maybe that's part of the problem?

[Robert_Brenchley]

You need different temperatures. About -18 centigrade for food storage, but ice cream needs to be much closer to freezing point to be eaten conveniently.

[lorna]

Thanks Robert. Looks like I will have to buy smaller blocks of ice cream so that it can be eaten in one sitting :)

[Hyacinth]

Thanks Robert. Looks like I will have to buy smaller blocks of ice cream so that it can be eaten in one sitting :)

Ladies Logic Rules OK  8)

;D

[daisymay]

Thanks Robert. Looks like I will have to buy smaller blocks of ice cream so that it can be eaten in one sitting :)

Ladies Logic Rules OK  8)

;D

definitely - the all important s on blocks - obviously multiple blocks of ice cream required.....  8) :)

maybe a second freezer just for ice cream, we have a beer fridge after all!

[lorna]

daisymay. You haven't seen the size of my kitchen :) no spare space. Don't normally drink beer and my bottles of brandy sit on top of the book case in the dining room :)

[tim]

No apologies for starting something. So many things to consider? A few…………

1. Sorry about the environment â€" ours is 30 years old â€" 18cuft upright. Certainly not an A model!
2. Recommended temp â€" read recently that, professionally, -18C is not good enough for fish.
3. In our modest summer, ours not infrequently touched â€"12C.
4. Fast Freeze.. If you can barely hold â€"18C on full throttle, you can’t get a minimum of â€"26C for that. And what happens if the weather gets really hot?
5. Thermostat.. ‘Regulates temperature within given bounds’. In other words, you choose?
6. Ice cream. Unless you have a ‘soft scoop’, full of â€"isers, it should rest out of the freezer for 10 mins or so. But it should  never thaw completely before going back in. So â€" smaller blocks!! As in a refrigerator, there are different levels of temperature in the cabinet.
7. â€"22C?  If it can do it, great.  Desirable, but not necessary for short storage.
8. Location? Saw this today â€" “There are loads of myths that go with refrigerators and freezers.   The temperature will not hurt the compressor, the problem is usually with refrigerators in unheated garages because the thermostat that controls temperature is in the fresh food section, so in the winter, the temperatures are usually lower than the normal temp. inside the fresh food section, therefore the thermostat never tells the compressor to come on, so the freezer has a tendency to defrost the food because the compressor is never being asked to come on.   All the cold comes from the freezer and is blown into the fresh food section, so if the fresh food temperature is satisfied, the compressor will not come on to safisfy the freezer.  With a freezer, it is different because the asked for temperature is only in one compartment, so there would be no defrosting.   If I was not clear, please email back and I will try to simplify my answer, but the bottom line is that you will be fine, you will not damage the compressor.  (From ‘an expert’.)
9. I believe it sensible to keep a gel thermometer â€" or digital in liquid - in the freezer. Poor performance can catch you   unawares.
10. Can everyone else achieve what temp they want?
11. Any advance on that??