Every now and then, chest freezers need defrosting as most of these units don’t come with an auto-defrost feature. Defrosting your unit is needed because it keeps your unit efficient and expands its life time, and in this guide you’ll learn not just how to do it properly, but also when to do it and we’ll give you a few tips to make this process simpler and faster.

Why to defrost your chest freezer?

Because it keeps your unit efficient and operating at its optimal performance.

The ice build up that covers the walls of the freezer is not a good thing, in fact, this ice is another layer the cold air generated by the compressor needs to trespass to keep the internal temperature you set.

This frost is the result of ambient temperature air getting in contact with the cold air inside the unit. The “hot” air has humidity as well that when cooled becomes liquid and then becomes ice that sticks on the inside walls of the freezer.

The more these two airs combine the thicker the layer of frost will be, and therefore, the harder your unit will have to work to keep the internal temperature of the freezer.

How often to defrost your chest freezer?

There is no specific period of time to do this as it really depends on how you use your freezer, since this will determine how thick is the layer of ice build up on its walls.

Some people say you should do this every 6 months and others say it is once a year, yet we’ve seen cases where the ice build up is so thick every two weeks that performing a manual defrost process is a must in order to keep the freezer operating at its best.

While there is not a specific period to do this, the indicator that tells when it is time to defrost your unit is the frost’s thickness. Between 1/8 and 1/4 of an inch of thickness, a pause is required to defrost your freezer.

We also recommend to defrost your unit even if the ice build up is not on the walls but it is between the top frame and the lid of the unit. If this is the case, your freezer won’t seal well and you’ll definitely will have some performance issues. In this case the defrosting process would be much simpler, yet it is still required.

As mentioned before, don’t think about this in terms of time. Instead, observe your unit’s behavior and this will help you predict much better how often you should be defrosting your unit.

The amount of frost is determined not only by the hot and cold air interacting, but also by the type and amount of food you store inside, the external temperature and your habits around how often you open the lid of your freezer and for how long.

The 5 steps to defrost your freezer without impacting its performance

When its time to defrost your unit, there are a few things you want to consider to avoid damaging your freezer. By all means avoid putting boiled water inside or using detergents and other chemicals to remove ice because you can damage the interior walls of your deep freezer and end up with really bad problems.

Here is a procedure you can use that is not only the best but is also test driven by experts and it not only helps you properly defrost your chest freezer but also helps increase its lifespan.

Follow these simple 5 Steps for a Successful and Stress free defrosting process

1. Turn off and unload the freezer

Turn off and unplug your freezer. At the same time, transfer all your food items to another freezer.

It is important to transfer all your food items to another freezer or to your refrigerator’s freezer so you can thoroughly remove the frost from the interior of the unit.

Pro tips to plan ahead

• Plan to empty your freezer: Eat the food you can, throw away old food and even give some of your meals away so you have the less items to transfer to another freezer. Intentionally plan to do this and purchase food accordingly so you don’t risk too many items to thaw and go bad.
• Use the coldest setting before defrosting: About 6 hours before defrosting your unit, freezer the food that is left using the coldest setting so it is deeply frozen and it can stay like that for longer time. This will help you do the defrosting of your unit and chances are you’ll still have the food frozen when the unit is good to go again.

2. Prepare to drain the unit

Most chest freezers come with a drain plug that you’ll use to drain the unit, but you’ll need to get ready to receive the water and melted ice and not make a mess.

Here is where the old rags, beach towels, and plastic liners will make the difference. You want to put plastic liners on the floor and on top of them lay the old rags and or beach towels so they can absorb the liquids once you open that drain plug.

3. Allow ice to melt

Note 1: Don’t use chemicals, abrasives, hot air or hot water to speed up the process because you’ll only end up damaging your freezer’s interior walls. Although a lot of videos and websites advise to do this, it is a bad practice that not only is dangerous to you but also 90% of the times reduces your freezer’s performance and shortens its lifetime.

Note 2: When it comes to the melting part, for some reason some people think that if they flip their freezer’s upside down, the ice will melt faster. This is not true and it is a really bad practice since the refrigerant of the unit will move through the piping and this can lead to performance issues.

Having the previous note 1, you can guess this is the lengthy part of the process, as the ice melting may take some time. The amount of time this takes depends totally on the thickness of the frost layer, so this is why it is also a good idea to do this process often.

Pro tips to accelerate defrosting

There are however, a few ways in which you can speed up the melting process without damaging your freezer.

• Move your freezer to a hotter room: By doing this you can speed up a bit the ice melting process. You can also take it outside if the day is hot.
• Use a fan to direct air to the freezer: This is the same principle that air fryers use. Using a non-heating fan, that is, a regular fan, you can ensure ambient temperature air moves inside the cabinet of your freezer. Just open the lid and point a fan to the inside. This “hot” air will speed up the melting of the frost.

4. Remove the melted ice from the Freezer

Once the frost layer is gone, you can open the drain plug to let go all the melted ice and water. There may be some big chunks of ice so remove these by hand.

If you are dealing with odors, use a mixture of water and baking soda to give your freezer’s interior walls a good clean. The recommended recipe is 1 tbsp of baking soda in 4 cups of water.

Once done, be sure to completely dry everything before plugging it. Failing to do so will only result in frost growing faster, as well as thick ice spots.

This may be a good time to clean your freezer

Defrosting and cleaning a chest freezer are different processes, as cleaning also involves not just the interior walls, but the racks, removable baskets, the soft plastic on the lid, and the exterior of your freezer.

Racks and removable baskets

Most racks and removable baskets of chest freezers are made of metal and have a coating layer to protect them from corrosion. To keep this layer as strong as possible, use the same mix of baking soda and water and a towel to thoroughly clean these and remove any spots or odors from them.

If these racks or baskets are made of plastic, you can use regular dish soap for cleaning. Make sure you dry everything before use to avoid frost building fast once in operation.

Soft plastic on the lid of the freezer

This soft plastic is crucial for the proper sealing of your freezer and it tends to accumulate not only frost but also stains because people touch it with their hands and these are not always clean, so it is common to see these dirty.

In some cases you can remove this rubber from the freezer lid, which facilitates the cleaning process, but if this is not the case for you, just use soapy water to ensure you thoroughly clean it and remove any stain that may produce a gap between the rubber and the hard plastic frame of your chest freezer.

These gaps let cold air escape from the freezer and when this happens, hot air gets in, producing the conditions for ice build up and also making the compressor work harder to maintain the inner temperature of the unit.

It is crucial to use a dry cloth to remove any water and soap residues before starting the freezer once again.

Exterior of the freezer

For the exterior part you can use soapy water as well to clean all the walls and the lid. Be sure to dry everything before putting back your freezer to operation.

Let everything dry for a while

Even if you completely dried every part of the freezer, it is also a good idea to let everything dry for 1 hour or 2. This will ensure there is no humidity that will contribute to build ice or frost faster than normal use.

5. Power up and load your food

Once everything is clean and dry, it is time to put your freezer back to operation. If you took your freezer to a hotter room, make sure you put it where it initially was and plug the unit so it can start cooling.

Depending on your freezer’s performance, you may want to wait 1 or 2 hours to pack your food. Remember that as you load item, each one will change the internal temperature of the unit, so this is when it pays off to have planned to empty your freezer, since you’ll only have a few items to put back.

How to prevent ice build up in your freezer?

Frost build up is the result of the normal use of your freezer the biggest contributing factor for it to grow is you opening the lid of the freezer, which of course is something that will happen regularly, so there is really not a way to completely avoid ice build up.

You can however do a few things to slow it down. Here is a list of some recommendations we’ve seen that help to slow down the ice build up process.

1. Defrost your unit often: This is the most effective way to avoid ice build up to grow excessively so it can impact your freezer performance. Make sure to do it when the ice layer thickness is between 1/8 and 1/4 of an inch for better results.
2. Organize your chest freezer so you open the lid for short periods of time: Opening the lid is when the most hot and humid air from the exterior enters the unit, which causes frost to grow. The most effective way to open the lid for the shortest periods of time is if you don’t have to waste time looking for what you need, so it is a good idea to organize your chest freezer and have it all handy when open the lid.
3. Install your freezer in a well ventilated room and avoid direct sunlight: Another interesting way to avoid hot and humid air entering your unit, is if hot and humid air is not present in the room the freezer is installed in the first place. This is why even if your unit is labeled as garage ready, it really is best if you install it in a well ventilated room with climate control.
4. Load food as cold and dry as possible: Since this is a freezer, it makes sense to load already frozen food. That raw chicken with juice is not only dangerous to your health but also not ready to be stored in your chest freezer. Instead, dry and cool it as much as possible and then put it in your deep freezer.
5. Use your chest freezer to 80% or less of its capacity: The more food you load the more heat you add to the inside of the unit. Also, the harder the compressor has to work to keep the internal temperature. This is why it is a good idea to choose the right size of your chest freezer, depending on your storage needs, so you can use it at 80% of its capacity when max.
6. Check your freezer seal: The lid’s rubber and frame of your freezer need to be completely clean so no gaps are present when the freezer is closed. These gaps equal to have the lid open and warm air may get inside the freezer and produce frost and make your unit work harder.

Final words

While there is a lot online saying you can defrost your chest freezer this and that way, and even give you tips to expedite using chemicals and other methods, the truth is you want your unit not only to perform well but also to last long.

This is why we created this comprehensive guide to explain you in detail everything you need to know about defrosting a chest freezer.

Feel free to reach out if you have questions and we hope this brings clarity once and for all to your questions about keeping up your freezer’s performance to the top.

Happy freezing!