What’s the best type of freezer?

Consumer NZ has found fridge-freezers are the most efficient in terms of energy consumption.

However, that limits storage space. If you need more, the options are stand-alone chest or vertical models.

VERTICAL: take up less space, easy to organise and see what you have, more likely to be frost-free, but are more expensive to buy, and aren't as consistent temperaturewise as chest models.

CHEST: cheaper to buy, have better temperature consistency but are more difficult to organise, it's hard to access food at the bottom, they take up a lot of space, and if you have a power cut, they'll warm up more quickly. They also need to be defrosted to avoid ice build-up, which means removing everything (and putting it somewhere else to stay frozen), leaving the freezer to thaw, then draining the water.

CONSUMER NZ’S TIPS

■ Place freezers out of the sun and away from draughts. This way, the ambient temperature is always stable – the garage is not the best place if you regularly open and close the doors.

■ If your stored products don't fill the entire freezer, use containers or bottles filled with water or push scrunched-up wastepaper into the gaps to get the most efficient energy use.

If you get a chest freezer:

■ Choose one with a bung or spout at the front for easier defrosting;

■ Buy wire or plastic baskets or containers with handles to sit in the bottom, so it's easier to organise containers and lift them out.

Source: www.consumer.org.nz