Zero waste creator explains hack to easily remove ice buildup from freezer
Gittemary Johansen (@gittemary), a content creator dedicated to promoting zero waste, recently posted a video on how to remove excess ice in the freezer and why this could cost extra money.
“Did you know that the ice in your freezer has a pretty big impact?,” Johansen said. “Two millimeters of ice increases your freezer’s energy use by 20%.”
Along with potentially saving energy and money, removing and preventing ice buildup in a freezer could be good for the health of the fridge.
“Thick layers of ice act as insulation, making the freezer work harder to maintain its temperature,” Hashi Mohamed, president of Ivy Cleans told In The Know by Yahoo. “Regularly defrosting and maintaining your freezer can help it run more efficiently, saving energy and reducing your electricity bill in the long run.”
Ice and frost normally happen as a result of humidity, which can occur if the freezer door is opened and closed too often. If too much frost starts to form, then the coils which are supposed to send cold air to the freezer can get jammed and cause the appliance to overheat.
Furthermore, having excess ice in the freezer can affect the taste of the foods in there.
“Frost or “freezer burn” can affect the texture and even the flavor of the food in your freezer, especially if your food isn’t wrapped properly before it’s stored,” wrote Leslie K. While they’re not technically unsafe to eat, frosted items look “snowy,” often have a distinct smell and tend to have a duller flavor.
In order to combat this, Johansen shared the hack she does to easily get the ice to come off the sides of the freezer.
“To fix that, I boiled a pot of water and stuck it in the freezer for 10 minutes before I started scraping away,” she said. “I definitely won’t let it get this bad ever again. Keeping your freezer tidy both way cheaper and way more sustainable.”
Some of her viewers agreed that the ice has to be removed, but didn’t like the fact she used a metal scraper — as it could’ve damaged the freezer.
“DONT SCRAPE MINI FREEZERS THATS A REALLY EXPENSIVE MISTAKE IF YOU STAB SOMETHING I LEARNED HARD WAY,” replied @nolol757.
According to Mohamed, plastic or wooden spatulas should be the scraping device of choice, along with a towel and warm water.
Other commenters also suggested using a hair dryer to melt the ice, giving other viewers multiple options to keep their freezer clean and intact.
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The post Zero waste creator explains hack to easily remove ice buildup from freezer appeared first on In The Know.
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