bigmommasally Posted December 19, 2009 Share Posted December 19, 2009 Can anyone tell me if this is right? I have a brand new fridge freezer in my garage, turned it on at start of Dec and thought all was okay. Been out to it today to put more bits in it and it wasn't working. All the frozen food in it has defrosted. OH has been back to shop today to sort it out and they've told him that its because its too cold outside, so the freezer cuts out. I have never heard of this before - And surely even if the outside temp is cold the freezer shouldn't warm up enough to defrost already frozen food? I've lost all my homemade christmas sausage rolls, & mincepies. My stuffing and pigs in blankets Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ain't Nobody Here Posted December 19, 2009 Share Posted December 19, 2009 Oh no, poor you . I must admit I've never heard of that either . Surely it's quite common to keep freezers in garages . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christian Posted December 19, 2009 Share Posted December 19, 2009 Sorry to hear all your preps are ruined I would question that too. We have a freezer (and fridge) in an outbuilding and it doesn't cut out in the cold My Parents also have a freezer in the garage and it is ok. I would go back and claim that the freezer is not fit for purpose and get a refund. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjp Posted December 19, 2009 Share Posted December 19, 2009 I've heard this before with newer models but can't remember weather or not it was a try on by the store Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seagazer Posted December 19, 2009 Share Posted December 19, 2009 I've heard that too before. We used to keep one outside in the garage and were warned that it might happen. Sorry, how awful to lose all that food. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patricia W Posted December 19, 2009 Share Posted December 19, 2009 I seem to remember reading that the new models have a warning not to use in an unheated outhouse or garage. The technology is different from the old ones apparently. I'd go back to where you bought it and ask. Tricia Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alis girls Posted December 19, 2009 Share Posted December 19, 2009 How old is old. i have one fridge freezer in garage and a small chest freezer in garage. I havent heard this. Mine are over 5yrs old but under 10. Is this a try on by shop? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Egluntyne Posted December 19, 2009 Share Posted December 19, 2009 Oh no! I've never heard this before either. It is positively Arctic in my garage and we have both an old fridge and a freezer out there, and this hasn't happened to them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valkyrie Posted December 19, 2009 Share Posted December 19, 2009 The new ones don't handle the cold very well out in the garage - we looked into this when buying a new one recently - all the upright ones have a different chemical formula and so cease up when the temperature drops below a certain level. We ended up getting a chest freezer from John Lewis because it is insulated and so unaffected by the cold in the garage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bellekatz Posted December 19, 2009 Share Posted December 19, 2009 Its something to do with whether they have two ?condensers? or not. I looked into this when we bought a new one for the garage. Most have only one for both fridge and freezer so when it gets too cold for the fridge it switches off. You need to get one with two so there is one for each section. Or at least that was how I read it. Will my freezer or refrigerator work ok in my garage? A freezer only ( chest or upright ) will often operate fine all year round, but a frost free refrigerator will usually quit during the cold winter months. A refrigerator is meant to operate in normal room temps ( 68-71�F ). The colder the room air gets around the refrigerator the less it will run. The closer the rooms air temperature gets to the normal fresh food section air temperature ( 37-40�F ), the less the refrigerator will run and we risk the freezer thawing out. Under extreme cold/freezing situations, the oil in the compressor could thicken up and cause permanent damage to the compressor. Don't let the garage temperature drop to much below 10 degrees Celsius( 50�F ). Otherwise, the oil becomes thick and could cause premature compressor failure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlottechicken Posted December 19, 2009 Share Posted December 19, 2009 I heard about this a few years ago so it probably coincided with the change in fridge/freezer technology as others have said. I'm sure there was an article on the local radio consumer programme at the time. It just sounds so daft Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjp Posted December 19, 2009 Share Posted December 19, 2009 I heard about this a few years ago so it probably coincided with the change in fridge/freezer technology as others have said. I'm sure there was an article on the local radio consumer programme at the time. It just sounds so daft that's were I think I heard it on Ed's show the more I've thourght about it It's more than likely to do with the change in refridgerant gas and CFC's Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlottechicken Posted December 19, 2009 Share Posted December 19, 2009 Good old Ed Doolan, educating us Midlanders Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackiepoppies Posted December 21, 2009 Share Posted December 21, 2009 http://www.totalfrance.com/france/forum/viewtopic.php?t=77927 Hi there, You might find the answer here! It seems yours is not an uncommon problem Jx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DebC Posted December 21, 2009 Share Posted December 21, 2009 We had a similar problem a few years ago. As I understood it the modern frost free fridge/freezers are basically air conditioners. So when it's really cold they think to themselves "this is great I don't need to do anything!" and don't . They're so well insulated that the inside warms up and everything defrosts! (I know fridge/freezers don't actually think, because if they did they would realise it was there job to keep things cold!) Sorry all your hard work defrosted Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigmommasally Posted December 21, 2009 Author Share Posted December 21, 2009 Thanks for the link Jackiepoppies - the greenhouse heater solution is an interesting possiblility. My lovely mum has spent today remaking sausage rolls and mince pies to replace all those lost, they are now safely stowed in her reliable 20 year old freezer in her garage - what would we do without our mums. Have been back to the shop again, and pointed out that when we bought it we said it was going in the garage (it had a small dent on the door and had been marked down because of it - I said to them I wasn't worried about the dent as it was going in the garage - also when they delivered it they put it into the garage) and they never had any point said it wasn't suitable for a garage. The shop manager has agreed they should have said something, he has suggested replacing the fridge freezer with individual freezer and fridge that stack on top of each other - this will cost us another £100 or so However, apparently he can't give the approval for doing this, the company director has to approve it so we have to wait until tomorrow for official word. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lesley Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 We have freezers in an outbuilding to keep the meat in (as well as everything else) and we did have to choose ones which were suitable. The Comet website does seem to indicate whether or not their freezers are suitable. I hope you manage to sort the problem out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
