Last updated on January 12th, 2024 at 08:04 am

Fast way to clear ice in chest freezer without defrosting


pro family chef.com chest freezer clearing the ice without defrosting
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases made on our website. If you make a purchase through links from this website, we may get a small share of the sale from Amazon and other similar affiliate programs.

A chest freezer is certainly a must appliance for home cooks. But when it comes to cleaning the ice, the process of defrosting is annoying and time-consuming. What if there is a way to remove ice in the chest freezer without defrosting it?

Following are the 6 steps to get rid of ice in a chest freezer without defrosting it:

Step 1 Prepare (cloth, towel, bucket, freezer gloves, ice scraper)
Step 2 Unplug the freezer
Step 3 Empty food
Step 4 The scraping method (without chemicals, without defrosting)
Step 5 Remove the ice
Step 6 Put food back and plug in the freezer

How to get rid of ice in the chest freezer without defrosting

Step 1 Prepare: 

find some old towels and put them on the floor in front of the chest freezer. Prepare a bucket in which you will put the ice. To scrape the ice of the walls use a hard plastic or wooden spatula. The spatula should be sturdy, so it doesn’t break. Do not use stainless steel scraper as it can damage the chest freezer walls.

After trying several scraping tools, we found that freezer scrapers are the most reliable. The hard plastic, once like the Mallory S24-994 Maxx XS 10″ Ice Scraper with Foam Grip, is the best.

Also prepare a kitchen cloth, and a plastic or stainless steel rectangular plate (like a waiter plate). It is also wise to have freezer gloves, so you don’t get frostbites. You will also need a clean kitchen cloth for cleaning the gasket and edges with some warm water.

tools for chest freezer cloth, towel, bucket, freezer gloves, i

Step 2 Safety: 

unplug the chest freezer before you start scrubbing.

Step 3 Empty food: 

if you want to clean your chest freezer, you need to empty it first. The best way to do this is to put all your things into separate plastic bags. When you clear your chest freezer, it is also a great time to organize the food you are storing in there.

You know that searching for food in the chest freezer can be challenging. Every time you take something out, another thing takes its place. So when you empty the chest freezer, it is a perfect time to put back everything in its place.

If you are asking yourself what to do with food when cleaning or defrosting the chest freezer, the answer is nothing. Just put it on the towels that are on the floor as the process of clearing the ice from the chest freezer won’t take more than 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, your food will still be deep-frozen and won’t go bad.

Step 4 the scraping method: 

to scrape the ice of the walls, you don’t need to defrost the entire chest freezer. Defrosting the entire chest freezer takes a lot of time. You can do it, but you will need to put the food you took out of the freezer into a separate freezer, so it doesn’t go bad. Also, the procedure of defrosting the entire chest freezer is much longer and energy less efficient than the fast scrub method.

The fast way to clear the ice in the chest freezer is to scrape it off the walls. Look at it like cleaning the ice off of windshield on a freezing morning. Put on your gloves, take kitchen cloth into one hand, and scraper into another. Start scraping the ice from the bottom up with relatively fast moves by holding the scraper tool at 45 degrees angle. You will see that entire chunks of ice will fall off the wall. Continue with scrubbing on all four chest walls. In the end, also scrape the edges inside the chest and bottom of the chest. 

The benefits of the scraping method:

If you defrost the chest freezer completely, the temperature inside the chest is going to rise. Also, the inside walls of the chest will be much warmer after you have done the defrost, and after you put the food back in the freezer, a small layer of ice will form very quickly. In the end, you will use more energy, and a thin layer of ice will develop very quickly anyway.

With the scraping method, you scrape the thick ice off, and you are left with a thin layer of ice on the chest walls. Meaning you achieve the same results much faster and cheaper as you won’t use as much energy as you would with the defrosting method.

Step 5 remove the ice: 

use a stainless steel rectangular plate and push the ice to one end of the chest. Load the ice onto a plate and put it in the bucket. When the chest is clear of ice, wipe the gasket and edges of the chest with a wet cloth.

Step 6 put food back in: 

now you need to put the food back in the chest freezer and close the cover. Also, don’t forget to plug it back in.

ESSENTIAL TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT FOR FREEZING FOOD

Ziplock storage slider bags
Ziploc Gallon Food Storage Slider Bags, Power Shield Technology for More Durability, 26 Count (Pack of 4)
Aluminum pan/containers
55 Pack - Aluminum Pan / Containers with Lids / Foil Containers / Aluminum Pans with Lids / Take Out Containers / Disposable Pans / Aluminum Foil Food Containers / Freezer meals containers (2.25 LB)
Vacuum sealer machine
Vacuum Sealer Machine By Mueller | Automatic Vacuum Air Sealing System For Food Preservation w/Starter Kit | Compact Design | Lab Tested | Dry & Moist Food Modes | Led Indicator Lights
White freezer paper
White Freezer Paper Dispenser Box (17.25 Inch x 175 Feet Roll) - Poly Coated Moisture Resistant Wrap with Matte Side for Freezing Meats, Protects Against Freezer Burn
Plastic storage containers
fullstar 50 PCS Plastic Food Storage Containers with Lids (24 Containers & 24 Lids), Leakproof BPA-Free Containers for Kitchen Organization, Meal Prep, Reusable Lunch Container - (Pack of 50)
Removable freezer labels
300pcs Removable Freezer Labels, Yoget 1 x 3 Inch Food Storage Stickers, Refrigerator Freezer Paper Label Easy Clean Leaves No Residue, 2 Color Food Labels Roll

Most versatile freezing bag, perfect for storing fresh food items like fruits, vegetables, meat, soups,

Must have for microwave and oven dinners
- pasta, lasagna
- casserole
- meatloaf

Best for keeping food fresh for longer
- meat
- vegetables
- fruit

Perfect for wraping meat
- steaks
- small and large meat cuts
- also great for bbq and grill

Best for freezing
- grains
- soups
- vegetables
- fruit

Must have reminder for freezing item - write best before date and content

Ziplock storage slider bags
Ziploc Gallon Food Storage Slider Bags, Power Shield Technology for More Durability, 26 Count (Pack of 4)

Most versatile freezing bag, perfect for storing fresh food items like fruits, vegetables, meat, soups,

Aluminum pan/containers
55 Pack - Aluminum Pan / Containers with Lids / Foil Containers / Aluminum Pans with Lids / Take Out Containers / Disposable Pans / Aluminum Foil Food Containers / Freezer meals containers (2.25 LB)

Must have for microwave and oven dinners
- pasta, lasagna
- casserole
- meatloaf

Vacuum sealer machine
Vacuum Sealer Machine By Mueller | Automatic Vacuum Air Sealing System For Food Preservation w/Starter Kit | Compact Design | Lab Tested | Dry & Moist Food Modes | Led Indicator Lights

Best for keeping food fresh for longer
- meat
- vegetables
- fruit

White freezer paper
White Freezer Paper Dispenser Box (17.25 Inch x 175 Feet Roll) - Poly Coated Moisture Resistant Wrap with Matte Side for Freezing Meats, Protects Against Freezer Burn

Perfect for wraping meat
- steaks
- small and large meat cuts
- also great for bbq and grill

Plastic storage containers
fullstar 50 PCS Plastic Food Storage Containers with Lids (24 Containers & 24 Lids), Leakproof BPA-Free Containers for Kitchen Organization, Meal Prep, Reusable Lunch Container - (Pack of 50)

Best for freezing
- grains
- soups
- vegetables
- fruit

Removable freezer labels
300pcs Removable Freezer Labels, Yoget 1 x 3 Inch Food Storage Stickers, Refrigerator Freezer Paper Label Easy Clean Leaves No Residue, 2 Color Food Labels Roll

Must have reminder for freezing item - write best before date and content

Last update on 2024-02-26 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

Why does ice build up in a chest freezer?

If you sometimes ask yourself, why does my freezer look like it snowed? The answer lies in the air. The air outside the freezer is warm and cold inside the freezer. When warm and humid air meets cold freezer air immediately, crystals of ice are formed. The temperature of humid air outside the freezer is around 71F or 22 C. When humid warm air is cool down to 32F 0C, which happens inside the freezer, it turns into ice.

pro family chef.com ice in chest freezer how to remove of ice without defrostin

pro family chef.com. ice in chest freezer how do i get rid of ice without defrostin

Usually, you open your freezer chest a few times a week. Each time you open the chest freezer, little ice is built up, and in around two or three months, you get a hefty dose of ice in your chest freezer.

How often should you clean accumulated ice in a chest freezer

There is no specific timeframe. It really depends on the factors stated in the next point in this article. Usually, it would be best if you cleaned it every 3-4 months.

The more you take into consideration the 7 steps below on how to stop the chest freezer from icing up, the fewer times you will have to remove the ice from it.

How do you stop your chest freezer from icing up?

You can’t! A chest freezer will build up ice eventually. But you can slow the process by considering these 8 simple steps:

Step 1: when you take something out of the freezer, do not leave it open for a long time. If the food in the chest freezer is organized, well packed, and labeled, you won’t have many problems locating the desired bag. On the other hand, if your chest freezer is a mess, you will leave it open for a longer time when searching for something, and ice will build up much faster.

Step 2: reduce the number of times to get something out of your freezer.

Step 3: check if the chest freezer lid is fully closed when you put food and different boxes (exp. ice cream) into the chest freezer. An item you put in may be too large, and the lid will stay open just slightly. If this happens, the ice build up process will speed up dramatically.

Step 4: Always put cooled or cold food in the chest freezer, never put in warm or hot.

Step 5: When you put in large batches of food, put it on the bottom of the chest and lay already frozen food on the fresh items.

Step 6: clean the gasket of the chest freezer as there might be a piece of plastic or food blocking the rubber seal to compress completely.

Step 7: check your freezer temperature. If it constantly fluctuates or is too high, you might have a problem with freezer condenser coils or the thermostat.

Step 8: If the gasket is worn out, cold air will leak out of the freezer, forcing the freezer to work harder to cool down. As a result, the freezer may run longer than it should, or excess ice may accumulate inside of the freezer.

3 popular chest freezers we would recommend

Midea MRC070S0AWW Chest Freezer, 7.0 Cubic Feet

Northair Compact Chest Freezer 3.5 Cubic Feet

Home joy Chest Freezer Deep 5

PIN Getting rid of chest freezer ice without defrosting

Rok

I am a kind of person that would sneak a taste out of grandma’s pot when I was barely tall enough to reach it. I grew up in kitchens full of love and liveliness and have spent my whole live learning, experimenting and succeeding in the art of cooking. At Pro Family Chef, every day is an opportunity for a new meal and a brand new flavor. I created this website to connect people that love to cook, with the products designed to make their cooking easier, hassle-free and rewarding every time.

Recent Posts