Why You Shouldn't Worry About Your Freezer Being Too Full

The freezer is one of the most important modern-day kitchen appliances because it allows us to prevent so much food waste. Whether you're meal-prepping food for a holiday several weeks in advance or just realized you bought too much chicken at the grocery store, the freezer always has your back. But over time, freezers can become pretty packed; we often put foods in but might not take them out as quickly. If you were worried about your freezer using too much energy to keep all that food cold, the good news is you don't have to stress; the energy cost difference is minimal.

A full freezer might seem more expensive to run, but in reality, as long as food isn't blocking the air vents, and air can continue to flow around the frozen food, then having a full freezer is one of those little-known freezer hacks that actually helps the freezer maintain its temperature without much work from the vents. And in a power outage, food will last longer in the freezer if it's completely stocked.

An energy-efficient freezer depends less on how full it is and more on how those items are placed. The vents in the freezer allow air to circulate, so keeping those vents clear at all times means the freezer can easily maintain a constant temperature. While a freezer full of cold food will essentially take less energy to keep cold, you shouldn't freeze a bunch of stuff just to get it to that stage because this contradicts that energy-saving tactic.

"It takes so much energy to freeze/cool things initially that it's not worth loading up the freezer with stuff just to have it run more efficiently on a day-to-day basis," a representative from the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources told America's Test Kitchen.

In a power outage, it actually helps to have a full freezer. Since cold food helps keep other foods cold, a fully-stocked freezer will keep food frozen for double the time as a half-stocked one in the event of a power outage — or as many as 48 hours — before it starts to lose temperature. For best results, always keep your freezer temperature at 0 degrees Fahrenheit, and always make sure food completely cools down before placing it in the freezer.