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Charles Wiggins
03-11-2015, 8:36 PM
We just went in with a friend and bought a hog that he is raising for us. So we had the "we'll need a freezer" talk, then viola! Another friend posted one for sale. We have no need of it right now. How long can I leave it unplugged? It's a Kenmore upright, probably around 10 years old, I'm guessing.

TIA
Charles

Joe Mioux
03-11-2015, 8:52 PM
How long do you plan on not using it?

Myk Rian
03-11-2015, 9:09 PM
Leave the door propped open and you can unplug it forever.

Rich Engelhardt
03-12-2015, 6:48 AM
Toss an open bag of charcoal in it....

Freezers can get real ripe when hot weather sets in.

Art Mann
03-12-2015, 11:19 AM
If the foods inside an upright freezer are at -5F as recommended, then they will probably stay below 32F for at least 8 hours and probably much longer without power. Chest type freezers will typically hold the temperature longer. I am assuming the freezer is of average build and in good shape. I live in tornado alley and have had some experience with freezers during extended power failures.

Ed Labadie
03-12-2015, 12:35 PM
Leave the door propped open and you can unplug it forever.

This....

When you DO plug it in....make sure there is NO ground fault outlet on it. I've several friends that lost everything when the gfi popped and they didn't find it until it was to late.

Ed

Myk Rian
03-12-2015, 12:53 PM
If the foods inside an upright freezer are at -5F as recommended, then they will probably stay below 32F for at least 8 hours and probably much longer without power. Chest type freezers will typically hold the temperature longer. I am assuming the freezer is of average build and in good shape. I live in tornado alley and have had some experience with freezers during extended power failures.
Art. It is empty.

Art Mann
03-12-2015, 1:26 PM
Okay, I see that now. My answer in that case would be years. If the door is left closed, mold may grow in damp environments but even that is just superficial and can be cleaned away. New freezers sit on the floor at small appliance shops for a year or more without any issues. Why would a used freezer be any different?

Charles Wiggins
03-12-2015, 1:44 PM
Thanks for all the replies, gentlemen.

Curt Harms
03-13-2015, 7:28 AM
If you're going to prop the door open, how about just removing the door? No risk or little kids or critters getting trapped.

Jim Matthews
03-13-2015, 8:53 AM
I don't know anyone that has ever eaten everything in a freezer that size before the sale of their house.

Just make sure it has a drain plug at the lowest level
It's not a question of if it will fail, it's a question of when.

If there's a place to keep it in the garage - that's where I would keep it.

Charles Wiggins
03-13-2015, 10:00 AM
If there's a place to keep it in the garage - that's where I would keep it.

Good thought. It's just inside the shop off the garage. I keep everything in there that is puddle-vulnerable on stickers anyway, because the floor is concrete.

Jim Matthews
03-13-2015, 8:18 PM
You might never have an outage.
I did, with my first large freezer.

It happened when we were away.
Of course.