The Freezer That Kept the Peace
Written: Jan 14 '05
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Pros: roomy, plug and use, easy answer to food storage issues
Cons: need to rotate food periodically to ensure use of bottom items
The Bottom Line: A positive addition for food storage, works like a charm. Don't know what I did without it!
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| phoenixx's Full Review: 5 cu. ft. Haier HCM050EA Chest Freezer |
This freezer kept familial peace not just between two families, but over several state lines. What happened, you ask? This Southern girl hooked up with a Yankee lo those many years ago. I hunt, though not as often as I'd like, and my family down South hunts. Honey doesn't hunt, but he loves venison. Inlaws don't hunt either, and they - well, they don't love venison. Since they are always over visiting, sometimes that's an issue.
Never was that more an issue than this past season. My father bagged 11 deer down South, kept a few, donated the rest to charity, and decided that I needed my own deer for the winter since I hadn't gone out myself. He purchased a very large plastic cooler (some of you hunters and fisherman and frat party goers will know the one of which I speak, as it advertises that it holds 188 cans of beer), picked up a whole deer's worth of meat in various cuts from the deer cutter he uses, had it all packed in dry ice, and shipped it up to me.
You have to know my family to understand why this became an issue, instead of just a nice gesture. They like surprises. So, all he said when he called was that a package was arriving that required a signature because it was perishable. Well, mom in law agreed to sign for it, and since he was being mysterious also agreed to open the package (we had no clue how huge it was at that point) and make sure the perishables got put away for me.
Imagine her surprise (and dismay) to open the container to find a massive pile of deer cuts. Short story long, the Yankee version of a hissy fit ensued - honey was called to the scene of the crime, I was called to the scene of the crime, the two dogs just wanted to climb into the cooler and chow down, the cats thought the dry ice steam was the most amazing thing they'd ever seen and wouldn't stop playing with it, and so on. Utter chaos.
Now to the freezer. Having a new bottom-freezer refrigerator at the time was lovely, but it just had no room for this kind of thing. Therefore this freezer was a complete and utter unplanned, unresearched emergency purchase. We had to quickly figure out a) how much deer was actually in the cooler for storing and therefore what size freezer we needed, b) where we'd put a box freezer, c) if honey's mom would fit in the box freezer, as I kept muttering to honey the vile things I'd do to her if she didn't stop ranting about deer meat, the hunting season and everything else, and d) where to get a box freezer on short notice in the boonies.
Walmart to the rescue! Honey (and mom in law, to keep the peace) was dispatched promptly to go freezer hunting, with all the cash we had in hand and a piece of paper with measurements on it. He came back a mere hour later with the all white Manual Defrost Chest Freezer (5.5 cf) by Haier. Roomy interior, cute little basket that I presume is for small items like bagged veggies (about 8" wide and rests on a small portion of the top of the freezer), a little shelf area created by the location of the motor - this was a completely plug and play appliance. By the time you got it wrapped it was ready to use, practically.
We plugged it in, deciding to keep the deer in the cooler while it stayed plugged in for the recommended hour or so to start cooling itself off. It had ample room for the deer meat, with some to spare. This ended up coming in handy - I finally had a place for those leftovers! It held the big turkey for Thanksgiving quite well also. The interior is silver (kind of a reflective surface). It is manual defrost, but after months of use has not gotten even a frost beard on a corner - a rare thing for a manual defrost freezer. It is a little heavy, but two people can move it around without strain. The basket and shelf help keep food where you can find it, though I recommend rotating your food once in a while to make sure you use what's on the bottom also.
It keeps the right temperature on our porch in both the heat of summer and the dead cold of winter in New England. It has served us well holding everything from deer cuts, turkey, leftovers, and frozen pizzas, to extra ice for parties. The cord has gotten wet several times on accident and has been fine each time - no shorting out at all. The lid lifts easily with one hand, and the white surface has been easy to clean.
All in all I'd say the extra storage, combined with the peace of mind it brought, makes this one of my favorite purchases of the year.
Size: 5.5 cubic feet
Color: White
Power Type: Three Prong Plug
Energy Usage: $19.50 a year
Reliability: High
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 139
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Epinions.com ID:
phoenixx
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Member: Leslie
Location: New Hampshire
Reviews written: 38
Trusted by: 15 members
About Me:
Cleverly Disguised As A Responsible Adult
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