The Essential Appliance Guide: The big freeze

The primary advantage of chest freezers is not their capacity but their storage flexibility.

If you can see into the clear plastic drawers, you are likely to spend shorter periods of time with the door open warming up the interior and not having opened the drawers themselves, you are wasting less energy.

• Many drawer type freezers also have integrated freezing elements inside each drawer ensuring an efficient, even freeze. Some manufacturers offer a matching fridge for their upright freezers.

• Miele, Siemens and Liebherr also have moveable partitions, making the whole width and breadth of the chest available if you should need it. If you choose a chest freezer with a counterbalanced door, the daily joy of cracking yourself on the head as you reach for the orange sorbet becomes a thing of the past.

• All large freezers demand that you 'rotate and date' to ensure your food retains its texture and goodness, and adherence to the principal, 'first in, first out'.

• Smaller chest freezers with a deep vertical profile are a nuisance as you have to lift upper baskets to reach the bottom of the unit, suspending yourself over the edge as you grapple around in the Land of the Lost Freeze-Pops.

• Any freezer on a shop floor with an EU energy efficiency rating falls between 'A', the most efficient models available, 'B' which is very good indeed, and a standard rating of 'C'. If there is no such label you can assume the model is a 'D' or worse. If you do find the rating label there should be a kilowatt per annum reading. Multiply this by the cost per kilowatt on your latest ESB bill to estimate your yearly running costs.

• Most manufacturers do not recommend banishing a freezer to the chill of a completely unheated garage. Defrosting frequently to prevent ice build-up if you don't have a 'frost free' freezer will also maximize the efficiency of the appliance. The star rating indicates how cold the unit can be set and will indicate how long various foods can be preserved. All freezers have to reach a minimum of -18 degrees Celsius and all modern freezers can be assumed to ensure a stable temperature.

• Berry Trays that freeze small soft fruit super-fast before they are bagged seems to be all the rage at the moment, but this is just bells and whistles for most of us.

• Frost Free models are more expensive both to buy and to run, but eliminate the dreaded task of defrosting a large unit. The freezers warm up and dehumidify the air inside the appliance daily or when their 'intelligent' system detects the unit needs it, raising the temperature just enough to stop ice forming. The thawed water is condensed and collected outside the appliance. Ensure you buy a model with sufficient capacity for your needs, as it is critical that air can circulate around the food.

• Fast freezing is featured in many new freezers and apart from the obvious advantage of getting food colder quicker, it is brilliant if you are expecting a power cut. Simply turn on the Fast Freeze mode for a while before the power goes off to get the unit super cold.

• Thermostats are extremely useful and not all freezers even carry a temperature device, merely warning you with an innocuous small light if they are too warm. If your freezer is likely to be placed out of sight invest in a model with an audible temperature warning that will sound if for example the door is left open or the freezer's power source fails. External controls are clearly a good idea, but if you are in danger of an attack by mischievous children attracted to an interesting dial go for a childproof element on the controls.

• Chest freezers should be locked shut if there is the slightest chance a child might even lift the lid a fraction to peer inside. A self-closing door is a bonus on most uprights and I was especially impressed by the new devices on some Bosch freezers that prevent that annoying vacuum that seals the door against you if you open it twice in quick succession.