You might have bought that new fridge or freezer with the best intentions, but over time, it’s inevitable that the contents become disorganised. Food gets lost at the back, and freezers start to suffer from a seemingly impenetrable layer of ice, hiding the contents within.

But keeping your appliances organised is key to ensuring you actually eat all of the food you buy. Organisation is also key to good hygiene, and it could help to achieve better energy efficiency as well.

Organising Contents

The way you organise your fridge or freezer will vary depending on its size and configuration.

Small appliances benefit from a regular clear-out to ensure that everything has earned its place. It’s fine to store food after its ‘best before’ date, but even frozen food should be used up before the use-by date rolls around. If you’re struggling for space, remove food from its box or carton; you can re-wrap items in foil, cling film, or use a vacuum sealer to save even more space.

Tall fridges and freezers can be problematic if you use all of the shelves, since it’s easy to lose things at the back when other items are in your eye line. You could try using large ice cream tubs to sort the contents so that it’s easier to pull things forward.

If you have a deep chest freezer, use large, durable shopping bags to organise your contents; when you need something from the bottom, it’s much easier to lift the bag out, rather than bending over and rummaging around.

Labelling Food

The key to tidy and safe food storage is effective labeling, and this goes for the fridge and freezer as well as your cupboards.

Use a marker pen to write the use-by date prominently on the box. If you stack boxes on top of each other, write it on the spine so you can see the date without moving things around.

Likewise, if you remove things from packets to save space, be sure to label the bags with the product name and use-by date.

Keeping track of the contents of large appliances is tricky. Consider writing down the contents of each shelf on the door using a whiteboard marker so that you always know what’s inside. Test this in a small, inconspicuous area to be sure that it will wipe off.

Maintaining Your Fridge and Freezer

Keeping your fridge and freezer organised will allow air to circulate, helping the appliance to work at its best and removing the chance for ice to build up in frozen food storage areas. If you notice that your appliance is not working properly, a good clean and a defrost should be your first move. Remember: a bowl of warm water will help the ice in a freezer to melt, but never use any electrical items like hairdryers.

To insure your appliances against breakdowns and other issues, don’t forget to investigate the options at Row.co.uk. Covering your most important items might cost a lot less than you think, and with affordable installments, there’s no reason to take the risk that your fridge or freezer will suddenly fail.