How to Organize Your Refrigerator

Food waste is a serious issue, and most instances can be avoided with proper fridge management. Unfortunately, many people struggle to organize their refrigerators. So, here we’ll explore some tips and tricks to not only help you to keep track of your foods, but also keep your foods fresher for longer.

Keep the Right Foods in the Door

The first place to start organizing is the door. While many people use the door for quick reach items such as milk and juice, this can be a mistake. The door of your refrigerator is usually the warmest place inside your fridge, particularly if the door is opened and closed a lot in your home. This means that you should avoid putting temperature sensitive items such as milk or dairy it the door as they are more likely to spoil.

Instead, reserve the spots in the door for condiments, soft drinks, and other items that can cope with the temperature fluctuations.

Read Your Appliance Manual

Many people throw the appliance manual in a drawer and never look at it again after it has been installed. This is a massive mistake, as every appliance model is different. Your manual will detail the manufacturer’s recommendations and the features that can help you make the best use of your new refrigerator. This could include egg containers, dairy enclosures, crisper drawers, and other things that will make a noticeable improvement in the performance of your appliance and the lifespan of your foods.

Manufacturers design the best storage options for specific foods, with the optimal temperatures for the compartments, so you need to check the manual to take full advantage of these features.

Know Your Cold Spots

The temperature can vary in different areas of your refrigerator. If you have an older model, the area around the lights tends to be warmer than the rest of the shelf. So, it is important to know where the coldest areas of your refrigerator are. This will allow you to put the most temperature sensitive foods, such as milk, dairy, and meat in the coldest area.

Block Your Shelves

Many of us struggle to find items in a full refrigerator, but it doesn’t mean that you’re a bad housekeeper, you just have the wrong organizational system. Try implementing the block system, which is used by retailers around the world. This will not only help your refrigerator to look highly appealing, but it will help you to keep on top of your ingredients, so nothing gets forgotten and expires. Blocking your shelves involves putting smaller foods and containers at the front and keep a space at the back for your taller items.

Rotate

Many of us want to get our groceries put away as quickly as possible when we return from the store. Unfortunately, this often leads to putting all of the newer items at the front, and older items are pushed to the back. Although you may have good intentions to hunt around for the older items when you’re making dinner or looking for a snack, it is almost inevitable that some items will be left to expire.

So, it is essential to rotate all of your items. This involves pulling older items to the front and placing your newly bought items towards the back.

Fill Your Freezer and Conserve Energy

Finally, you can boost the efficiency of your refrigerator by ensuring the freezer compartment is full. If you have leftovers, you may not eat in the next few days, put them in a freezer safe container and stick it in the freezer. This will not only save energy, but also reduce your food waste.

If your refrigerator is still struggling to maintain the optimum temperature for your items, even after you’ve reorganized, it may be time to look for a new appliance. You can explore the options with our online collection or consult one of our appliance experts for further help and guidance.

5 Popular Types Of Specialty Refrigerators

The standard kitchen refrigerator is a powerful and useful appliance, but there’s no reason you should limit your food and beverage storage options to just one unit. If your home requires room for additional drinks or fresh ingredients, you can always turn to a specialty refrigerator to meet your needs.

There is no shortage of unique specialty refrigerators available today, with premium brands manufacturing a host of distinctive options that provide different settings and designs for different items. But what type of specialty refrigerator is right for your home? To help you decide, we’ve compiled useful information on five of the most popular types of specialty refrigerators.

1. Compact Refrigerators

Should you need a versatile refrigerator for a small space, you’ll want to consider a compact refrigerator. These models are small units designed to offer the power of a full-sized refrigerator in a smaller package, expanding the food storage possibilities of your home.

Thanks to a wealth of available sizes, styles and designs, there’s a compact refrigerator for almost any situation. Many homeowners choose to add a compact refrigerator to their kitchen to supplement a full-sized unit. Meanwhile, those living in small apartments or college dorms can rely on a compact refrigerator as their primary unit, to keep food and drinks organized without taking up too much space. Best of all, these units are available in both freestanding and built-in designs, allowing you to make the best choice for your living space.

2. Refrigerated Drawers

If unique style is your top concern, you’ll definitely want to consider a refrigerated drawer. Refrigerated drawers are stylish drawers installed underneath your kitchen counters that provide storage space for both fresh food and beverages.

These units are ideal if you’re looking for extra storage space in your kitchen, often offering about as much space as a compact refrigerator, but in a significantly more impressive design. From sleek stainless-steel exteriors to wood panel designs, there’s little doubt you’ll find a great refrigerated drawer that matches your kitchen aesthetic. Moreover, refrigerated drawers are built-in appliances, allowing them to be seamlessly integrated into your kitchen layout.

 3. Beverage Centers

For dedicated beverage storage, you may want to invest in a beverage center. These refrigerator units are specially designed for beverage storage, providing the optimal temperatures for water, soda, juice, beer and more.

Like compact refrigerators, beverage centers can be effortlessly integrated into your kitchen design for extra storage. That said, many homeowners opt to add one of these units to other living spaces like a rec room or outdoor patio, providing convenient access to ice cold drinks in common gathering places. While a traditional beverage center will provide suitably cold temperatures for a variety of drinks, more advanced units offer multiple temperature-controlled zones that offer different storage settings for different types of beverages.

 4. Wine Coolers

Every wine connoisseur knows that their collection requires specific conditions for proper preservation, and wine coolers are specially produced to provide those conditions.

Wine coolers offer specialized temperature and humidity settings that you won’t find in other specialty refrigerators, ensuring your bottles of wine are perfectly preserved. These coolers are available in a bevy of different sizes, from miniature units that hold four bottles to mid-sized models that fit 15 to 30 bottles, as well as massive units for over 100 bottles. No matter the size of your collection, there’s a wine cooler for you. Most importantly, nearly all of today’s wine coolers are designed with luxury in mind, offering the premium performance that you require.

5. Beer Coolers

If you love crisp-cold beer, then investing in a beer cooler is an excellent decision. These appliances, also known as beer dispensers, are designed to keep a fresh keg of beer ice cold for your enjoyment.

These appliances are two-part units that allow you to effortlessly store and serve fresh beer. The unit features a cooler that holds a standard keg of beer, which connects to a kegerator at the top of the appliance that pumps beer through a draft tower for your enjoyment. Beer coolers are a great addition to any outdoor living space, especially if you frequently host gatherings or parties. Beer coolers can be somewhat expensive, but these consumer units function just as well as many commercial brewing systems, and are available as built-in indoor units, making the cost more than worth it.

Specialty Refrigerators For Every Home

The modern homeowner has a variety of special food and beverage storage requirements, and with a host of innovative specialty refrigerators available on today’s market, you’re bound to find the ideal appliance to meet your needs.

You can explore a vast selection of units using this online collection of specialty refrigerators. For additional assistance, be sure to contact a home appliance expert.