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Phase Change Blocks to Protect Freezers


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It is not something that had occurred to me as an application, but our new freezer has come with a couple of 1200g phase change ‘Cold Storage Accumulators’, which

 

1 - act as protection during power cuts etc.

2 - provide a buffer when adding a quantity of food to be frozen.

3 - can be placed in contact with food for quicker freezing.

 

A very obvious application, which had completely passed me by - possibly because our freezers tend to last more than 15 years each.

 

Have these been a common thing for a long time?

 

 

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11 minutes ago, Nickfromwales said:

News to me !!

 

Here are the details. Mine has two of the item on the right in the pic. They are an accessory for other manufacturers too eg Siemens.

 

http://household-appliances.frigicoll.com/liebherr/cold-storage-accumulator

 

acumuladores_pagina_45_0.jpg

 

The type of thing I would expect to see in the Lakeland or Innovations catalogues, If the latter still exists.

 

Application 4 is for super cool picnics. 

Edited by Ferdinand
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5 minutes ago, le-cerveau said:

Our Last Liebherr Freezer had them (we move every 2-3 years and it has a detrimental effect on refrigeration) it lasted about 12 years, we just put them in the new one as it had the space but not supplied.

 

Do you mean it had the volume, or is there a particular space where it goes?

 

Suspect they may mean the Berry Shelf at the top, but I am a little bit reluctant on that since mum is under 5ft and they could come flying down if that drawer is pulled out by mistake.

 

Tempting to have one in the fridge which cycles temp more as it is opened more often.

Edited by Ferdinand
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@Ferdinand

In our original one the very top thin shelf had a couple of studs that stick up to locate the cold accumulators.  The new one doesn't have the studs but a thin shelf (next to useless) so we just put them in there.  Not sure how effective they would be in the fridge (also a Liebherr) as they were supplied for a freezer and their freeze/melt point may not be appropriate.

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19 minutes ago, le-cerveau said:

@Ferdinand

In our original one the very top thin shelf had a couple of studs that stick up to locate the cold accumulators.  The new one doesn't have the studs but a thin shelf (next to useless) so we just put them in there.  Not sure how effective they would be in the fridge (also a Liebherr) as they were supplied for a freezer and their freeze/melt point may not be appropriate.

 

No studs on that shelf here, either. Though I guess that since the top of an upright freezer is the warmest, the benefit is most at the top should something break.

 

Quote

Isn't that just a fancy name for a coolbox pack?

 

Yes.

Edited by Ferdinand
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1 hour ago, gravelld said:

Except coolbox packs aren't normally 1.2kg right?! (For obvious reasons).

 

Quote

> Berry Shelf.

 

? 

 

Yep.

 

The idea is that you lay berries or herbs out on a shallow shelf to freeze without squash, and you then transfer them to the freezer drawer and they don't stick together. You thaw them similarly - spread out on a tray.

 

You and me clearly need to discover the Waitrose lifestyle.

 

Currently experimenting with Aldi frozen berries, which are a fraction of the price of Aldi fresh berries - to see how they come out. I have some thawing between 2 dinner plates as I write.

 

I still need to learn about the "Pull-out BioFresh safes mounted on telescopic rails with flexible humidity control for use as DrySafes or HydroSafes for longer freshness of fruit, vegetables, meat and dairy products", which comes with the £4.5k Liebherr. Apparently it doubles the fridge-life of fresh veg, which is why everybody is trying currently to sell counter-top food dehumidifiers.

 

And there was me thinking that Bavarians kept their sausages in meatsafes with a flyscreen and a frustrated sheepdog.

 

Perhaps @le-cerveau has one ?.

 

F

 

Edited by Ferdinand
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2 hours ago, Ferdinand said:

Tempting to have one in the fridge which cycles temp more as it is opened more often.

 

The phase change will occur at a temperature lower than the fridge uses so will not store/release energy.

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Just now, A_L said:

 

The phase change will occur at a temperature lower than the fridge uses so will not store/release energy.

 

Which would reduce the use to a marginal buffering effect, for which I may as well use a housebrick.

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Not saying it works or no, but it does smack of a bit of marketing puff to me.

Most things kept in a fridge are water, or have a very high fraction of water (cheese being the exception).

So you can calculate the amount of energy stored in that water and compare it to the cooler packs when they are changing phase and make your own mind up as to whether it is valid or not.

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29 minutes ago, le-cerveau said:

Yes our fridge has BioFresh draws, they do work, fresh fruit/veg just lasts longer that you will eb used to.

 

I have just switched to a Lower Carb diet wrt to Diabetes as discussed elsewhere. 

 

Do you happen to know if BioFresh works with fake rice - eg Broccoli Rice or Cauliflower Rice?

 

The 2-3 day fridge life of these is currently a bit of a challenge.

 

Ferdinand

Edited by Ferdinand
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3 minutes ago, Ferdinand said:

Do you happen to know if BioFresh works with fake rice - eg Broccoli Rice or Cauliflower Rice?

 

I would just split that into handy portions and freeze it. You should be able to cook that (steam, microwave or whatever) straight out of the freezer. 

 

 

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15 minutes ago, Ferdinand said:

Do you happen to know if BioFresh works with fake rice - eg Broccoli Rice or Cauliflower Rice?

No idea, best method is trial and error.

We set our Fridge temp to 3oC and that seems to work best, nothing is frozen (sub zero) and we get the best longevity.

11 minutes ago, newhome said:

I would just split that into handy portions and freeze it

That is what we do with meals, good boxes are your friend (don't go through loads of plastic bags that way).  Put it in the fridge the night before and a portion sized box will be defrosted by tea time, whilst passing on it's cold saving to the fridge (whilst defrosting).

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