Kitchen Furniture and Appliances

Can you believe that the home refrigerator or freezer has been around for nearly 200 years? Of course, today’s models have little in common with their ancient ancestors and in fact, freezers and fridges continue to evolve with the changing lifestyle of the consumer. You can find these appliances in the home or commercial food establishment around the world. You could say that the refrigerator and freezer is one of the single most important appliances you can own.

In the United States alone, it is estimated that 99.5 percent of households have a refrigerator or freezer to keep their foods safe, last longer, and preserved with their natural nutrients.

The basic function of the fridge and freezer must have been foremost on the mind of German inventor Carl Paul Gottfried von Linde when he broke the code for creating the very first one in 1876. He first used methyl ether and then ammonia cycles as the main cooling method for the early models.

Specific temperatures are required for varying types of food, if you want to preserve them properly. For example, low sugar foods will freeze at 20 degrees Fahrenheit. However, sugary foods such as ice cream often need to be kept at temperatures below 5 degrees if you want it to remain solid and not a shake! The rule of thumb is the lower the temperature in your freezer the longer you can expect to keep food preserved.

From humble beginnings, the market rapidly began to expand for these modern conveniences. As they became more and more popular, different brands and models became available for the discerning consumer to choose from.

Maytag is among the first of these manufacturers to focus on styles and features that keep things cool but also appeal to the average consumer. This corporation was founded in 1893 by Fredrick Maytag and has since built a reputation for building beautiful appliances that offer durability and long standing performance.

On the other hand, the two decades saw the growing need for environmental protection and preservation. Appliances like freezers and refrigerators which consume a lot of energy and found to carry the harmful chlorofluorocarbon (CFC), potentially harmful to the ozone layer, and hydrofluorocarbon (HFC), proven to contribute to global warming, were targeted for re-engineering.

The two most harmful chemicals have been discontinued and most appliances in homes today are free of these environmental dangers. If you are truly concerned about the environment, you should check out the Bosch line of freezers and fridges. They are truly environmentally safe and have proven their tactics are based on sound ecological principle. This is one of the many reasons they won 2009 Best Domestic Appliance as awarded by a United Kingdom organization formerly known as Consumers’ Association.

Modern households, therefore, have better and newer options than those decades or even centuries back have over their choice of a freezer or refrigerator. Yet this choice always goes back to the basic reason on why and how a freezer or fridge came to be and will continue to be with us- help sustain our daily lives.