The Best Temperature For Your Fridge and Freezer

There’s nothing worse than reaching for food in your fridge and it’s gone bad, if this is happening too often it might be time to check the temperature of your fridge.

What Is The Best Temperature For Your Fridge And Freezer?

The FDA and most Appliances manufacturers recommend setting your fridge to 40° Fahrenheit or below. This temperature slows bacteria from growing and spreading without freezing your food completely.

Now, let’s talk about freezer temperature. It’s important to know that the proper temperature for your freezer is 0°F (-18°C), there may be some exceptions to that, and that may be if your freezer is having Frost issues. It may be too low and you can try adjusting the temperature within a couple of degrees from that 0°F temperature. we’ve talked about the temperature in your refrigerator.

Are There Other Areas In Your Fridge That Also Need To Be Adjusted?

One thing people often miss is adjusting these crisper drawers. Nowadays, refrigerators have automatic temperature settings that you can adjust depending on what type of items you have inside those drawers. You always want to adjust your crisper drawers when you’re switching between fruits, vegetables, and Meats.

So always keep in mind what food you’re pairing together inside these doors because this can affect the freshness of your produce. Fruits such as apples and peaches may give off a lot of ethylene gas, so don’t pair them with sensitive foods like avocados. Leafy greens should all be kept together due to the higher humidity they need to stay fresh.

If you have thicker skin fruits and vegetables can be paired together with a low humidity setting and always make sure to keep meat separate from fruits and vegetables to avoid cross-contamination.

Are There Ever Times you should change The Temperature Of your Fridge or Freezer?

In the summer especially if you live in a very hot climate, it is recommended you actually change the temperature one or two degrees lower because the warmer temperature may affect the temperature of your fridge, especially if your refrigerator is in your garage.

Many of these garage refrigerators are in a very hot climate, so in the hot summer months, your refrigerator won’t stay cool like you’re expecting without adjusting the temperature to one or two degrees.

Note: do not change the temperature of your fridge too frequently as this can ruin the Energy Efficiency of the fridge.