Truthfully, this question had never crossed my mind. Turns out, it’s a darn good question. Research shows a large percentage of people don’t use their freezer effectively. Whether it’s a chest or upright model, or just the freezer that comes with your refrigerator, it’s common for it to be a chaotic mess of all sorts of bags, boxes, and plastic containers.

Consumer Reports, United Appliance Servicers Association (USA), Service Alliance Group, and other professional organizations all agree: A freezer can be one of the most useful appliances in the kitchen, but only if specific mistakes are avoided.

Jilli, of www.onegoodthingbyjillee.com, recently reported on these mistakes. Read through and see if you’re making any of them. I was making several, and I’ll be correcting these, going forward.

IT’S DISORGANIZED. Keeping it organized is the first step to it functioning well. Shoving stuff in with no rhyme or reason makes it easy to lose track of things. Instead, keep things visible and accessible by using freezer bins and containers.

IT’S TOO WARM. For long-term storage, food should be kept consistently frozen and not experience temperature fluctuations. A refrigerator/freezer thermometer is the best way to accurately monitor the freezer’s temperature. Ideally, it should stay at 0°F

If you set your freezer to a colder setting and end up with rock-hard ice cream, consider storing it in the freezer door (the warmest part of your freezer.

FOOD ISN’T SEALED PROPERLY. A big deal, because if there’s any chance of air getting to the food, the result is always “freezer burn.” And freezer-burned food tastes horrid (ask me how I know). To prevent this, be sure to press Ziplock® bags, aluminum foil, or plastic wrap as close as possible to the food. My personal favorite way to prep food for freezing is to seal it a vacuum sealer—no lingering air whatsoever!

Containers should always be filled as close to the top as possible, leaving enough room for the food to expand a bit as it freezes!

FOODS AREN’T PREPPED to prevent freezing into solid masses. Berries and burger patties are two good examples of food freezing into a solid mass. Place patties between pieces of parchment paper or plastic wrap. This was you can easily remove the number you need without needing to thaw out the entire brick. For fresh fruit (berries, fruit or veggie dices or slices), lay them out on a baking sheet and freeze hard, then toss them into freezer containers or plastic freezer bags.

FOODS AREN’T TOP QUALITY. While freezing preserves food, it can’t restore freshness. Make it a practice to only freeze food that’s at its prime. Be realistic: no one wanted that stale bread before you froze it, and no one will want it after it’s thawed out.

IT’S TOO EMPTY (OR TOO FULL). Appliance experts say you want to keep your freezer full without overfilling it.

AIR VENTS ARE BLOCKED. This causes temperature fluctuations—not good. Always leave a few inches of space around the air vent on all sides to facilitate free air flow.

FOODS AREN’T LABELED. I’m so guilty of this. I’m just sure I’ll remember what it is. But I’ve found it gets tricky to decipher what’s what once it’s frozen. It’s just smart to label everything with item name and freeze date.

FOOD IS FROZEN IN ITS PACKAGING. It takes up a lot of precious space. When it makes sense, remove food from its paper board packaging and freeze it in containers meant for freezer use. If you need the baking/cooking instructions that are printed on the package, just cut them off and place them in the container with the food.

I’ll close with my own freezer suggestion: We should look at the freezer like we’d look at a closet or cupboard. It needs organization and smart storage techniques to be a truly user-friendly space. This perspective will help to avoid chucking and stuffing things into it. Now, do you have any freezer tips you can share?

It’s a terrific appliance that can be a huge money- and time-saver once it’s set up properly!