Most people are unaware there is a difference between a fridge and a refrigerator. With most households around the world owning one of these kitchen appliances, most of them just assume that a fridge is a short name for a refrigerator.
Although there is a truth in that, these two appliances are different when it comes to their design and functions.
A refrigerator has two compartments, one designed to keep food and perishables between 35°F and 38°F and one freezer area designed to be below 0° F. A fridge on the other hand only contains one area which is designed to keep food and perishables between 35°F and 38°F.
As such a refrigerator is often larger and more versatile than a fridge. Keep in mind, however, that although both appliances can preserve food at a lower temperature, a refrigerator has more cooling and freezing power than a fridge.
What Is A Fridge?
A fridge is a small, compact cooling appliance that usually doesn’t have a freezer compartment. Deprived of the word Frigidaire from was a company founded in 1916 in Fort Wayne Indiana, the name has become popular in the world.
Available in different sizes and capacities, a fridge usually comes with an average length of around 36 inches. Nonetheless, there are mini-fridges that are 1.7 cubic feet up to 4.5 cubic feet. Designed to store food safely while keeping them cold, a fridge lacks insulation, therefore, requiring additional energy to stay chilled.
Nevertheless, you should know that a fridge can keep items cold for longer when there is no electricity. This is unlike a refrigerator that relies on electricity to cool down items all the time.
What Is A Fridge Best For?
A fridge is best for those who are looking to store fewer foods, especially in a domestic household. You can store perishable food items such as vegetables, meat, eggs, milk, butter, cheese among other items.
Apart from finding a fridge in modern homes, it is popularly found in malls, bars, hotels, and restaurants where they store chilled wines and beers. In hotel rooms, you usually find mini-fridges also known as a minibar where the hotels usually store drinks and snacks.
Don’t forget a mini-fridge is ideal in the office where you can store homemade lunches, cream, milk, coffee, soft drinks, and snacks. What’s more, a mini-fridge can be used outdoors as well as for car camping adventures.
Do note, root vegetables such as tomatoes, carrots, radishes can lose their flavor or deteriorate quickly when kept in the fridge. Nonetheless, you can prevent this from happening by using a zip-top freezer bag. As for other food items, ensure you wrap them in foil to preserve them for longer than a month.
What Is A Refrigerator?
A refrigerator is a valuable household appliance that keeps food and drinks cold. The refrigerator preserves them for weeks thus preventing the food and drinks that would spoil in hours to stay fresh longer.
In order to keep the food and drinks fresh, the refrigerator maintains a low temperature as it transfers heat from inside to outside. That’s the reason your hand feels warm whenever you put your hand on the backside of the refrigerator near the metal pipes.
There are different types of refrigerators, from top freezers to bottom freezers, side by side, and French doors refrigerators which are huge such as 30 cubic feet among others.
What Is A Refrigerator Best For?
A refrigerator is best for those who have a lot of perishables to store at home. For a large family, it will be convenient to have a refrigerator as you can keep all your leftovers such as bread, packed goods, pasta, bread, milk, and even water for a very long time.
Moreover, the refrigerator is best for food items such as vegetables, meat, fish, and poultry, don’t forget wine and beers as well as ice cream lovers aren’t left behind.
Refrigerators are best found in residential homes or commercial spots such as restaurants. The refrigerators help prevent any form of contaminations and enable commercial businesses to safely store their perishable goods for longer.
Apart from that, there are medical refrigerators used for medical and scientific purposes. For medical use, they are used to store blood and vaccines while for scientific use, experimental samples are stored.
Don’t forget that a refrigerator performs better when not overloaded. So, ensure the large compartment and the freezer compartments are about two-thirds full. This way, the appliance is always at the right temperature. Keep in mind, a refrigerator is able to freeze water, unlike a fridge.
Hi all! I’m Cora Benson, and I’ve been blogging about food, recipes and things that happen in my kitchen since 2019.