Writer's Block: A Little Light

[packbat]

Now that the election is over, we can get to the important stuff. Why is there a light in the refrigerator but not in the freezer? Submitted By vivichick View other answers

As an engineer, I would bet on condensation and ice deposition. Unlike in the refrigerator compartment, freezer compartments tend to accumulate water (generally solid) on the interior surfaces. If this water is melted by the heat of the lamp, it can short out the system. (Further, the obvious way of avoiding this problem - having the light behind an insulating shield - fails, because the shield develops ice and obscures the light.) In addition to this problem with the light, the switch that would turn on the light when the freezer opens is vulnerable to icing and the resultant clogging.

A light in the freezer would be handy. Unfortunately, it's not practicable.

Comments

[roaminrob.livejournal.com]

Close, anyway. The colder temperatures of the freezer have a tendency to damage bulbs, cracking or even shattering them. The heat generated inside the bulb, coupled with the frozen condensation on the outside of the thin glass, has a tendency to break them.

That is, up until a few years ago when many appliance manufacturers found cheaper ways to put a working light in the freezer. However, that still increases the cost of the unit enough, and consumers haven't decided that the issue is important enough to be worth paying some extra money for.

[packbat.livejournal.com]

Ergh, you're right - I should have thought of that.

(What's the trick, by the way? Or is it proprietary?)

[roaminrob.livejournal.com]

No idea. Couldn't find anything about it in a quick search online; I only just recalled hearing about it sometime back.

[packbat.livejournal.com]

Hm. Bet you could do it with LEDs.

Eh, machts nichts.

[toya121.livejournal.com]

I've always wondered and now I know:)