The Packbats' Weblog

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.