# Light in refrigerator - but not in freezer? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 10, 2006, 10:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/light-in-refrigerator-but-not-in-freezer/352058 "2006-04-10T10:08:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 10:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/light-in-refrigerator-but-not-in-freezer/352058/1 "2006-04-10T10:08:43Z")
While up getting a drink of something cold but not too stimulating at 2 am this morning (yeah, one of _those_ nights) a question occurred to me: Why is there a light in the refrigerator, but not in the freezer? ---
**Author:** ![TheLoadedDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheLoadedDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheLoadedDog)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 10:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/light-in-refrigerator-but-not-in-freezer/352058/2 "2006-04-10T10:57:21Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > While up getting a drink of something cold but not too stimulating at 2 am this morning (yeah, one of _those_ nights) a question occurred to me: > > Why is there a light in the refrigerator, but not in the freezer? Because the little man inside would freeze to death. ---
**Author:** ![TheLoadedDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheLoadedDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheLoadedDog)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 11:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/light-in-refrigerator-but-not-in-freezer/352058/3 "2006-04-10T11:00:12Z")
Okay, seriously… well serious guesses anyway: 1. The freezer is more likely to be packed relatively tightly with food, so the light would be useless. 2. You are less likely to open the freezer for a midnight snack or when just passing through the kitchen. If you open the freezer, it usually means you’re spending some time in the kitchen, so the light in the room will be on anyway. 3. The freezer is usually on top / at eye level, so the overhead light in the room is sufficient for it. ---
**Author:** ![racer72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/racer72/32/3075_2.png) [@racer72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racer72)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/light-in-refrigerator-but-not-in-freezer/352058/4 "2006-04-10T11:24:50Z")
You need another brand. My Kenmore in the kitchen and GE in the garage both have lights in the freezer compartment. ---
**Author:** ![Pushkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@Pushkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pushkin)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 11:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/light-in-refrigerator-but-not-in-freezer/352058/5 "2006-04-10T11:37:20Z")
Is there any effect freezing and then rapidly heating would have on the filament of the bulb? I’m guessing that our lights outside the house are insulated to a certain degree by being surrounded in glass housings, but what of a small bulb in a freezer? ---
**Author:** ![nd\_n8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/439d5e/32.png) [@nd\_n8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nd_n8)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 11:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/light-in-refrigerator-but-not-in-freezer/352058/6 "2006-04-10T11:53:32Z")
> [@racer72](#): > > You need another brand. My Kenmore in the kitchen and GE in the garage both have lights in the freezer compartment. I second this one. I remember my aunt having a fridge with a freezer on the bottom and it had a light. I have a large chest freezer (also GE) with a light inside. I’m guessing it depends on the model and manufacturer. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/light-in-refrigerator-but-not-in-freezer/352058/7 "2006-04-10T13:48:49Z")
So you can stand in your pj’s and bare feet in front of the freezer at night while eating ice cream from the cartoon with a big mixing spoon and nobody can see you. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/light-in-refrigerator-but-not-in-freezer/352058/8 "2006-04-10T14:10:05Z")
And that means the calories don’t count. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/light-in-refrigerator-but-not-in-freezer/352058/9 "2006-04-10T15:01:58Z")
Did you check to see that there really isn’t a light in the freezer? Perhaps your bulb is burnt out. Or, the little button that activates the light when the freezer is open is broken or frozen in the “off” position. ---
**Author:** ![Pushkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@Pushkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pushkin)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/light-in-refrigerator-but-not-in-freezer/352058/10 "2006-04-10T15:06:35Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > Did you check to see that there really isn’t a light in the freezer? Perhaps your bulb is burnt out. Or, the little button that activates the light when the freezer is open is broken or frozen in the “off” position. Or he’s opening and closing the door too quickly 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![ombre3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/da6949/32.png) [@ombre3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ombre3)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/light-in-refrigerator-but-not-in-freezer/352058/11 "2006-04-10T22:14:33Z")
Worked for 20 years at Sears and Sawbucks as a refrig/AC tech==== ===Kenmore IS Whirlpool. (or vice versa --if you will). My 2 cents ----------Only reason for not having a light in some cheaper models in the freezer section is----- ----TA—DA-----------You are not going to believe this BUT---- -it is simply -COST CUTTING---- —Plain and simple. Most people could give a shit whether there is a light in their freezer section. Most people do care about having a light in the refrigerator section. Now you know da trut. ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2006, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/light-in-refrigerator-but-not-in-freezer/352058/12 "2006-04-10T22:22:32Z")
Maybe it’s because people don’t clean the refrigertor the same way and with the same frequency as thy do the freezer. Things in the refrigertor spill, etc… In the freezer the just sit there. And in other freezers, people simply defrosted the whol thing, doesn’t really seem to require that much light. ---
**Author:** ![Una\_Persson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/una_persson/32/346_2.png) [@Una\_Persson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Una_Persson)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2006, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/light-in-refrigerator-but-not-in-freezer/352058/13 "2006-04-11T01:04:35Z")
My Kenmore has a light in the freezer. My guess is what ombre3 said: it’s a cost-cutting measure. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2006, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/light-in-refrigerator-but-not-in-freezer/352058/14 "2006-04-12T01:26:21Z")
One of the problems with freezers is moisture & ice buildup. Thus any light fixture will have to be well insulated or sealed to ensure leakage currents are kept to a minimum. ---
**Author:** ![ombre3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/da6949/32.png) [@ombre3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ombre3)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2006, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/light-in-refrigerator-but-not-in-freezer/352058/15 "2006-04-12T02:02:05Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > One of the problems with freezers is moisture & ice buildup. Thus any light fixture will have to be well insulated or sealed to ensure leakage currents are kept to a minimum. Moisture and ice build up is not really a problem with frostless models. Is how frostless models work. Because of the super dry air and sublimination there is no ice build up. Actually, because of sublimination, ice cubes actually shrink to nothing over a period of time. All frost disappears. All ice disappears.-------in a frostless reefer or freezer. And I have had no problem with ice build-up around the light bulb or light switch in my manual defrost 30 year old Coldsport freezer either. So PHHHTTT— ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2006, 8:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/light-in-refrigerator-but-not-in-freezer/352058/16 "2006-04-12T08:30:13Z")
Virtually all freezers in side-by-side refrigerator-freezers have lights. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2006, 10:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/light-in-refrigerator-but-not-in-freezer/352058/17 "2006-04-12T10:40:48Z")
> [@ombre3](#): > > Moisture and ice build up is not really a problem with frostless models. Is how frostless models work. > > Because of the super dry air and sublimination there is no ice build up. Actually, because of sublimination, ice cubes actually shrink to nothing over a period of time. > > All frost disappears. All ice disappears.-------in a frostless reefer or freezer. > > And I have had no problem with ice build-up around the light bulb or light switch in my manual defrost 30 year old Coldsport freezer either. > > So PHHHTTT— Well, yes, I was aware of that. But what if the system breaks and there’s ice/frost build up? Engineers think about these kinds of things. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2006, 10:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/light-in-refrigerator-but-not-in-freezer/352058/18 "2006-04-12T10:48:11Z")
It seems my experience with refrigerators has been more limited than I thought… ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2006, 10:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/light-in-refrigerator-but-not-in-freezer/352058/19 "2006-04-12T10:49:00Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > Well, yes, I was aware of that. But what if the system breaks and there’s ice/frost build up? Engineers think about these kinds of things. Then the fan will freeze in place and everything in the refrigerator below will spoil. So you’ll fix the system before you worry about the ice hurting the light bulb. Okay, okay, that only applies to my particular GE and models that are similar. But that’s how the solution was engineered for mine, I can specifically say after having figured out how to troubleshoot from no other place than the SDMB.