Life With A Mini Fridge

Posted on | November 8, 2011 | 4 Comments

When I relocated to Central Kentucky I did so without the usual appliances. This ended up being a bit of a dilemma when I rented a small cottage that possessed neither stove nor refrigerator.

I explored a number of options and eventually decided against purchasing used full-sized appliances for this place because 1) I didn’t know how long we would live here, 2) I would be physically unable to lift and maneuver full sized appliances without assistance, and 3) used full sized appliances weren’t much cheaper in this area than new ones.

I ended up purchasing a brand new under-counter mini fridge for $150, twenty five dollars less than a used full sized fridge with no warranty (and not including the delivery fee).

My friends and family told me that I would regret the purchase because I would not have enough room for everything. In the six months since the purchase however we have had no regrets.

We had to remove one of the glass shelves to make room for taller purchases like condiments and gallon jugs of milk; this also enabled our large pot to snuggle inside with those big one-pot meals I enjoy cooking.

There is no extra space available for leftovers to hide but there is more than enough space for the days when we shop and decide to stock up.

The only downside to the device is the fact that I have it currently placed upon the floor; eventually I would like to place it upon a table or cart to make it more easily accessible. As it is we keep the microwave and toaster oven placed on top in what has been affectionately dubbed our “kitchen stack.”

After using this little refrigerator I am convinced that singles and small families could get by rather well with one of these and a small chest type freezer or forego the freezer if they don’t like to stock up on food.

We use a chest-type freezer along with this refrigerator; together the pair provide a much more efficient food storage solution than a typical refrigerator/freezer ever has in our family. Whereas we normally kept our freezer section stuffed full and our refrigerator section mostly empty, both devices stay comfortably full but are not stuffed.

This may not be a good option for larger families or for those who keep a lot of leftovers but for us it is a good fit.

Have you ever considered downsizing to a mini-fridge? Please share your stories in the comments below.

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