Refrigerators are home appliances used to cool and chill drinks, food, and ingredients. It is an essential food storage item that is present in any modern home. They come in different shapes and sizes, and some are built specifically for a specific item.
History of Refrigeration
The earliest known recorded history of cold storage is found among the ancient Iranians. They used yakhchāls, a domed ice house, to store food. Refrigeratory became a known term around the 17th century but still used ice houses and ice boxes at that time.
The first artificial cold storage started with Willian Cullen when he created a small refrigerating machine in 1755. The device creates a partial vacuum over a container of diethyl ether, which is boiled. The heat surrounds the container and creates a cooling system.
Since then, multiple experiments have been performed until they came up with the bottom cooling system around the 1940s. Mass production of this refrigerator became prominent around World War II and became present in every home, which is the new norm.
Things to Consider Before Buying a Refrigerator
Configuration
This refers to the freezer placement in the refrigerator. Side-by-sides, top-freezers and bottom-freezers are examples of freezer placement. Side-by-side doors require less space for the doors to open, and the top freezers cost less. Both need you to bend down to get items, while bottom-freezers make ingredients available at eye level.
Size
How you choose your fridge size will depend on how big your kitchen is. If you have a large kitchen, big refrigerators shouldn’t be an issue. But if you have a small kitchen, mini-fridges may be beneficial for your space limitation.
Finish
One of the most popular finishes is black stainless steel or white finish. Some finishes are fingerprint or scratch-proof, while others have a customizable design feature.
