How to Organize The Fridge and Freezer

It seems that one area of our home that gets pretty messy is our refrigerator.   From spills to crumbs and even spoiled food, it can quickly become a pretty unappealing site.

There are some things you can do to keep both your fridge and your freezer clean.  It is the one place in your home that tends to get dirty quickly.  But, it is also the area many of us don’t think about cleaning.

But, because there is food stored in these spaces, it is essential that they are always clean.  The best way to keep this under control:

Clean your refrigerator weekly;
Deep clean both the refrigerator and freezer monthly.

You may be thinking  — weekly?  Are you serious?!  Yes. Yes, I am.  The reason is that it allows you to keep your fridge cleaned and organized.  You don’t end up with that “mystery food” hiding back in the corner. Yep – you know what I’m talking about.  It is the item you find only because your nose tends to lead you to it.

I know it may be difficult to find the time to do this, but it can fit into your schedule.  What I do is take time to wipe things down and go through the containers in the fridge, the produce in the drawer and other items that may be reaching expiration dates.

The simplest way to clean your fridge is to do it when you grocery shop each week.

Before I head to the store, I take the time to wipe things down and clean out the fridge.  Doing so helps me in two ways:  1) I know that I won’t mix in expired (or soon to spoil) foods) and 2) I can use the clean out as a chance to make sure I don’t miss anything on my shopping list!!

When I get home from the store, my fridge and freezer are both cleaned and ready for me to put away the items we’ve purchased. Then, once a month, I take the time deep clean it.

I just tackled my monthly cleaning here.  You can see from my photos how clean it is and how we can find the items we need.

I also took the time to clean out our freezer too:

It does not take me that long to do – maybe 20 – 30 minutes at the most.  The reason I can do it quickly is that I do it monthly.  If I did not, it would take me longer to clean it all up.  Therefore, it does save you time if you do it monthly (so you can get it cleaned up and then get back to your family and having fun)!!

Other helpful cleaning posts:

• All Posts in the 21 Days Organizing Series
• 25 Awesome Cleaning and Baking Hacks
• Non-Toxic Homemade Cleaners

As I’ve done with our other posts, I’ve created an easy checklist which you can download and use weekly and monthly.

HOW TO CLEAN AND ORGANIZE THE FRIDGE AND FREEZER

WEEKLY

• Remove all spoiled food
• Add needed items to your shopping list
• Wipe down shelves
• Put groceries away (keeping like items together)
• Wipe down outside of the fridge and freezer

MONTHLY

• Remove all things from the refrigerator (that means every bottle, jar, etc.)
• Add needed items to your shopping list
• Wipe down sides, floor and shelving; clean out drawers
• As you put items back, check for the following:EXPIRATION DATES:
  – If item expired, toss
  – If close to expiring, place so you find it and can use it before it goes bad

  ROTTEN PRODUCE

  ITEMS USED MOST FREQUENTLY
  – Place these where you can see and get to them (includes kids foods)

• Clean the outside, wiping down handles, sides, and the top
• Repeat steps for the freezer

Now you know how to quickly and easily clean and organize your fridge and freezer!!