My freezer door seal gave out and I lost $80 worth of meat last night

I opened my upright freezer around 10pm and felt warm air hit my face. The rubber gasket on the door had completely cracked and fallen off in one corner. I had to toss three packs of chicken thighs and a pork shoulder I got on sale (like $80 down the drain). So here's the debate: do you replace the seal yourself and risk it not fitting right (mine was $35 on Amazon) or just bite the bullet and call a repair person for $150? Has anyone here had luck with those DIY adhesive gaskets from the hardware store?

2 comments

2 Comments

charliestone9d ago

Try the DIY route first, I did the same thing last year with my chest freezer and the Amazon gasket worked fine after I used a heat gun to soften it up for a snug fit. The key is cleaning the old adhesive residue off really well (goo-gone and a lot of elbow grease) and then letting the new seal sit in the sun for a bit before sticking it on so it's pliable. Those cheap hardware store adhesive strips are junk though, trust me on that one, the hard plastic ones that screw into the door frame are way more reliable and only cost like $25.

charles4429d agoOG Member

Yeah but that part about the Amazon gasket is a little off. I mean you're right about the general idea but the problem with those cheap Amazon gaskets is they're not all the same quality. I tried two different ones last year and the first one was basically useless after a month, shrunk up and left a gap. The second one from a different seller was okay but only after I returned the first and spent another 20 bucks. So it's kind of a gamble with Amazon because you never know which Chinese factory it came from. The screw-in strips from the hardware store are definitely more consistent even if they're a pain to install. Just saying be careful about recommending the Amazon route without mentioning you might have to try a couple before you get a good one.