<p>We were told to leave our refrigerator unplugged over winter break (about 5 weeks). I know I should leave the door propped open while it's unplugged, but I was wondering if anyone who's used to doing this over winter break knew anything else that I should know about it...</p>
<p>My school says to put a towel underneath. Not sure why. I can’t remember if I bothered last year.</p>
<p>Unplug it a few days in advance to allow it to defrost, then wipe out any water or moisture so no mold grows.</p>
<p>Probably in case it leaks, I guess?</p>
<p>Edit:</p>
<p>Should you also leave the freezer compartment open? I have one of those very tiny ones.</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>Leave it open to prevent smells.
Unplugged for electricity and fire hazards.
Towel for dripping water.</p>
<p>Kind of basic.</p>
<p>Definitely do it a few days early so that the frost in the freezer compartment can melt.</p>
<p>Girls across from me freshmen floor came back to serious serious mold growth in their fridge. It was nasty.</p>
<p>If I have an auto-defrost does it matter? I don’t think I did anything with my fridge last year but unplug it. I MIGHT have left it open but I am not sure.</p>
<p>And if you leave it unplugged it wont cost you as much for electricity since you wont be there. Its so cold here. If its cold where you are you can leave your window open and leave the food in the refrigerator and leave the door to it open and the food will stay cold or it might even freeze. And dont forget to take out the ice cubes if you have them in the freezer. But if you clean it and dry the inside then it wont leak anything if its not plugged in. Or if you wanted you could find someone who is staying in the dorm like your RA and put it in their room so they could watch your food.</p>
<p>Well, the watching food thing might not be an option. Not sure about the OP’s school’s rules, but our res life makes us throw out all of our perishable food before we leave for any break.</p>
<p>We are warned not to leave the windows open lest we freeze the pipes and cause a flood. I’d like to think nobody would be that stupid.</p>
<p>Yeah, we can’t leave our windows open either. We also aren’t supposed to leave any kind of food in the refrigerator. Mine seems go to go, though 
Defrosted, clean and dry, door propped open, hoping some mice don’t crawl and there and die because honestly I wouldn’t be surprised with my dorm…</p>
<p>I’m kinda paranoid like that, haha ;)</p>
<p>kollegekid is a middle schooler who knows absolutely nothing about what he’s talking about.</p>
<p>in other words, ignore.</p>
<p>also, emaheevul, my point about doing it a few days early was just so that you can clean up the melted water that results (auto defrost or no). It’s standing water that will allow mold to grow. (leaving the door open will also minimize mold issues too)</p>
<p>Well that was the point, there is never any ice forming in my freezer so I didn’t think any water would collect. My freezer is always bone dry besides maybe a bit of condensation if I leave it open because it has auto-defrost, so I don’t know where this water would be coming from and want to make sure I didn’t misunderstand. If I clean out my fridge a few days early I don’t get to eat for a few days and I have to waste food I could bring home with me, so I have no intention of doing so unless I actually have to.</p>
<p>I’m jealous you have an auto-defroster that actually works like that.<br>
My roommates fridge always still had a tiny bit of frost growing… so I totally didn’t know they were supposed to keep it completely dry.</p>
<p>I thought they all worked like mine does. XD My fridge is a beast and is probably the most indulgent thing I own, but it’s pretty much a necessity now with my allergies. I just picked it because it has a big freezer and a significantly smaller footprint than most fridges it’s size since it’s tall and skinny.</p>
<p>We have a balcony where im at and we have to let it sit outside and defrost before we leave and then we have to unplugg EVERYTHING in our rooms before we leave</p>