Freezer Removal in Boise: Appliance Removal for Chest Freezers

A lot of old chest freezers in Boise basements went down the stairs decades ago. Some still have a handwritten label taped to the lid, and nobody in the house can remember how they got down there.

That's how a lot of freezer calls start. If you've got one that's dead, dying, or just eating half your garage, here's what we wish people knew before they call anyone for freezer removal in Boise.

Why freezer removal in Boise takes a little planning

A refrigerator is tall, but at least it has a shape you can work with. A chest freezer is a big, low box with nothing good to grab.

They're heavier than they look, too. The thick insulation and the compressor tucked in one corner make them lopsided, so one end always wants to drop.

And they never live anywhere easy. Basements, the back corner of the garage, sheds, the storage room off the laundry. Sometimes shelving got built around one years after it went in.

Uprights move a little easier, but every freezer has the same catch. There's refrigerant inside, and it has to be handled properly before the metal can be recycled.

Deal with the food first

This is the part people put off, and we get it. Nobody wants to dig through mystery bags from three hunting seasons ago.

But the food has to come out before we show up. We'll haul an empty freezer all day long. A freezer full of thawed meat in August is a bad time for everybody, your neighbors included.

If it's still running, give yourself a week or two to eat it down. Move anything worth keeping to the kitchen freezer or a cooler the day before.

If it already quit, bag everything up and get it in the trash cart as close to pickup day as you can. Treasure Valley garages heat up fast in the summer, and that smell doesn't leave.

Heads up: Unplug the freezer and prop the lid open a day or two before pickup. Let the ice melt into towels or a shallow pan. Built-up ice adds real weight, and meltwater sloshing out on the stairs is how people slip.

How appliance removal in Boise works on the day

We come look at it first, and that free on-site estimate isn't a formality. A chest freezer in an open garage in Meridian is quick. The same freezer at the bottom of a skinny staircase in an old North End house takes more planning and more hands.

You get a firm price before we touch anything. It's based on how much room it takes up on the truck and the work it takes to get it out, so stairs, tight turns and the distance to the curb all count. Nothing gets tacked on later.

How long it takes depends on where the freezer sits, how many stairs and turns are between it and the truck, and whether lids or doors need to come off. If the schedule has room, we can often come out the same day.

We pad door frames, strap the unit to an appliance dolly, and pull lids or doors when that helps. In some basements, the hinges have to come off just to clear the turn at the bottom of the stairs.

You don't need to help carry. Honestly, we'd rather you didn't.

Can't you just put it out at the curb?

People ask this a lot. Regular trash pickup won't take a freezer, and a dead one at the curb tends to just sit there.

Hauling it out to the Ada County landfill yourself isn't as simple as tipping it off the tailgate, either. Cooling appliances get handled separately because of the refrigerant, and that's not a step you want to skip.

Where your old freezer ends up

This is what most folks are curious about. A lot of what we haul gets donated or recycled, and freezers are no exception.

If it runs well and isn't ancient, someone can probably use it. A working upright can go to a family who wants a second freezer for garden produce or elk season.

If it's dead, the refrigerant gets recovered properly and the steel, copper and compressor go to recycling. Very little of a freezer actually needs to end up in the ground.

Does that cost you extra? Not as a surprise. It's already in the price we give you up front.

The bottom line

Yes, we'd love your business. But if you've got an empty upright in the garage, a buddy with a truck and a good appliance dolly, you can probably handle it yourself.

The basement chest freezer is where it goes wrong. Dented drywall, gouged floors and sore backs are what usually happen when someone tries it alone.

So empty it, unplug it, let it defrost, and leave the stairs to us.

Whether you're in Boise, out in Caldwell or somewhere in between, give us a call at (208) 279-8636. We'll come take a look, give you a firm price, and you can decide from there. Cash, card and Venmo all work.