The refrigerator is cold at the bottom and hot at the top? Many people misunderstand it

Have you ever noticed that food in different areas of the same refrigerator cools down to different degrees? There is a saying that goes, "The bottom of the refrigerator is cold and the top is hot." In fact, it does reflect some objective laws. So why does this uneven temperature phenomenon occur in the refrigerator?

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The space inside the refrigerator is filled with air. One very important property of air is that its density is affected by temperature . If the temperature rises and the mass remains unchanged, the density will decrease. On the contrary, if the temperature decreases, the density will increase.

If cold air and warm air mix, the warm air rises (because it's lighter) and the cold air falls (because it's heavier). **The temperature in the refrigerator compartment is between 3 and 5 degrees Celsius. **Cold air tends to accumulate at the bottom, so if the refrigerator compartment is large, the temperature at the bottom will indeed be lower.

However, it should be noted that this temperature difference is not that big, especially for air-cooled refrigerators, the temperature uniformity will be better . We basically do not need to pay special attention to the order of the upper and lower layers of food.

**Uneven temperatures in the refrigerator are likely to be caused by other factors,** and their effects are much more significant than those of the upper and lower layers.

For example, the temperature near the air outlet will be lower , and freezing may even occur near the air outlet of many low-end refrigerators. Therefore, if there are fresh fruits and vegetables that you do not want to freeze, they should be stored away from the air outlet of the refrigerator. At the same time, for air-cooled refrigerators, when storing food, be careful not to block the air outlet to avoid affecting the uniformity of temperature.

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Because it is close to the outside space, the temperature of the partition on the refrigerator door is around 5 to 7 degrees. And every time the door is opened or closed, the outside air will enter, so the temperature of the space near the refrigerator door will rise significantly. Generally, food that will be consumed within a short time, such as milk, eggs and condiments, should be stored.

**The temperature of the low temperature refrigerator is between 0 and 1 degrees Celsius,** which is higher than the freezer, but the lowest among all refrigerators. It can be used to store food that loses its freshness easily or food that you do not want to freeze in the freezer. For example, meat, fish, tofu and fish sauce.

**The temperature of the vegetable cold storage room is 6 to 8 degrees Celsius. **It is used to store foods that are difficult to store at room temperature. Vegetables, fruits and spices are suitable for storage here. However, leafy vegetables and other foods that are easy to dry should be sealed in plastic bags to keep them fresh.

By understanding the temperature distribution characteristics inside the refrigerator, you can use it more effectively to keep food fresh.

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