Freezer ice / water

You know how when you've opened, say, a packet of veg, and put it back in the freezer then, sometime later, bring it back out, the veg is encased in ice? What's the peculiar smell of the ice?
With veg I usually defrost them slightly with tap water, drain and rinse, to get rid of the freezer ice and it seems to get rid of the taste but I've just eaten some otherwise excellent onion bajis without this and there's a definite aftertaste that spoiled my enjoyment.
Is the ice contaminated with something or is it the smell of pure water, or what? Anyone know?
With veg I usually defrost them slightly with tap water, drain and rinse, to get rid of the freezer ice and it seems to get rid of the taste but I've just eaten some otherwise excellent onion bajis without this and there's a definite aftertaste that spoiled my enjoyment.
Is the ice contaminated with something or is it the smell of pure water, or what? Anyone know?
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It's more than likely 'eau de everything in the freezer'. When you leave food in the freezer, it will eventually dry out the food. As the air in a freezer is sub-zero, it is very dry. However, as with all things, the air wants to reach an equilibrium, so slowly draws moisture from the food in the freezer. This moisture then freezes, which results in teh frost. As this drawing of moisture isn't selective, trace amounts of the food will also be drawn out. So, the ice is contaminated with trace amounts of pretty much everything that's been in the freezer. Nothing to cause concern, but enough to make the ice have an odd smell.
Working in the gas detection industry, I can pretty much guarantee that the smell isn't fridge coolant.
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Fart sniffer? :shock:
Faith is the denial of observation so that Belief can be preserved
I did what I should have dne before posting and googled it. No-one really seems to know, but Matt's theory makes sense. Maybe I just need to seal the food up better before freezing.
Either I am losing my sense of taste along with my eyesight and my memory as I get older, or they have improved the plastics used in the manufacture of fridges / freezers. Or possibly both.
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The other reason that it's unlikely to be the refrigerant, it that the epipes within the freezer are extruded pipes, ie there are no joints. No joints pretty much means no leaks.
So, bottom line, if you had sufficient refrigerant leak to allow you to smell it, your freezer wouldn't work.
Faith is the denial of observation so that Belief can be preserved