Defrost old freezer without flooding basememt.

I would put an some old towels on the floor and carefully try to scrape and chip away a lot of the buildup before you unplug it. If you can get most of it off, it shouldn't flood the floor as bad. Hold a bucket or pan underneath where you are removing the build up so the big pieces don't hit the floor. Clean it off the door first, as that will be the part that melts the fastest. Hope this helps!

I don't think you have a choice than to flood your floor. Apparently something is wrong with the joint on your door. The only thing you could do is try to empty the bottom compartement and put a bassin i n there to collect most of the water.

Stay in the neighbourhood ant try to wiggle free chunks of ice from time to time when it is melting so you can ovoid at least some of the water. Don't force, because when it doesn't come free easily, you could break something..

Collect allot of towel wrapped in white vinegar with buckets underneath

To defrost this after preparing the floor and inside with pans, if you have an old barbecue lighter (they were once the rage; plug it in and the loop would heat up); an iron, a hair dryer, and use them to melt the iceberg in your fridge some more.

Have plenty of pans/buckets on hand.

If the freezer sits off of the floor a few inches stick a disposable foil basting pan (you buy from the store) under the door and as far back as it can go, it may require two pans for the length of the door. Pour out the remains daily into a 5 gallon bucket to dump outside or use a shop vac if you have it. You may get a little spill over but it wont't be the mass quantity water if there was nothing to catch it.

I unplugged my upright and put towels in the bottom and a pot of hot water inside to help melt the ice. You'll need to check it often and wring out the towels as they absorb

If thats the type of freezer that has wires in the racks, I wouldn't chip away at it or use the bbq charcole heater.

Thats about the worst I've seen but I've done a few close to that bad. Turn it off, and put large trays of really hot water on the shelves, then I use a rubber spatula to remove any meltedice/slush and keep changing the trays of hot water.

Protect the floors with towels or those sham wow super absorbent pads (they have fake ones at Dollar Tree) that absorb 3 times as much water. Keep a sponge mop nearby and bucket, and keep mopping the floor and wringing out the towels/absorbent pads.

try a fan/a hair dryer etc.

If it's really old it is probably small.. I would suggest to take outside but would want warmer weather than now

I am assuming it is an upright freezer.....I used to unplug mine, put lots of towels on the bottom and set cake pans 9 x 13 full of hot water on each shelf. As it drips down, the towels will absorb the frost water. May have to replenish the hot water now and then and wring out the towels now and then.....takes a while and needs to be watched, but with this method never got anything on the floor. If I was in a hurry, I set a small floor fan pointed into the freezer which helped. If you think you might get some on the floor.....lay a piece of thick cardboard down....going under the bottom of the freezer and out the front. If by any chance it is a chest type freezer, ours has a little hose coming out of the bottom that can either be drained into a low pan or even into a floor drain.

Get one of those pans they put under water heaters. That should protect while you chip away at it.

Use a hair dryer. You can control the heat and speed of melting and easily stop when you need to change buckets.

Thx's for sharing. It's fixed but not plugged in.