Have you ever come home from holiday an cautiously taken something from the freezer wondering to yourself, has this defrosted and re-frozen? I do and I always think I am going to get food poisoning. I was going to buy one of those expensive detectors but knowing me I would not trust that either.
So I heard of this helpful tip. Before leaving home for several days, put a few ice cubes in a plastic bag and leave it in the freezer. When you get back it will be obvious if the cubes have defrosted and refroze, this will alert you that a power failure occurred and some of your frozen goods may be spoiled.