Simple tricks to keeping stuff cold without much electricity.
One of my favorite country song titles is, “I Want a Beer as Cold as My Ex-Wife’s Heart.” It reminds me that there are ways to keep food and beverages cold other than refrigeration! And even when you do use a refrigerator, there are strategies you can utilize to limit the amount of energy consumption.
Some of these methods are very simple, such as keeping the refrigerator door open for as short of a time as possible, not overloading the refrigerator, setting the thermostat to a temperature that makes sense for the amount of items you have, going through the contents regularly to toss out old items and maintaining some space around the refrigerator.
If you’re handy and know something about electricity, there are a number of other things you can do to cut down on energy consumption. They include re-locating the refrigerator’s heat dissipating coils, modifying the motor-compressor unit, and building and using a root cellar.
I found an extremely comprehensive article from Backwoods Home Magazine titled, “Keeping Your Food Cold – Solutions to Refrigeration When Electricity Is Scarce.” It’s an oldie but goodie. Meet you on the other side.
How about you? What tricks have you used to improve the efficiency of your refrigerator? Have you ever built a refrigerator? Have you ever tried to keep food and beverages cold without refrigeration, and if so, how?
And just for the fun of it, what’s your favorite Country-Western song title? Hope to hear from you soon.
Favorite Country-Western song title: ‘What Was I Thinking’ by that good ol’ country boy Dierks Bentley – Thank you all for the information , too! ;)
I love Silver Stallion by Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash and Kris Kristofferson. (The Highwaymen).
Oh yeah….my favorite Country song: “Seven Spanish Angels” – Willie Nelson and Ray Charles.
Grew up with a family run summer resort in the Rockies. Early on 1948 to 1952, we relied on a year round spring with a small lean-to built out of flag stone to keep beer, soft drinks and melons cold. Every cabin had a true icebox. We bought block ice from a neighbor who had a saw mill and leased ponds for winter ice cutting. He built an ice house into the side of a glacial moraine hill facing north. It was made of dry laid, native flagstone with a timber frame roof covered with about 2 feet of earth. He and his boys cut lumber and ice all winter. stacking the ice blocks with insulating layers of sawdust. Everybody in a twenty mile radius bought ice from him. He and his sons were also talented stone masons and log cabin builders. He built amazing fireplaces…
Before propane and full time electricity, all the cabins had cast iron cooks stoves for cooking and heat. Kerosene and oil lamps were used at night. There was one electric light and one duplex outlet in each cabin, except for the Lodge. It had a refrigerator, and was wired with lights and outlets in every room. It also had the only phone in the whole camp. The only other electric appliance was the water pump and treatment house on the side of a small diversion dam on the creek. It supplied a cold water tap to each cabin and the shower house. It had its own wood stove that had a primitive water heater attachment. There were no bathrooms, just WPA built outhouses.
All that changed beginning in 1952. REA ran new electric service, with full 220/440 volt transformers. Propane became available. My Dad and uncles installed hot water heaters, and two burner cook tops in each cabin. Then came a full septic system replacing the outhouses….And the shower house. We kept the wood stoves for cooking and heat …and sentimental value.
The camp was sold to another family corporation in 1974. Sure do miss the quiet summer nights, the fishing and the smell of aspen and ponderosa pine cook fires in the stoves…and the fragrance of my dad’s and uncle’s pipes and listening to Denver Bears baseball on the old Philco upright radio.
Favorite song, “A Horse called Music” by Willie Nelson.
I’ve got an off the grid high mountain cabin in the Gila Nat’l Forest above Silver City NM that we spend six months a year at. We use a propane frig from a wrecked diesel pusher as a main and I’ve got a 4 ft deep hole about 2×6 to keep many other food items.
Best Song with IRONIC message to Ponder: “”Mamma Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys”
REFRIGERATOR- Here’s an Idea That is original I think: “my dear old Dad acquired and old but well made pull behind camper mfg late 1940’s. Had a genuine ice box built in.(add block of ice). He took the guts out of an old refrigerator, installed under a bunk and ran the collect lines to the ice box. Electric comes with camping parking fees. It worked so well in Florida for example , we leave the refrigerator door open all night – so stuff wouldn’t freeze, and had free air conditioning “. The take away is that you can make a nice survival get away – mobile , a solar generator can support the entire, condensed mobile camper. Like that? We did! Miss you Dad!
home made evap cooler/referigerator
song:I like guns https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TC2xTCb_GU
Ray Stevens – Get your Tongue outa my mouth, I’m kissing you goodbye
My Favorite Song is a sad one.
If Tomorrow never comes.
I wrote this one.
I remember watching “Little House on the Prairie ” and the local store had a root cellar where they stored ice during the winter and it would stay cold well into summer. I think with modern materials I could build one that lasted most of the year.
The ground water is shallow on part of my property so I will build an open well with a shed over it. A friends property has one of these and we took a nap in there on a hot summer day it was 66 degrees.
Not a real country fan but I appreciate Garth Brooks because of his support for our troops.
“Southern Man” By Charlie Daniels
Natural springs are not only a source of water but can also be used as natural refrigeration.
“Bubba shot the jukebox”…….
but only ’cause it was playing country music
“You Never Even Called Me By My Name”
by David Allen Coe
and
“Lonesome 7-7203” by Tony Booth
I Will Always Love You Dolly Parton
What about using a home’s crawl space? It gets very cold in the winter and cool in the summer. It is about 4 ft. below the house floor.
Just a thought – would it work?
Red river valley
I wrote a reply to a comment above about a Zeer Pot, but I forgot to say what my favorite county song is. It’s “Up Against the Wall Redneck Mothers”.
I Feel A Good One Comin’ On.. LOL
Frank, I’m shopping for a military grade flashlight. Do you recommend the X700 or the X800.
How much water is needed
For a 3 day kit a so on?
Take your weight and divide it by 2, then drink that many ounces per day. So, if you weigh 100 pounds then you need 50 ounces of water a day. More in the summer and if you’re sweating a lot.
I’m a songwriter and my most patriotic song is The Veteran song by Don Schwenke on you tube. I have been to Nashville twice and I loved it there. We tried the food and it is pretty darn good I must say.
Anything by Carrie underwood !
Old favorite country western song: Good Hearted
Woman by Waylon & Willie. Good song to dance
to!
I don’t really know this song but the title – All my exes like in Texas, makes me smile. It sounds like he needs a broader field when looking for a wife.
a mistyping on the name of the song. All my exes live in Texas is the correct title
here in Canada you would think that we get freezing winter nights but not were we live. but in the winter months the electrical bill will sky rocket so by cutting refrigeration by using the out doors on my deck with a fome cooler works very well for me.
My grandparents didn’t get electricity until my teenage years; they had a small cupboard in the kitchen that opened to the outside – screened in, trees shading the area, north side of the house
– food kept there just fine; they just couldn’t have more leftovers than one day’s worth. Jelly stayed fine, milk was fine – of course the milk was fresh every day; eggs, cheese, etc.
PHANTOM 309 – FERLIN HUSKY
Admit it everyone, you know it is.
I think that was by Red Sovine.
“I Hope You Dance”- Lee Ann Womack
I am not going to leave a song but only say Thank You for all you information you are sharing:)
Best Country Song: Get your tongue out of my mouth while I’m kissing you good-bye, by Ray Stevens
Jim Stafford – Wildwood Weed
If a refrigerator or freezer is almost full it will not allow as much warm air to enter when it is opened! Why is then better to keep a refrigerator of freezer more empty?
I think that he means not to over fill it because it will restrict the flow of cold air from the freezer to the lower section of the refrigerator. Keeping the refrigerator moderately full keeps the compressor off for a longer amount of time due the the cold food acting like an ice pack to keep it cold inside.
My favorite country music song title is:
When Daddy Let Me Drive, by Alan Jackson.
I treasure the memory of teaching my
daughter to drive (she’s 40yo now), and the look
of triumph and relief on her face when she passed both the written and driving tests, that even today
the recollection brings me to a soft, and loving, state of mind. She is, and will always remain Daddy’s little girl.
Jack Benny started one song but never finished it. “I have tears in my ears from crying on my back over you.”
She Was A T-Bone Talkin’ Woman, But She Had A Hot Dog Heart
Your Magic Bullet power generator is a great product – if you are only powering light bulbs. I hope to see a more powerful unit available soon. Thanks. God bless!
Two ways I know of, that you can store and keep food chilled/cold/and or frozen, in emergency situations, are as follow: 1) dig a hole in the ground, approximately 20″ deep, with the width and length, as large as you think you need, to keep foods (milk, eggs, bacon, and butter included), refrigerated at a cool temp. Not as cold as a refrigerator, but it will still do the trick. I learned this in Boy Scouts years ago, and used it each time I went camping. It’s a little harder to dig that hole in the winter months, but it works then, as well. The 2nd way (in the winter months), is to use a clean, galvanized can, with a clean trash bag liner. This is something I did for almost 2 weeks, in a real life emergency situation, as I had a 6mo old baby, and was almost destitute. It can also be used as an emergency freezer, in the dead of winter, when temps are well below 32*F. It worked great, although I must admit, I was quite glad when a refrigerator (with a freezer on top) was given too me.
Favorite song title:
You’re the reason our kids are ugly…
You would not want a beer as cold as MY ex-wife’s heart. Absolute zero, –459.67°F where there is little if any vibrational energy left, would present some serious drinkability problems.
I am 84 years young and the first 1-0 years of my life grew up in Ohio and my grand parents had a a water spring t hat ran all the time, my grand father built a stone house about six x eight feet and placed flat rocks to make a floor so water was about eight inches deep when full it continues on out under the end wall, then they used crock pots to hold food and drinks ,i recall it was always cold Grandma allways made me jello.Best songs for humor i am going to hire a wino to decorate our home,and wind beneath my wings.
Wonderful advice. Thank you
“Today I Started Loving You Again” — Merle Haggard
Too many posts to read. The way I’ve done it is to make an evaporative cooler using terra cotta planters. The inner, being smaller than the outer, with sand between the two, a little water to wet the sand and the evaporation process will keep things nice and cool.
I have used a wooden bucket to keep items cool. The evaporation thought the wood keeps the contents about 10 degrees. cooler than the air. For short term storage this is acceptable. Though the deep well idea is one of the best.
I like the song about “God is Great, Beer is Good, People Are Crazy”.
Great information here – I’m thinking in terms of food dehydration so I would not need a refrig once its contents are eaten.
New patriotic song released this 4th of July 2016 called Star Spangled Courage
Listen to it here.
http://www.starspangledcourage.com
“You Look Like I Need a Beer”
Not a big country fan but there are a few: One of the best is Toby Keith’s “Beer for My Horses” – Be Safe! – Kevin
I buried and old van minus engine and gas tank here in NYS worked well with 1.5 feet dirt on roof,cracked wind shield when rock landed on it ,lesson learned cover it next time more carfull.mice snuck in around rear bumber area,need better like stack block and real door at rear for entrance but worked great over winter 35-45 temps alittle warm during summer,even with silver painted rear door window it could reach 60
It would be much better to paint the rear door window white. White will reflect all of the sun rays back off of the surface. True chrome would work as well too. Silver is like gray and it will absorb the light of the suns rays.
Camping, I put water in a bucket of any kind; hang it on a branch so it sits about 12″ from the branch. Wrap items to keep cool in cheesecloth. hang from same branch, about 10 ” from the bucket and near the branch. Put all the excess cheesecloth into the water.
The evaporation of water from the cheesecloth keeps
butter, cheese, etc cool. Keep checking the water level.
Favorite Country Western song:
“I’ve Got Tears in my Ears From Liein’ on My Back Cryin’ Over You.”
While visiting an enclosed square shaped fort out west in Kansas, we learned how the pioneers had built a ‘storage room’ within it’s compound. A room that contained a deep pit filled with straw then layered with sheets of ice carved from the near by river. Then the food was covered with more straw and more ice. Obvious the temps in Kansas were warm during the summer months but this method of burying vegetables below the freezing line worked then as it still does today. They also had a smoke room for their meats built within the compound situated where they benefited from the heat from the side walls during the smoking process. Based upon today’s population that has grown from the pioneers who came to a stop in the Kansas plains, I would say these survival techniques worked.
We bought a book called Root Cellaring by Mike and Nancy Bubel published by Storey Publishing. They go into detail about creating root cellars in various places as well as the kinds of foods and preparation for storage. Here in the East, my husband just covered our root crops with leaf mulch overwinter. He dug it out of the ground as needed.
I recently was reading about building a partially aboveground root cellar using sandbags filled with a mix of small particle lava rock. (the kind with the air pockets in it) If built in a shaded area, abutting a hillside, or set back in it a bit, it might work. I am considering trying it when I get some time. I live in an all solar home not connected to the grid, and have for 15 years. We have a gas refrigerator, and a small electric chest freezer. We raise a big garden and can a lot, but I would like to do more dehydrating. We have the temperatures for drying, but some problems surface because of humidity. I recently read about a small freeze dryer that would be ideal, however, the cost is way out of my range. I would have to run a generator a lot to power it, but sure wish it was cost effective.
drying of fruits and veggies is always the most cost effective way of storing food for later use. Think of bean and rice that we already purchase this way. Then consider using a solar dehydrator.
Mechanical means is always going to be the most expensive as it never stops using power (fridge or freezer) That said. I personally have gone the step of finding a chest freezer and got an external thermostat to cycle the machine.. so I have a chest refrigerator that runs about $1 a month to keep my food cold. Mostly what I keep in there is eggs meat dairy goods and a couple of jugs of water. it is 12 cu feet so it is as suggested far from being over loaded
There are numerous energy -producing products being fiercely pushed with SHTF reports. Not surprisingly they all claim to be the best blah, blah…
How about a competition checking output, longevity, ease of construct/install and price of course.
Post results with CONTACT HERE for best products.
I’ve never seen a root cellar but I remember gram telling me they had one in Michigan. She also did a lot of canning-wish she had taught me but guess I was too young at the time. Favorite song…Kenny Chesney’s “You & Tequila”. But my fave oldie is Don Conlee’s “Rose Colored Glasses”. The new ones can’t hold a candle to the ones from the 50s
My favorite county song is: ‘I’ve Always Been Crazy but It’s Kept Me From Going Insane’ by Waylon Jennings. My grandparents ran a dairy in the 1920’s and 30’s. They kept the milk cold in 8 gallon cans set in an open water tank fed by a windmill powered well. The vegtables were kept in a root cellar under the house.
Favorite Song: Amazing Grace
I would bury two or three 500 gallon propane tanks to run everything I may need to survive. If propane was not available I would use the smoke house, deep root cellar and river to survive.
Was hoping to hear about energy efficient fridges after purchasing ur solar generator. They r a bit expensive. Also wondering bout propane since as far as I kno we can still get it even if the grid goes down.
I see people buy propane refrigerators.. wondering how many of them can run for $12 a year as my converted freezer does
would like instructions and diagram of how you did that
conversion with chest freezer
Cooling Tests Results 2Aug2013
OK – I promised I’d let you know the results of alternative cooling methods this summer so here are my results in Houston’s 90+ degree summer during the past week.
Last year I tried the ‘pot in pot’ evaporative cooler – during afternoon I saw internal temps about 10 degree drop.
This year I tried a different evaporative cooler – a large coffee can with 27 one inch holes cut out then filled with a 1 pint jar of sand and lightly stuffed with wet cotton rags – temps ave 83.
Five gallon bucket of water – 86 degrees.
Water from buried supply line – 87 degrees.
One, two & three foot holes – 82 degrees.
Four foot hole – 79 degrees. (A bit more promising.)
The air temp (88 to 100 degrees) averaged over all measurements was 95 degrees, all test locations were 95% shaded and the holes were properly insulated from outside air.
Conclusion – a 4 foot hole would keep my insulin cool but not cool enough for long storage, would need to find a cold spring or alternative method to dig to 8 feet deep in our clay. It is too humid here for evaporative cooling methods to do much of anything.
NOTE: Underground temperatures depend on where you are and equalize at the average temperature the area experiences. SEE: http://www.acoolcave.com/temp.html
I HAVE A 100, 2000 PEAK WATTS SOLAR GENERATOR. HAS A LITIUM ION BATTERY. THEY WILL HOLD A FULL CHARGE FOR OVER A YEAR. I’M USING A 120 WATT6.5 AMP FOLDUP SOLAR PANEL. I LIVE IN AN APARTMENT. COST HALF OF WHAT IT WOULD COST TO MAKE YOUR OWN SOLAR SYSTEM. I WOULD NOT USE ANY OTHER TYPE OF BATTERY’S . WHEN USING SOLAR PANELS, YOU WILL NEED A FEW MAYBE 4 TO RUN YOUR WHOLE HOUSE. WIND TURBINES ARE GOOD ALSO, BUT THEY DON’T GENERATE AC POWER. SO BACK TO THE BATTERY’S AND TRANSFORMER/CONVERTERS.
Sand was once used to help preserve root vegetables – carrots, potatoes, parsnips and the like. Just bury the vegs in bins or trash cans filled with clean, dry sand.
I seldom listen to music i I find it too distracting. But when I do I like Classical instrumental and traditional opera.
Song; sixteen tons, I live in the desert in az. I would like to build a root celar, but I dont know how deep I need to go for it to work. I have a 25′ refer box, and have thought about burying it, but I know that the cost would be high, andi dont want my naighbors to know. Any ideas would be appreciated.
You need to re-enforce the roof to hold 3ft min to 10ft max cover (rec. 10ft) 4×4 miners frame across ends and every 2ft and a 6ft tunnel entrance to be effective. brace for pressure pushing in on top and sides
If you use a chest freezer as a fridge it will use a lot less energy. You just use an external thermostat to override the freeze’s. When you open a chest the cold air can not flow out. It hangs in the bottom keeping every thing cool.
Thank you for that.
A word of warning about using old cisterns for storage. If you don’t have a meter to check the air quality inside , lower a lit candle or a canary in a cage into the cistern. If either one dies the air is bad. Don’t enter. Bad air can incapacitate you in a minute or less.
To render air safe get a high out put fan and a large hose- 8 to 12 inch or more long enough to reach to the bottom of the cistern. Run the fan for a hour or two before rechecking the air. Keep fan running while working in the cistern. Also you can keep a canary in a cage down with you. In old days miners took a canary down in the mine with them. Bad air would effect the bird and give the men time to get to safety.
One last point. Get a harness with rope attached to it, It needs to be attached to a winch so that you can be pulled to safety. You have about 4 minutes to get oxygen to the brain before damage sets in.
CAPTAIN Wiley. Ocean Tugs and barges . If you enter a space such as a closed up steel tank. You WILL be unconscious in 15 seconds. Death follows quite quickly.
Please be careful. WW
I read an idea for making a root cellar by burying a broken refrigerator/freezer.
You might have read it here! http://www.patriotheadquarters.com/dont-toss-out-your-broken-chest-freezer/
I haven’t thought much about the root cellar idea, but I’m curious after reading the post about the unused cistern, since I have three of them buried beside my 1905 built home. Will wait for warmer weather here in Northern Illinois and investigate. Favorite song is “Desperado” by any artist.
To help your refrigerator or freezer, check to see if a dollar bill will slide out from under the seal when the door is closed. If it will, you need a new seal.
While the dollar bill test is a valid one, you also have to make sure the tension is pretty much the same all around the gasket. If it’s not, or if there are any obvious gaps, the door may be tweaked on it’s frame. In this case you can try tweaking the door back to square, and will LIKELY have to loosen the door-liner/gasket screws SLIGHTLY in order to get the adjustment needed. I don’t want anyone having to change an expensive gasket when it’s not needed. Always start with a good physical inspection of the gasket. If there are no obvious tears or other damage in it, proceed. If it’s DIRTY, clean it with a rag/cloth soaked in hot water with a good detergent cleaner (Dawn dishwashing liquid is the global go-to). Sometimes just a good cleaning and the gentle stretching of the gasket ‘flex’ that comes it is enough to rejuvenate refrigerator gaskets.
when you come out with some of this stuff it would be nice to have a detailed plans on how to build a root cellar. i think this is the way to go because i truly believe that unless you have solar power or wind power you will not have electricity.
There is a book with detailed plans on how to build a root cellar. Lots of different ideas and pictures,instructions. lehmans.com or check out amazon just do a search! Title of book is “ROOT CELLARING” by Mike and Nancy Bubel it’s about $15. but well worth it!!!
“A country boy can survive” by Hank Williams jr. That’s my all time favorite and battle standard. As to root cellars, I’ve heard a quickie solution is to bury an old freezer or fridge in the ground or better yet, in the side of a hill. With the water table issues down here in florida, I’m thinking of just making my own hill with fill dirt and sod to keep it in place!
Frank, When I was a child, we kept fresh milk and other perishables in the water well beside our house, about 30 feet down and in the water inside metal milk cans. We also had a smokehouse for the meats. Smoked meats will keep for several months without spoiling. We learned how to keep potatoes and onions on and under straw under the barn to prevent spoilage and how to can all other fruits and vegetables. I still raise my own garden and can the produce because it tastes better in the glass jars. Yes, it is a lot of extra work and not as convenient as the supermarket. But I think I could survive this way if necessary.
Favorite song: “You’re the Reason God Made Oklahoma”
I think keeping the fridge full is a good idea even if your filling it with bottles of water. I learned this when I had a new fridge that wasn’t freezing 1 1/2 gallon of ice cream and had the warranty repair guy come out. He said that the efficient fridges will only work when they are 1/4 to 1/2 or more full.
Also, once the solid or liquids are cold, they hold the cold better than the air. The cold air inevitably mixes with the room air every time you open and close it. I think that the opening and closing does the exchanging of air, therefore if you open the fridge for a total of say 2 minutes, it’s better to open it once for that 2 minutes than open it for 30 seconds 4 times. .
I too seem to think that if you keep bottles of water in the ‘spaces’ of the frig, the compressor will work ‘less’ to keep the unit cold. I have also been known to take a bottle (or two) of frozen water from the freezer and place it in the frig in the middle as to help with the cooling process in the frig.
your comment about cold and warm air mixing is exactly why I went to a chest style.. cold air is much heavier than warm.. so when I open the fridge I dont dump my cold air that I paid my electric supplier so preciously for.
Last summer we built a root cellar. Despite obtaining many supplies free on Craigslist, bartering organic veggies from the garden for the backhoe, and family help for construction, it was an amazingly long and expensive process, which is still not completely finished. However, it seems to be working well and the temp during the longest cold spell this winter didn’t go below freezing. Anxious to see how cool it stays this summer. We put a remote thermometer in there so it’s easy to track how the temp fluctuates over 24 hours. Best item we used was this new foam sealant that has insect repellant in it. Supposed to be safe for pets and kids, but the mouse that nibbled it is in cheese heaven, and have only seen one spider -yeah! Preps take TIME! Beyond using the cellar for storage, we also feel safer in the event of civil unrest. Basements are not common in this area and many friends are jealous! Cellar was built to the tunes of Johnny Cash, Waylon and all the classics!
Frank,
My favorite Country song title is “Way out here”…Our houses are protected by the Good Lord and a gun.
I have two old cisterns which are no longer used as water storage piped to the house. I am thinking about permanently putting a step ladder in one and moving some of my food storage into this man-made cave. I admit I haven’t looked into it yet. I expect I will need to put in pallets to keep everything off the actual floor (if wet some of the time). In-earth temperatures, I believe, are maintained naturally at approximately 55 degrees. My big basement is the next cool food storage area. Underground may also be a great place to protect some items from an EMP, whether natural or solar flare in origin. For example, a ham radio system, redundany solar panels, batteries, and wiring, amfm solar powered radios, whatever.
When we went fishing in Colorado, we would typically tie sealed bottles and cans of water and juice in a net bag and anchor it under water in the stream where we were fishing (usually close to the drop in point, so everyone would know where it was. There is a small running stream of water and a pond within walking distance of my home but not on my land. Deeper water would be better, colder, all summer long. Shallow water heats up in the sun.