Saving Money on Refrigeration

[Shin]

There are plenty of ways to save money on keeping food cold.

Some of them however are easier than others, after all, not everyone has a place the can put a root cellar to keep food stored in.

But one possibility that's popular with preppers and homesteaders out there is using a freezer instead of a fridge to store your food.

Why use a freezer instead of a fridge? There are two particular reasons.

The first is that a top opening freezer keeps the cold air in the freezer. Every time you open up your refrigerator, the cold air naturally comes out of it and warm air replaces it, requiring it to run to cool the air inside it again.

With a top opening freezer this is no longer an issue and it will run less.

The second is, the top opening freezer to be used as a fridge, when modified to do so with a temperature control (approx. $15 to add one on to do it) is reportedly more energy efficient by far.

[Shin]

I have yet to try this myself but I plan to.

I look forwards to testing it out.

I am hoping to explore more homesteading and self-sufficiency topics here in the future for off the grid, or less reliant on the grid living.  

[Poche]

What about storing milk?

[Shin]

The temperature controller makes the freezer the same temperature as a fridge, so it's basically a fridge that uses less electricity.

[whiterockdove]

We considered using our chest freezer for a fridge,  we were going to store apples in it.
then it conked out on us so we put it in  our storm cellar and use it for storing onions and potatoes.
I still would like to have a set-up like you described, Shin,for storing apples. I know people store apples in their cellar but ours has a dirt floor and after a while I think the apples taste like the cellar!  I need to ask some old timer about that.

[Shin]

I'm wondering whether adding permanent shelves and inner plexiglass doors would help keep a regular refrigerator working more economically. You open the exterior door, and then only open the interior door of the shelf you want to take something from.

A lot less cold air spillage, and so less work for the fridge.

[whiterockdove]

It's not very pretty but reflective backed bubble insulation on the door of an inexpensive fridge  keeps the cold in pretty good.

[Shin]

I hadn't thought of that! 

It makes me think -- I wonder how far one can go modifying a fridge!