What would you do if you couldn't use your electric fridge?

We have a basin in our shed for cooling milk cans in well water. Other than that I am doing without I guess .

That's a great idea Syn. We have several underground cisterns that pump out freezing cold water all year round. I need to find some more small stone crocks (aka - crock pot insides from the thrift store) . I'd like to do a test with them in a metal wash tub or maybe a laundry sink and hang a cloth over them that touches the water - like a zeer pot. I wish I had one of those old stone laundry sinks we had when we were kids. thinking thinking!

Farmgal, thank you very much for the detailed reply.

I may try a tiny wet salt of a few pieces of "boughten" meat (rather than my own delicious, home raised, grass-fed beef). I will check with Dad regarding his mother's recipes for salted meat.

Once you mentioned it, I do recall the soaking part and what we call "parboiling" of the meat before the actual using of it in a recipe. I was picturing a couple-hour soak and then right to the stove top but, of course, there is much more to it than that.

I did forget about the amount of salt required, as you mentioned. I remember my uncle had bags and bags of salt piled in the fish store for use in the large pickling barrels (fiberglass tanks) that he cured his cod in.

I was thinking that the meat was just placed in the salt brine and then it stayed there until it was used. Now I see that the soak is just the one part of the process. Air drying, wrapping with cloths, etc. would be the other part. Having seen fish flakes for drying cod, I should have known that.

Thanks again, Lee

What a great topic. A few months ago I was researching this because I want to be as independent of the electricity grid as possible and I was curious to see if I could survive without a fridge or freezer. Obviously, living in Canada, this is only a problem for part of the year. In the winter, keeping things cold/frozen wouldn't be an issue. I can see a few options.

1. Many, perhaps most, of the things we keep in the fridge can actually be stored out of the fridge. Yes, they keep longer in the fridge, but fruit and veggies can keep for a few days out of the fridge. Things like celery and lettuce can be stored in water to keep them fresh and if you have a garden, then pick as you need it. Eggs can be stored out of the fridge for as much as a week, I think that's what I read somewhere, but if I am mistaken, then please correct me.

2. Eat seasonally and stick to lighter fresher meals during the warmer months. If you are eating fresh meat in small portions, then you are fine. Otherwise, eat fresh foods, salads, fruits, etc. No need to refrigerate them.

3. Being in the city is a bigger challenge than living in the country. Dairy products might be out during the summer, but in the winter, they can be stored outside (in something animals can't get into).

4. As mentioned by others, curing meat and preserving food so it doesn't need refrigeration is another option.

Ultimately, I think a combination of these is necessary to survive without a fridge and I would like to try it one day. Not there yet though.

Fresh farm eggs, collected and stored a room temp will last months before going bad, the issue with store eggs is that once they are chilled, they have a limited storage after being warmed back up, I had heard a week or two as well..

Can always check your eggs with the float test..

We too have an old water cooling basin for cooling vats of milk in a shed and this works fairly effectively but you have to have electricity for the pump. We have a generator and solar array built into my parents RV but honestly I am not skilled at knowing how to adapt that power the well pump . Something I should take a look at and when my parents are gone in their rv we do not have a back up . Maybe it might help some people to realize if there is a local RV lot and you have fuel, they often have built in power systems . It is easy enough to plug in the fridge or freezer with an extension cord intermittingly to keep them chilled for the short term if you have fuel for the generator .

Mentioned this elsewhere, i think,.... but in our community garden and on my own place, i tractor- augered a dozen or so 12" and 15" holes 4'+ deep to serve as mini rootcellars. The clay which typically comes up from the lower end is used to make a raised donut around the top of the hole, molded/tapered outwards to keep rain from running into the hole. The hole can be covered with a garbage can lid or something homemade, a bit larger, like 1.5" closed cell foam board UV -protected by tin, or a round snow-dish. Seed grass around to hold soil from eroding. Using 2 can lids insulates a bit more if separated by a layer of flexible foam.
In winter, cover with straw/hay mound and a staked tarp for rain runoff.
Make a long 1/4 " steel rod with a bent handle and hook to lower and raise food grade, perforated , pails of carrots, potatoes, turnips, etc.....or anything which would survive that climate.
Keep a few empty in the event your fridge dies....will help prolong some of your food.
Of course the location would have to be well drained or else you find it with a variable quantity of water in it.
The bottom pail or 2 should be solid for that reason. The taller wine pails are quite high. Lids can also be drilled and still serve as a base for the next pail , with a couple of 2x2's between for air. I'm still refining this....

During the summer, I use terra cotta pots. I bought 2 large, unglazed terra cotta planters at a greenhouse a few years ago. One planter is small enough to fit inside of the other, with a couple inches of space between them. I fill the space with washed sand and soak it thoroughly with water. To cover it, I fold a wet blanket and lay it on top. Then I set my "fridge" on the deck, in direct sunlight. The slow evaporation doesn't chill my food or drinks, but they are kept fairly cool. If you go this route though, make sure to fasten the inside planter down. It tends to float up a little bit each time you wet the sand.

Well, if it happened during the winter, I would start collecting ice so I could use it during the summer like my parents did. Now the big kicker is cutting the stuff! I have ponds and creeks on my property so I guess I would just keep breaking up 2-6 inch thick chunks and stacking in a cedar log building I have and then covering with rigid insulation, wood, hay and earth. Come thaw, I would look at better setup/ old mini ice house.