April 18, 2017

Hello Everyone,

With spring flowers blooming and warm weather on the way, it's time for an energy-saving tune up for your refrigerator and freezer.

Keeping food fresh--while conserving energy--can bring a helpful boost to the strained food budget.

Try these two tips to minimize energy use and save money on
groceries.

I will feature more tips in tomorrow's issue.

Handy Hints Holly


Email Me: mailto:holly@gophercentral.com?subject=HandyHints
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Fill the freezer, but give the fridge some air

The freezer works most efficiently when packed as full as possible. Need to fill in some space? Tuck extra ice for cold drinks or cold-packs for summer picnics into any empty space in the freezer.

A black-out bonus: full freezers keep food frozen longer if a power outage occurs.

The refrigerator is a different animal; it needs air
circulation to keep food at an even temperature.

Packing a refrigerator too tightly means some foods become
too cold--and may even freeze--while others aren't kept cold
enough for proper storage. Let the refrigerator breathe to
keep food fresh longer.

Match foods to the right micro-climate

Since hot air rises and cold air sinks--and because every refrigerator has its own unique weather pattern of chilly breezes--be sure to assign foods to the right neighborhood inside the refrigerator.

A cold spot near the cold-air inlet makes a good home for meat or poultry, but will freeze and spoil a head of lettuce.

Keep produce cool, condiments cold and proteins downright chilly for longest food life.