Oops, I Missed The First Of The Month, But Have You...
Test run your generator? (Over 90 hours on it in the past week)
Rotated you gasoline stores? (Rotated it right through the generator)
Tested your smoke and/or carbon monoxide detectors?
Checked your household and vehicle fire extinguishers?
Given your dog his heart worm pill and flea/tick treatment?
Changed your HVAC filters?
Test run all your small engine equipment? (Chainsaw is working great)
Checked your belts, hoses and filters on your vehicles?
Great Sale
If you are in the market for a shop vac, several Lowe's around here have a big 16 gallon wet/dry shop vac on closeout, marked down to $49 from $99. I picked one up.
Freezer Saga
Our freezer out in the shop is officially dead. I went to clean it up today, and it had not completely refrozen everything, despite running for the last 48 hours. Like I said yesterday, it was about 25 years old anyway, it is an upright, not a chest, so about the only thing it has left to be good for is as a smoker. I don't really have the interest in doing that myself, but I'll see if anyone around here wants it. We're definitely going to save up to replace it. I know a chest freezer is much more efficient, but I can't get around the idea that whatever I want will invariably end up being on the bottom. Any suggestions for organizing a chest freezer?
Hurricane Katia
Looks like Katia is going to go ahead and miss CONUS. I really hope she makes that turn, otherwise she might follow the same path as Irene. Maybe if everyone on the East Coast blows real hard at the same time....
Have you checked to see if you home owners insurance will cover any of the lost food or the dead freezer?
ReplyDeleteLate last fall I asked on a gun forum I help moderate about methods of organizing a chest freezer. Nobody there had any good ideas. At the time I was replacing my old small unit with a new(er) unit. I found a U.S. built 10 cu-ft display model (with a couple minor dents) for $320 loaded into my SUV. I went for a mid-sized unit based on the space I had to put it and the fact that I'm single.
The only idea I've come up with is to get a couple plastic milk crates to make for easier rotation of commonly used items. This also allows me to stack some pizzas on end next to the crates.
I do have several plastic jugs mostly filled with water (now ice) to help maintain temp if I lose power for a while.
When I researched this I found mixed answers but I've got my freezer set fairly cold. The thermometer that I keep setting on top of the food runs around -17F and the unit isn't maxed out. I run it this cold to try and help preserve the food longer.
My freezer is plugged into a ground fault outlet (another place of very mixed reviews) to help protect the freezer itself. I can easily reach the outlet and I've got a night-light plugged into it so I can tell at a glance if I've got power there.
A general note on freezers from my father who sells appliance parts wholesale. Get a U.S. build freezer. The brand doesn't matter as they're all made in the same plant up in St. Cloud MN. These are the ones that will last for many years. Much of the market are cheaper units made in China that will likely die within 5 years or so. He wasn't sure on the reliability of some European models but they aren't common. I feel that I should add that this is referring to 120V freezers. If you're looking for a 12V unit I don't have any info for you.
Steelheart
Thanks for the scoop, Steelheart. I'll make it a point to get the US one. I'd thought about milk crates, that seems about the most sensible thing.
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