Is It Safe To Store Food in Your Car During the Winter?

Food Tips, , , , ,

When winter finally comes and the temperatures begin to dip into the 30s, many people turn to their cars and garages when they need some extra space to store their food. But is it safe?

There actually is no concrete answer, because there are too many variables. If you are trying to determine whether or not your food will be safe to store in your car, ask yourself the following questions:

What kind of food is it?

Different foods, and especially drinks, should be stored at different temperatures. Most refrigerated foods should be kept between 34-39° F to keep them from spoiling, frozen foods closer to the 0° mark.

Different beverages also have different freezing points, which is important to know in order to prevent them from exploding all over your back seat. Here are the different freezing points of different drinks:

  • Water, juice, diet soda – 32° F

  • Regular soda – 30° F

  • 24-proof liquor – 20° F

  • 64-proof liquor – -10° F

  • 84-proof liquor – -30° F

What’s the weather forecast?

This is probably the most important piece of information. You need to know just how cold it is outside, and how long you can expect it to stay that way. Overnight, temperatures may dip, resulting in unwanted frozen goods. On the other hand, temperature spikes during the day can cause your food to warm up and spoil prematurely.

It is important to remember that the inside of your car or garage will likely be up to 10° warmer than the outside temperature due to insulation. Having a thermometer handy is the only way you can be sure whether or not the temperature allows for safe storage

How long does the food need to be stored?

How long are you planning on keeping your food in the car before you eat it? Keeping leftover dinner in the car for a few hours while you catch a movie is different than leaving it in there for two or three days. However long you plan on storing it, you need to make sure to keep an eye on temperature fluctuations throughout the day.

If you are debating whether or not to store food in your car or garage, it is always best to err on the side of caution. More than 3 million Americans suffer from food poisoning every year, and poor storage conditions are one of the leading causes.

One thing that can cause improper storage conditions is a malfunctioning refrigerator. If the inside of your fridge feels unusually warm, contact the repair experts at Speedy Refrigerator Service. We guarantee one-hour service to anywhere on Long Island, so give us a call today at 866-782-9376.

Ice is Food: Make Sure to Keep It Safe

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If we asked you to make a list of one hundred different types of foods, we guarantee you ice wouldn’t make the cut. You may not consider ice food, but the U.S. Food & Drug Administration does. In fact, packaged ice sold in the store undergoes the same type of regulations as your other foods, and just like your other food, it can get you sick if it isn’t clean.

Use these tips to keep your ice sanitary:

  • Avoid touching ice with dirty hands. You would never pick up a sandwich with dirty hands, so don’t do it to your ice either. Whenever possible, handle ice using clean utensils such as tongs or an ice scooper.

  • Wrap up your raw meat when in a cooler. If you are packing raw meat in a cooler for a picnic or barbecue, make sure to securely wrap it up in plastic. Poorly-packaged meat can leak juices into your ice, which can then contaminate your other foods and drinks.

  • Store your ice in a clean container. Whether you are keeping your ice at home in your freezer or on-the-go in a cooler, make sure your storage container is clean. Ice can pick up bacteria from the environment it’s stored in, and you don’t want that sitting in your beverages.

  • Use filtered water. Using tap water to make your ice is not necessarily dangerous, but using purified or spring water is better. This water has no minerals in it, resulting in a better tasting and cleaner ice cube.

  • If you have an ice maker, change the filter regularly. If you have the luxury of having a refrigerator with a built-in ice maker, be sure to regularly change the filter. Over time, the filter can collect gross amounts of bacteria, which can transfer onto your ice cubes.

Is your ice maker malfunctioning, or producing dirty-tasting ice? The experts at Speedy Refrigerator Service can fix it! Serving all of Long Island and New York City for more than 75 years, our licensed technicians can repair any make or model of refrigerator, freezer, or ice maker. Call us to schedule your same-day appointment at 866-782-9376.

5 Reasons to Have Your Refrigerator Repaired

Refrigerator Repair, , , , , ,

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If your refrigerator is hissing, leaking, or simply failing to keep your food cold, you may be tempted to break out your checkbook and buy a new one.

Not so fast.

Before heading out to your local appliance store, consider first contacting a repair service. Fixing your refrigerator instead of simply replacing it can offer you many benefits – here are five of them.

1. It will keep your food fresh for longer.

A warm refrigerator is as good as no refrigerator at all. Refrigerators have one job: to keep your food cold. When they can’t do this, they do nothing other than take up space and guzzle up electricity. A freshly-repaired refrigerator will keep your food fresh for longer, reducing food waste and preventing possible cases of food poisoning.

2. It will save you money on your energy bill.

No matter what is wrong with your broken refrigerator, it is probably consuming more energy than a properly-working unit would be. Whether it is a broken gasket, compressor, or evaporator fan, your appliance is using extra energy trying to keep itself cold. Once a repair is made, you may notice significant savings on your monthly utility bill.

3. It can reduce condensation and prevent mold.

One sign of a broken refrigerator is extra moisture, whether it is in the form of condensation or a full-blown leak. Standing water invites mold to grow, which is not only unsightly, but severely unhealthy as well. Preventing excess moisture is key to keeping mold out of your home, and a healthy, functioning refrigerator can help you do this.

4. It is much cheaper than buying a new appliance.

A brand new refrigerator is likely to set you back several hundreds, if not thousands of dollars. Fortunately, many repairs can be made for a fraction of the cost of a new model; who can afford to not save that kind of money?

5. It won’t interfere with your life.

Shopping for a new refrigerator is a hassle, and it often requires you to set aside a large chunk of your day to visit different appliance stores and compare prices. Then you have to make sure you are home for the delivery, which can be a 4-6 hour window. On the other hand, when you get your refrigerator repaired, you can enjoy the luxury of never having to leave your home.

Speedy Refrigerator Service is New York’s #1 choice for refrigerator and freezer repairs! We offer 24/7/365 coverage and guarantee one-hour service to anywhere in Nassau County, Suffolk County, or New York City. Our expert technicians can repair any make or model of refrigerator, freezer, ice maker, or wine cooler. Call us now to schedule your same-day appointment at 866-782-9376.

6 Awesome Examples of Refrigerators in Disguise

Cleaning & Organization Tips, , , , ,

Are you sick of your big, bulky refrigerator being the focal point of your otherwise beautiful kitchen? Well, you obviously can’t get rid of it, so do the next best thing and cover it up! If you are looking for some design inspiration, Houzz has provided several great examples of people seamlessly integrating their refrigerator into the rest of their kitchen.

Here’s some of their best work:

Double the Fun

What’s better than one refrigerator? Two refrigerators! This arrangement not only adds to the functionality of your kitchen, its symmetrical qualities make it pleasing to the eye as well.

 

chalk

Chalk It Out

What better way to hide your refrigerator than behind a fun chalkboard? This idea is great for homes with children, or even those that just want an extra-large surface to jot down their daily to-do list.

 

stainless

Stainless Steel Galore

Maybe contemporary cabinetry isn’t your style. That’s okay, you can still have a sleek kitchen. Just surround your oven with your refrigerator and deck it all out in stainless steel – just make sure to keep it clean.

 

stretch

Stretched Out

What is that tall, narrow cabinet in the left of the picture? Oh, it’s a refrigerator? By simply tweaking the dimensions of a standard fridge, this tall, slender model adds an extra layer of camouflage to further help it blend into the kitchen.

 

ovens

Split the Ovens

If you have two ovens in your kitchen, they are likely stacked atop one another, but it doesn’t need to be that way. This designer chose to arrange them side-by-side, with a well-placed fridge smack dab in the middle of them.

 

armoire

Armoire In The Kitchen?

Maybe it looks a little out of place, but it is so aesthetically pleasing that you just don’t care. What used to be an eyesore is now a piece of beauty that you would be proud to call the centerpiece of your kitchen.

Check out more designs like these at Houzz.com.

No matter what type of refrigerator is in your home, the experts at Speedy Refrigerator Service can fix it! If you live on Long Island and your refrigerator is leaking, making loud noises, or just failing to keep cold, call us at 866-782-9376 – we will be at your door within an hour, guaranteed.

Going On Vacation – Should You Unplug Your Refrigerator?

Energy Saving Tips, , , , , ,

During the winter months, many people (especially residents of the cold northeast) pack their bags and go away on vacation. Whether you are heading to a tropical destination, or just spending the holidays with your family, leaving your home for an extended period of time takes lots of planning and preparation.

One question that commonly arises in this situation is whether or not you should unplug your refrigerator – after all, it’s not like you are going to be using it. Most people make an effort to disconnect all of their electronic devices when they go away in order to save money, and the refrigerator can be one of your home’s main energy consumers. With that says, it only makes sense to pull the plug on your refrigerator as well, right?

If you are trying to decide whether or not to unplug your refrigerator before you go on vacation, here are some things to consider:

  • Length of Vacation. A “long” vacation to you may be 7-10 days, but this is almost never long enough to justify unplugging your fridge. If you were traveling for a month or longer, that may be more reasonable.

  • Energy-Efficiency of Refrigerator. Newer Energy Star models consume about half of the energy of old refrigerators, and generally cost less than $10 per month to operate. These savings aren’t worth the work of unplugging and defrosting your fridge.

  • Amount of Food. If you have a refrigerator full of food, you will have to either throw it out or give it away before you unplug your refrigerator, which could cost you more money than it saves you.

All in all, it is probably not a good idea to unplug your refrigerator before you go away on vacation.

The professionals Speedy Refrigerator Service are experts at anything refrigeration-related, which is why Long Island residents have depended on us to fix their refrigerators, freezers, and ice makers for over 75 years. We guarantee one-hour service to Nassau and Suffolk County, even on nights and weekends, so call us any time at 866-782-9376.