Daily food with Freezer only

A few years back when I was running my Camper Trailer I ran an EvaKool as a Freezer. I had 6 of the large Esky Freezer Blocks. Each day I would put three frozen blocks into my 7 day Esky (supposed to keep ice for 7days), every 24hrs I replaced them with three from the freezer,. They were never fully defrosted. I had the EvaKool set on about - 15.

This worked for 9 months whilst we travelled around Aus.

I still take a sanger with me these days, Alan, and usually carry a freezer block in the small esky as well. By early afternoon, the block is pretty much thawed, but it's done it's job of keeping the food cool, until I've devoured it. Often sitting on the floor of the truck so in a hot area.

You can buy rolls of "Go-Between" that you place between slices of meat etc, to make removing single slices from a frozen pack much easier.

Bob

If you are running a freezer, you would also have a fridge, so why not turn it down so that it is only a fridge?
A cool fridge is much more practical than a dedicated freezer. Current draw is much less on a setting of 5 degrees, as apposed to -15.

Have traveled extensively through the outback and have never needed a freezer.
Our meat is usually vacuum sealed and lasts for ages, just kept cool in the portable fridge.
When we stop for lunch, it doesn't take long to assemble a sanga from the contents of the fridge, or jars, etc.

Of course, we don't have rug rats with us so no need for ice blocks, icecream, or the like. Nothing needs to be kept frozen.

Hi Alan

First of all, Seasons Greetings and welcome to the age of travelling with a fridge....lol

We have been travelling now for well over 20 years with our trusty Engel fridges and have changed our way of how we use the fridge.

We used to always use it as a freezer, and took an esky, and would use the esky on a two day cycle.

In this way, we would take out frozen food on a two day cycle. In a good esky, it usually would take 2 days to fully defrost, so on the two day cycle, food would not be frozen when the time came to cook and use it, and the next days frozen food would act as a way of keeping the previous days food cool, thus only going to the fridge once at the end of the day to take out the next two days food cycle out.

That way way ok, but you are losing valuable space with the esky, and for the last 15 years of so now only use it on fridge only. First of all we run the fridge between minus 1 and 0, keeping everything as cold as possible and prolongs the growth of food bacteria that will grow at a very fast and unsafe rate once food gets over 4 degrees C. In this way we have had fresh milk last well into nearly the third week that usually only has a 10 day life.....you smell here is the best way to make sure the milk has not gone off.

Next of all meat, have it vac sealed at the butchers and we have has steak in the fridge for 3 weeks without it going off. We found the secret here is to make sure that the meat bags have not slipped and they still remain tight and free of air. Yes the blood from the meat will look a slight green colour in the tight bag, yet when opened, the meat smells as fresh as the day it went into the bag to be sealed.

Its up to you and how long you will be away from topping up the fridge, but for us, the fridge only way is how we now travel without any issues at all.


Best Regards



Stephen