Living Without a Fridge

[Gemini Dreams]

Living with a cooler and not a fridge is not living without a fridge. If you are living with a cooler in the Bahamas in the warm season you are spending over $250 a month to feed it ice. We will be installing a fridge/freezer before coming the next season.

W

[callmecrazy]

Originally Posted by Gemini Dreams

Living with a cooler and not a fridge is not living without a fridge. If you are living with a cooler in the Bahamas in the warm season you are spending over $250 a month to feed it ice. We will be installing a fridge/freezer before coming the next season.

W

Can't argue with that... But, unless you're ice only lasts 1 day,, or it cost $30 a block, I can't see spending $250 a month on it?

So how much does ice really cost in the Bahamas?

[jgbrown]

Originally Posted by gjordan

I think it was on this thread that I posted about Jicama. We bought it in Mexico and it was still cool,fresh and crunchy when we arrived in the Marquesas 4 weeks later. We had no refrigeration or even an ice chest. Today,almost 35 years later I asked the man stocking veggies at my local supermarket if they had Jicama, and he said sure! It wasnt labeled , and I didnt even remember what it looked like, but he pointed it out and I bought one. It tasted just as good as I remembered, fresh, moist and about as crunchy as a good apple, but maybe a little less sweet. A great addition to a non refrigerated boat. Sliced thin and the skin removed. Brings back great memories.____Grant.

First off, thanks to all involved for a great thread. I was just in the process of looking at forking over the $$ for a fridge and now I've got some new options. Moving from land to liveaboard next week I hope.
Should've remembered I've gone for ages without one off a boat, and the only thing in my fridge right now is milk.

For Jicama try it with some little piles of salt and chili(or sugar and chili) and pepper and slices of lime(or all of the above) on a plate. Turns it into a great snack. Good by itself. Available all over the place, you can even get it at the grocery store here!

[Mark Johnson]

Half of my decades of cruising was without a fridge, but using a cooler & ice. Over the long run, a small, super insulated, properly built fridge, is WAY cheaper, and just as reliable!
Ours has worked perfectly for over 13 years, with no problems, even though "air cooled", and in the tropics. It uses < 30 AH / day!

My past posts explain how...

M.

[barnakiel]

Originally Posted by jgbrown

(...) For Jicama try it with some (...)

Turnips!

Pachyrhizus erosus - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In the new world they tend to give a new name to anything. Quite an interesting thing on its own rights.

b.

[barnakiel]

BTW Panama (city) is also where we got our worst vegs and fruits: it all comes mornings from huge freezers-holds and when you come to the stand it all looks gorgeous fresh and shiny. 5 days into a crossing and it all ends up overboard (or inside you, if you can digest this amount of green stuff ;-)).

If shopping for a crossing / voyage, try and maybe you can get the stuff in small places where it is more likely to come from a local garden.

b.

[Cheechako]

Originally Posted by Mark Johnson

Half of my decades of cruising was without a fridge, but using a cooler & ice. Over the long run, a small, super insulated, properly built fridge, is WAY cheaper, and just as reliable!
Ours has worked perfectly for over 13 years, with no problems, even though "air cooled", and in the tropics. It uses < 30 AH / day!

My past posts explain how...

M.

Yeah... having at least a small low draw fridge is a good thing for sure.

[gjordan]

barnakiel, great WIKI link for Jicama. Thanks,____Grant.

[ty.gregory]

Originally Posted by frank_f

Damn, I'm married and that's what my fridge looks like (minus the fruit juice). I should be sailing. At least I could starve in better surroundings.

Best and funniest comment in this whole thread!!!!

[ty.gregory]

Originally Posted by kefroeschner

C'mon you guys ... this post is supposed to be about HOW TO live without a fridge.

NOT whether or not you should.

And ESPECIALLY NOT what kind of character you are if you think one way or the other.

If you want to discuss one another's character go to the Off Topic Forum.

Sometimes...when nobody's around...I like to take off all my clothes and stand naked in front of my refridgerator...

and I don't even have a refridgerator...

How 'bout that?

[frank_f]

Originally Posted by ty.gregory

Sometimes...when nobody's around...I like to take off all my clothes and stand naked in front of my refridgerator...

and I don't even have a refridgerator...

How 'bout that?

That's called a patio door. You're probably the hit of the neighbourhood.

[sctpc]

Originally Posted by Mark Johnson

Half of my decades of cruising was without a fridge, but using a cooler & ice. Over the long run, a small, super insulated, properly built fridge, is WAY cheaper, and just as reliable!
Ours has worked perfectly for over 13 years, with no problems, even though "air cooled", and in the tropics. It uses < 30 AH / day!

My past posts explain how...

M.

Mark I agree but without ripping out my perfectly good interior I only have a small ice box, and portable fridge when I live on the boat. so of your decades of cruising without a fridge how did you make food survive on you trips?

[OaklandSailor]

Originally Posted by ovrmyhead

Family of five aboard with no fridge. Dont get me wrong we would LOVE one and its on the want list, just not at the top. So it is possible to get by without one if you must, but if you dont have to... why? I added another 2" of styrofoam to the inside of our icebox so when we can get ice we load it up and try n make it last and when we walk by a tienda that sells ice cream I almost never tell the kids no. After all, they dont get it on the boat.
On a side note, anybody know where a guy can get an Engel or comparable in Mexico?
Nautical Nomad, how do I go about smoking fish and meats onboard? Do you just use the oven?

Ovrmyhead, thanks for your input. I'm outfitting for voyaging and have an older Adler Barbour but do not want to keep it (very, very old) or repair it (who knows when or where, but inevitable). I assume that when you attached the styrofoam you cemented it to the walls of an existing 'fridge' box, is that correct? If so, did you then glass over it? How do you rate it's ability to keep things cold/cool over "xx hours" in warm to hot temperatures? I'm a minimalist, sort of, and do not want lots of groovy stuff that I will need to repair along the way.

Thanks in advance,
Mark

[zeehag]

food on trips isnt a big deal--i still do not have a fridge, and i only use a cooler on rare occasions. i will probably have no fridge for looong time,as i havent had one since 1990.....i do have an air conditioner, as i dont like the idea of melted gato.....

[CFR]

Hi all, i started this thread some time ago and i am very happy about all the feedback. i just returned from a 6 weeks cruise without a fridge and it was no issue at all. I canned 15 can in advance with meat and to be honest it was cheaper and taste better tahn buying meat in denmark or sweden during the trip. i carried cabbage, onions, carrots, potataos and apples as a base and they last easily 6 weeks and bought local availble fresher food.

The best was my canned food especially the fried minced meat without any spices. this meat you can use for any dish lateron like pasta bolognese or asia style with curry or indian style. the taste was better then refrigerated meat and it was already dry so you could fry it again to get some nice colour. add i cooked beef curry in coconut which was also good.

by the way i also bought a thermo cooker and it is no so easy to have a nice pasta within 5 min cooking time and 30 min waiting time.
1 can of minced meat
1 can of tomatos
garlic and onion
spices as usual
1 lb pasta

some water or better veggi soup base

fry the onion and the meat and put all the rest incl. the pasto in the pan, simmer 5 min and but in thermos boy and wait 25 or so min and ready...... much better as cooking pasta in 3 liter water for ten minutes.... and the taste is better the sauce is thick and perfect. you can do ist also in a normal pan if keeping on a very low heat for 25 min