Off-grid Living Hack: Chest Freezer to Refrigerator Conversion with this simple device

This is an idea you might want to keep in mind for if/when electricty prices go up severely. Or, if you know you’ll be living off grid on your own power.

A chest freezer is an extremely efficient way to store frozen goods. Aside from how they are manufactuirng applicance that are much more effiicinet, the basic desing has energy savings. The opening is on top and the cold stays in at the bottom when you open it.

Regular front door fridges and freezers lose a ton of coolness (and energy) when you open the door as the cold slips out the bottom. It does feel nice if you have bare feet on a hot day, but it is a waste of energy :)

This was shot at my last rental which had zero furnishings or appliances.

Since i didn’t want to buy a new fridge because I knew I would be moving again soon, I setup this freezer I had to be a fridge. It works by setting up a simple thermostat device to control the temperatures.

It worked great! I did have to get used to looking at my food from the top which was ‘different’ and it requires you doing different body motions to retrieve foods.

The temperature also varies by the hight at which it is stored in the converted freezer. I put meats and most perishable foods at the lowest level where it was very cold. And I put less cold dpenedant foods closer to the top in the baskets.

Also, definitely check out how I use the cold ballast in the bottom.

And you get to see Amelia and Michu when they were adorable kittens!