plenzmd1 Posted December 30, 2015 Posted December 30, 2015 Little help here gents, as the interwebs have varying opinions. Garage fridge died, need a new one. See they now offer "garage ready fridges" . I live in Richmond VA so we do have a mild winter usually and a hot ass summer. Garage is not insulated nor have any heating or cooling. Anybody on here appliance savvy and tell me ifs necessary for me to get one of these ? It would seem not, but occasionally my old fridge stopped cooling when it was way cold outside..I can live with that but would that contribute to the unit breaking down? i ask as i can get a very nice and big , albeit pretty dented, side by side at the Sears outlet for a bit less than the HHGregg wants for a much smaller "garage ready" freezer on top unit. Thanks in advance
boyst Posted December 30, 2015 Posted December 30, 2015 What is it you plan on keeping in there? I have two freezer chests I keep running on a trailer to transport beef. Nothing fancy, from Sears. Have a mini fridge in a shed that is 2 years old, they usually last 4 years; the Lowes cheap mini fridge. I'd research the differences. Than look at the costs
Alaska Darin Posted December 30, 2015 Posted December 30, 2015 Little help here gents, as the interwebs have varying opinions. Garage fridge died, need a new one. See they now offer "garage ready fridges" . I live in Richmond VA so we do have a mild winter usually and a hot ass summer. Garage is not insulated nor have any heating or cooling. Anybody on here appliance savvy and tell me ifs necessary for me to get one of these ? It would seem not, but occasionally my old fridge stopped cooling when it was way cold outside..I can live with that but would that contribute to the unit breaking down? i ask as i can get a very nice and big , albeit pretty dented, side by side at the Sears outlet for a bit less than the HHGregg wants for a much smaller "garage ready" freezer on top unit. Thanks in advance http://www.amazon.com/Frigidaire-5303918301-Garage-Heater-Refrigerator/dp/B00M0YNECU/ref=sr_1_1?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1451501540&sr=1-1&keywords=Garage+Refrigerator+Kit
Best Player Available Posted December 30, 2015 Posted December 30, 2015 Little help here gents, as the interwebs have varying opinions. Garage fridge died, need a new one. See they now offer "garage ready fridges" . I live in Richmond VA so we do have a mild winter usually and a hot ass summer. Garage is not insulated nor have any heating or cooling. Anybody on here appliance savvy and tell me ifs necessary for me to get one of these ? It would seem not, but occasionally my old fridge stopped cooling when it was way cold outside..I can live with that but would that contribute to the unit breaking down? i ask as i can get a very nice and big , albeit pretty dented, side by side at the Sears outlet for a bit less than the HHGregg wants for a much smaller "garage ready" freezer on top unit. Thanks in advance have someone put a word in for you about Mario's locker room fridge. It may be available soon.
Chef Jim Posted December 30, 2015 Posted December 30, 2015 Little help here gents, as the interwebs have varying opinions. Garage fridge died, need a new one. See they now offer "garage ready fridges" . I live in Richmond VA so we do have a mild winter usually and a hot ass summer. Garage is not insulated nor have any heating or cooling. Anybody on here appliance savvy and tell me ifs necessary for me to get one of these ? It would seem not, but occasionally my old fridge stopped cooling when it was way cold outside..I can live with that but would that contribute to the unit breaking down? i ask as i can get a very nice and big , albeit pretty dented, side by side at the Sears outlet for a bit less than the HHGregg wants for a much smaller "garage ready" freezer on top unit. Thanks in advance I would think you'd have more of an issue with the thing breaking down when it was hot due to overworking. I worked at a restaurant where we had a walk-in cooler outside and it would always break down when it was hot out.
Marv's Neighbor Posted December 31, 2015 Posted December 31, 2015 My garage ready fridge is the former kitchen ready fridge that defrosted all over our hard wood floors. That made it garage ready for us. Has not leaked a single drop on the concrete.
Flutie Flakes Posted December 31, 2015 Posted December 31, 2015 You could have issues in both winter and summer. As Chef mentioned, if your garage gets above 100 degrees in summer, the compressor will be working overtime to keep things cool. In the winter, anything below 50 degrees may cause issues, even for "garage ready" units with only one thermostat in the fresh food section. Higher end units will have separate thermostats in both the freezer and fresh food section and also may have a heating unit if the ambient outside temperature falls below freezing for any significant period of time, which may help. Most cheaper refrigerators (including garage units) will have compressors with oil that cannot handle cold ambient temperatures for extended periods of time, which will lead to shorter life spans. Since my kids took over my basement man cave, I was forced to move to the garage where I can smoke cigars, have a few beers and attend to my woodworking projects in peace and quiet. I looked into a garage refrigerator and decided against it since I do not heat or cool the garage 24/7. In upstate NY, it would be much too cold in the winter and the garage is like a hot box in the summer months. In Richmond, you won't have the extremes, but you may want to invest in a higher end unit designed for higher/lower outside ambient temperatures. Happy New Year!
BUFFALOKIE Posted January 2, 2016 Posted January 2, 2016 I have a twenty year old Magic Chef (cheapo) that has lived in the garage for the lat 5 1/2 years. Hotter than Hades in summer, and occasional extreme cold in winter. No problems yet. It usually has only a twelve pack in it. Kinda wasteful energy use for how much i use it, but the garage is my man cave, and I like having my cold beer nearby. I blow out the coil every couple of years.
stevestojan Posted January 2, 2016 Posted January 2, 2016 Flow chart: Does it have room for beer? No: not garage ready. Yes: garage ready.
plenzmd1 Posted January 3, 2016 Author Posted January 3, 2016 Flow chart: Does it have room for beer? No: not garage ready. Yes: garage ready. Thanks all for the replies. If no need for beer, then no need for garage fridge. I drink a ton of different beers, generally have 3-4 cases in the fridge, along with 4-5 750ml bottles. Also keep some wines like sake and Miran out there, and also have the bottom open for brining container. That's why I want a bigun!
Chef Jim Posted January 3, 2016 Posted January 3, 2016 I have a standup freezer I've converted to a curing box for curing meats and aging cheese. I have a temperature controller so I can hold it at 55-60 degrees depending on what I'm making. I also have a humidifier in there with a controller to hold the humidity at 60-80 percent. Once again depending on what's in there. One of my goals this year was to make blue cheese. I've looked at recipes and it's too much. Takes 3-6 months and the pictures I've seen are pretty scary looking. Curing your own sausages is not for the faint of heart. I've scraped some ugly molds off the meat but haven't killed anyone yet. The amount of money you save however if you're a charcuterie freak like I am us substantial. I can make about 10 good sized soppressata for about $10. There is a salami restaurant near us that charges more than that for a dozen paper thin slices.
plenzmd1 Posted January 4, 2016 Author Posted January 4, 2016 I have a standup freezer I've converted to a curing box for curing meats and aging cheese. I have a temperature controller so I can hold it at 55-60 degrees depending on what I'm making. I also have a humidifier in there with a controller to hold the humidity at 60-80 percent. Once again depending on what's in there. One of my goals this year was to make blue cheese. I've looked at recipes and it's too much. Takes 3-6 months and the pictures I've seen are pretty scary looking. Curing your own sausages is not for the faint of heart. I've scraped some ugly molds off the meat but haven't killed anyone yet. The amount of money you save however if you're a charcuterie freak like I am us substantial. I can make about 10 good sized soppressata for about $10. There is a salami restaurant near us that charges more than that for a dozen paper thin slices. Sounds awesome to make your own, but it was way , way , out of my league. Best I do is brine some pork or chicken in the fridge for a day or two. Still have not pulled a trigger on a fridge, just been to damn busy and this week have a built in fridge on the porch!
Chef Jim Posted January 4, 2016 Posted January 4, 2016 Sounds awesome to make your own, but it was way , way , out of my league. Best I do is brine some pork or chicken in the fridge for a day or two. Still have not pulled a trigger on a fridge, just been to damn busy and this week have a built in fridge on the porch! Nope. Some of it is very simple. I make lonza which is a cured pork loin. You rub it with some salt, sugar and a cure (nitrate) let it sit for a week or two rinse it and hang it. I cover mine with fresh black pepper after I've rinsed it. It is so easy and the best thing ever. Here's a recipe. There are several on that site that will blow you away on how simple they are. Go with the big cuts (lonza, breseola, pork belly) if you don't want to stuff sausages which can be a pain.' http://lpoli.50webs.com/index_files/lonzino.pdf
eball Posted January 4, 2016 Posted January 4, 2016 We keep our former kitchen fridge in the garage and have had no issues. Durham, NC climate, so it's very hot in the summer and can get reasonably cold in Jan/Feb. The garage is not insulated, nor is it heated/cooled. I've noticed from a thermometer I have out there that even when it gets below 30 degrees outside the garage tends to stay around 50, and when it's ridiculously hot outside the garage still doesn't get above 85. It's also rare that our garage door is open for any longer than the time it takes to park or leave. We don't leave it open, even when we're home.
plenzmd1 Posted January 4, 2016 Author Posted January 4, 2016 We keep our former kitchen fridge in the garage and have had no issues. Durham, NC climate, so it's very hot in the summer and can get reasonably cold in Jan/Feb. The garage is not insulated, nor is it heated/cooled. I've noticed from a thermometer I have out there that even when it gets below 30 degrees outside the garage tends to stay around 50, and when it's ridiculously hot outside the garage still doesn't get above 85. It's also rare that our garage door is open for any longer than the time it takes to park or leave. We don't leave it open, even when we're home. see, mine is open from 4.30 am till 9PM just about every day LOL with two knucklehead kids!
Chef Jim Posted January 4, 2016 Posted January 4, 2016 Ok to completely change the subject but not new thread worthy. Question.... 1. How many car garage do you own? 2. How many cars does it fit? Me: 1. Two 2. Two plus a scooter and a cord of wood. I think we're one of the few people in the world that can actually park their cars in their garage. I'm on Next Door a neighborhood blog and every time someone posts that their car was broken it to or stolen I feel like posting "well if you could park your car in your !@#$ing garage you'd not have that problem now would you."
plenzmd1 Posted January 4, 2016 Author Posted January 4, 2016 Two car garage...we can fit one in ...but never do as configuration of driveway just does not work with 3 cars coming and going. BTW, i don't think even if 100% clean we could fit my Yukon and my wifes car in there...two cars were a lot smaller 30 years ago i am thinking
Chef Jim Posted January 4, 2016 Posted January 4, 2016 Two car garage...we can fit one in ...but never do as configuration of driveway just does not work with 3 cars coming and going. BTW, i don't think even if 100% clean we could fit my Yukon and my wifes car in there...two cars were a lot smaller 30 years ago i am thinking Our house was built in 1957 and the cars were much bigger then. We only have my car and it's a small coupe (my wife rides the scooter ) but we've fit decent sized SUV's in there with my car when we've had guests spend the night.
mead107 Posted January 4, 2016 Posted January 4, 2016 I have a 2 car garage 24 ft wide 24 deep in one stall 22 deep othe one , fire place sticks in one one side and shelves on other side no room for refrigerator. My 2nd refrigerator is in the in law apartment 2nd kitchen soda, water, beer, and Stromboli in the freezer
Chef Jim Posted January 4, 2016 Posted January 4, 2016 I have a 2 car garage 24 ft wide 24 deep in one stall 22 deep othe one , fire place sticks in one one side and shelves on other side no room for refrigerator. My 2nd refrigerator is in the in law apartment 2nd kitchen soda, water, beer, and Stromboli in the freezer And the wine?!?!?!
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