If your freezer is full, an extended power cut can result in expensive losses. Here’s how to save the food in your freezer.
It takes between 10 and 30 hours for the temperature in a full freezer to rise from minus 18 to minus 12 degrees. The less you have in your freezer, the faster the temperature will rise. If the power cut lasts for more than six hours, you will have to take some precautions to keep your food chilled.
If the food has only partly thawed, you can refreeze it. If the food has completely thawed, you should treat it as you would fresh food. Use the food immediately, or if you wish to refreeze it, you must first cook it by frying or boiling it.
You can also insulate the freezer to help keep your food frozen during the power cut.
If a power outage affects large areas over a long period of time, it is important to think about how to make food last as long as possible. Then it is a good idea to use the food with a short shelf life first, such as refrigerated and frozen goods, before eating dry goods that can withstand being left at room temperature for a long time. If you have a lot of food in the freezer, you can consider inviting neighbours, family and friends to eat the food before it goes bad. Read more about emergency preparedness friends.
