These modern days in which we live give us so many conveniences that we simply take for granted. Love your refrigerator and freezer? Or do you even think about either long know how you feel about them? Better still, it may not be how you feel about them that matters so much, but rather how you would feel about losing them that will most effectively reveal how important they are to you. In order to appreciate today’s fridge, it seems apropos to look at life before refrigerators were so easy to take for granted.
Before We Knew What a Refrigerator Was
Those home chefs predating the introduction of the refrigerator for home use only had root cellars, cold weather months and a few other home-contrived methods of *coolish* storage to hopefully sustain the freshness of a rather limited number of produce types, as well as leftovers and other prepared foods. Cooking with fresh food involved a trek to the grocer every day, for most people. So many foods we can always enjoy like ice cream, fresh fruit, frozen meal components and entrees and the ice cubes we love so much were not part of the general vocabulary of the times. Yes, Life involved an entirely different attitude toward food and eating without the benefit of refrigeration. Imagine not having access to the many medicines we now benefit from, that require refrigeration in order to remain chemically stable enough to work.
Utilizing the Best Available Methods
As centuries-old methods of food preservation made it possible for families to enjoy the goodness of milk and butter, people used any resources available to them. Root cellars were popular, and in many cooler climates, foods would be stored underwater in streams and wells. Springhouses, with their cool stream water trickling under or between different items on shelves constructed within these small buildings were common. Unfortunately, especially since Pasteurization had yet to be discovered, rapid spoilage was unpreventable, with an ever- looming threat of bacterial infestation. During Colonial times, many suffered from an illness that could be characteristically fatal, known as “summer complaint.” Obviously, the warmer weather of summer would make healthy food preservation almost impossible. Due to the impossibility of proper means of keeping fish, meats, milk, vegetables and fruits fresh, these foods were rarely, if ever a part of the North American diet. There were, however, time-tested food preservation methods in use that included salting, spicing, drying (dried meat, or jerky was prevalent,) smoking and pickling. Due to these practices, a need for refrigeration simply did not exist, with the average diet consisting primarily of various salt meats and bread.
A Long Time Coming, and a Long Time to Grow
Since the 1930s boon of Refrigeration technology for home use, there have been numerous significant advancements in providing the best atmospheric elements of food preservation and cooling. Many great strides have emerged from a focus on determining precise numbers for ideal temperature and humidity levels. This stems from our discoveries revealing that there are different requirements for various types of foods that need to be refrigerated. What remains as the most significant contribution to refrigeration technology as we know it today was the implementation of *freon*.
What Refrigeration Was
Essentially, refrigeration is defined as the process of creating either a space or a substance to a temperature that is lower than the actual environment itself. The very first methods of refrigeration, predating the 1930 refrigerator template by over 80 years, to be exact — involved a process that used evaporation to remove heat. The means by which this process was advanced came about during the 1850s, with cooling being achieved by vapor compression by air. Next, ammonia was used as a coolant.
And while an 1803 farmer hailing from Maryland by the name of Thomas Moore is credited with first introducing the term “refrigerator, the appliance that now comes to mind did not make an appearance until the 20th century.
The Iceman Cometh: The New Ice Age
Eventually ice shipments were made out of NYC, southward to Charleston, SC. Sadly, by the time the shipment would arrive at its destination, and most of the payload would have melted en route. Ice houses were established. By experimenting with different methods of cutting, storage, handling, transporting and distribution techniques it became possible to significantly reduce ice losses from 66 percent down to 8 percent. The harvesting of naturally forming ice became big business, and no pond was exempt from the keen eye of the ice gatherers–even the idyllic pond of HDThoreau’s heart–Walden’s Pond. During the year 1847, 1,000 tons of ice were harvested on a daily basis from this iconic body of water.
Walden’s Ice?
The prevalence of harvesting natural ice for use in and around food presented a number of problems that had not been taken into account by the companies selling it. While natural ice harvesting had become such a popular vocation for so many, it’s likely that there were no water sources that were exempt from inclusion in the home ice industry, anywhere. It’s been said that even the iconic Walden’s Pond of Thoreau’s classic was harvested for its winter ice. This naturally-occurring goldmine for an ever-increasing number of suppliers/harvesters was eventually abruptly halted altogether, even though the booming industry had enabled lower prices that ice harvesters passed on down the line ending with consumers. Without adequate regulations in effect to ensure the quality of ice naturally obtained in this manner, there was no telling what other “ingredients” might have been included in the harvest, ultimately ending up in homes. These unknown elements included much pollution from various industries and individuals, with some surely being quite toxic.
And Moving Forward
Today’s refrigerators are thermally insulated compartments with heat pumps that remove the interior heat. Thanks to the 1920s introduction of Freon, we were provided with a safer, less toxic alternative to all previously used refrigerants. Following WWII, separate freezers became the thing, in homes everywhere, and known as “deep freezes.” There would be numerous efforts needed to deal with defrosting and the eventual banning of Freon refrigerants, as they were known to damage the ozone layer. The less harmful replacement for Freon R-12, and R-134a (tetrafluoroethane), has been in common use since 1990, but Freon R-12 is still found in many old systems today.
Today’s stellar lineup of fascinating refrigeration methods is beyond incredible, and from the looks of things, refrigeration technology is set to continue to redefine how we live.