Why You Should Always Put A Coin In The Freezer Before You Leave Home
Have you ever left for a long weekend, business trip, or vacation, only to return and find that your digital clock has been reset?
Chances are, you already suspect there was a power outage while you were away, but you may have no idea when it happened or how long it lasted. This makes it impossible to determine how long your food has been sitting in the heat before it cooled down again and started to spoil.
A helpful tip shared by Sheila Pulanco Russell on her Facebook wall can put your mind at ease about the safety of the food in your freezer—or help you decide whether it should be thrown out. It’s also a great tip to keep in mind if you plan to be away from home for an extended period.
The secret? A cup, a coin, and some tap water—three simple items that everyone has at home.
In a Facebook post which quickly received hundreds of thousands of reactions and shares, Sheila explains how to proceed. She writes:
“For those of you that are evacuating from the coast, I just heard a great tip. It’s called the one cup tip. You put a cup of water in your freezer. Freeze it solid and then put a quarter on top of it and leave it in your freezer. That way when you come back after you’ve been evacuated you can tell if your food went completely bad and just refroze or if it stayed frozen while you were gone.
If the quarter has fallen to the bottom of the cup that means all the food defrosted and you should throw it out. But if the quarter is either on the top or in the middle of the cup then your food may still be ok. It would also be a great idea to leave this in your freezer all the time and if you lose power for any reason you will have this tip to fall back on.
If you don’t feel good about your food, just throw it out. The main thing is for all to be safe.”
You’ve just read, Why You Should Always Put A Coin In The Freezer. Why not read Confused Teacher Gets Frustrated By Student’s Dumb Answers.