Askov American

ICELESS REFRIGERATOR AT A SMALL EXPENSE
For homes in which ice refrigerators or modern electrical cooling devices are not available, inexpensive iceless refrigerators may be substituted, according to Mary L. Bull of the extension division, Department of Agriculture, University of Minnesota.
An iceless refrigerator, such as suggested by Miss Bull, consists of a wooden frame of desirable size (48x18x18 inches). This frame is covered on three sides and at the top with rustless wire screen. A door, also covered with wire screen, fits the fourth side. The bottom of the refrigerator may be of wood or of wire and should be from four to six inches above the floor. The top should carry a slat frame strong enough to support a water container. Shelves at different heights should, of course, be provided and should be made of heavy wire or strips of wood but open so as to permit the passage of air. The sides and door are covered with outing flannel or burlap attached by tacks or by eyelets fitting over round-headed tacks or screws. From the water container on the top, which should be from six to eight inches deep, extend four wicks, two or three feet long, made of a double thickness of the same material as the cover. These wicks, small at the upper end and wider at the lower, hang from the water container along the sides of the refrigerator.
The water is drawn by capillary attraction through these wicks and down along the sides covering the refrigerator and there evaporates and thus reduces the temperature inside.
Under ideal conditions, the temperature in such a refrigerator may be reduced to 50 degrees Fahrenheit.