Dual Purpose fridge and drying cabinet

[CoreyMac]

Would it be possible to use a fridge as a cabinet with all the proper equipment, but when not drying, easily convert it back to a fridge?
I see alot of people using humidifiers in the fridge and just installing humidity and temp probes with controllers. Seems to me if you just remove the humidifier, the probes can stay. then just plug the fridge in so it works normal. I want to get a fridge for the garage that's dedicated for doing sausage/meat. Don't really have the room for two fridges, would be nice to use one that can do both.
I have searched the forum for info and its basically people using fridges for drying but never both.

Corey

[devo]

I dont have the answer for you Corey but it got me thinking. I'm thinking some meats are cured for six months. You would just get one batch done and might have to start again. I would think if you go to all that trouble of making a dry cure machine you would want to use it all the time. Just thinking off the top of my head here. Oh that could be dangerous for me.  ;D

[CoreyMac]

Actually I got thinking about that as well, if I start a cure I wouldn't be able to do any sausage. I don't really like doing a huge amount at any one time, I prefer to do smaller batches more often. Well looks like a may have to clean a little bit more junk out of the garage to make the extra room.

Looks like great minds think alike :D

Corey

[mjdeez]

As ExpatCanadian said in this post, he'd love to have 3: One for curing, one for drying, and one for storage of cured meats.  Yes you could just unplug the fridge / freezer from the controller and just use as a fridge / freezer, but if you go drilling holes for intake / exhaust fans you may have a little trouble keeping the fridge at 40F... and if you're keeping it inside, the room may be a bit drafty. But I guess you could just put an insulated cover over any vents.

http://forum.bradleysmoker.com/index.php?topic=18974.msg230914#msg230914

[Habanero Smoker]

I use a refrigerator for both, that is why I did not drill holes for the wiring or install an exhaust fan when I built mine. My needs may be different than yours. I generally will do my dry curing from December to May/June. Then the other months I use if for refrigeration. Due to the fact I don't have an exhaust fan, I've found I rarely need the humidifier, and often have to open the cabinet to exchange air.

[ExpatCanadian]

Would it be possible to use a fridge as a cabinet with all the proper equipment, but when not drying, easily convert it back to a fridge?

Hi Corey,

I in fact do exactly that...  the fridge I use is still just a fridge, but with extras.  The refridgeration side of it is part of the design, used for cooling when it gets too warm.  Ok, since I've poked a bunch of holes in the side for vents etc, it's definately not as efficient as it was as *just* a fridge, but the vents have flaps and it has no problem maintaining it's temperature.

At the moment, I don't have anything curing or drying in it, so I actually have it set at 2.5oC....  and am using it as a fridge again.

Good luck!

Expat...