HOW TO – Build an ambient air fridge

Energy & Sustainability
HOW TO – Build an ambient air fridge

airFridge.jpg
It seems so obvious. If you live in an area with a decent winter, you can create a fridge on the outside wall of your kitchen that opens to the elements to create an “ambient air fridge” (AAF). If you’re wondering what you do on an unseasonably warm day, the builder keeps a few jugs of water in a snowbank as an emergency ice source. Living in Vermont, he’s able to use his AAF from mid-November to early-April. Obviously, YMMV in different locales.

DIY Super Energy Efficient Refrigerator – Link

10 thoughts on “HOW TO – Build an ambient air fridge

  1. Shadyman says:

    Someone needs better insulation! Cool hack, nonetheless.

  2. mustang says:

    Don’t think this will work that well in Dallas. Maybe I could contrive an oven out of it?

  3. MadScott says:

    You’d think that with some endless tinkering and a lot of phase change material,you could recreate the ice house paradigm: Keep your goodies cold in the winter while “storing cold” for the summer months. Maybe a hatful of blue ice slabs and vents/insulation to extend the usefulness of this as the weather warms up (as it eventually does in Vermont).

  4. Pekar says:

    I recently saw an antique built in “Economy Refrigerator” that you could crank down into the basement into a bricked off space. Works year round!

  5. Walter says:

    Wow! I have a huge ambient air fridge at my house. We call it the garage!

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Gareth Branwyn is a freelance writer and the former Editorial Director of Maker Media. He is the author or editor of over a dozen books on technology, DIY, and geek culture. He is currently a contributor to Boing Boing, Wink Books, and Wink Fun. His free weekly-ish maker tips newsletter can be found at garstipsandtools.com.

View more articles by Gareth Branwyn

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