I have a confession to make: I am now officially hooked on Jericho.
Some friends of ours let us borrow their Jericho: The First Season DVDs, and Jerry and I could NOT stop watching. Seriously, we had a five-hour movie marathon over the weekend, and both of us were completely enthralled into the wee morning hours.
FIVE HOURS STRAIGHT people! That’s more TV than I normally watch in a month!
It’s a good thing we only had the first two discs, or it would have been bad for everyone.
In the show, I saw them do something that I found incredibly interesting – and that I’ve done before myself. They make ice with no electricity!
In the show, the man was dying with a horrible fever, there was no electricity so they had no ice.
A teacher remembered a science experiment that created ice from water and fertilizer and was able to create a block of ice in time to cool the man off.
There are a few different ways to make ice from electricity, which I’ll detail below, starting with the method shown in Jericho. Let’s dive in! Method 1: Making Ice Using Fertilizer and Water
Before I dive into the instructions on this one (the Jericho method), I should note that you’ll need fertilizer and water as your two core ingredients. I’ve chosen to use ammonium nitrate, but you could also use calcium chloride.
Method #1: The Easiest One
- Ammonium Nitrate (a fertilizer made up of a 50/50 mixture of ammonium and nitrate; found at farm and garden stores)
- a bucket or large bowl
- a smaller metal bowl (small enough to fit inside the other container)
- Mix equal parts water and fertilizer in a bucket or a large bowl, till dissolved.
- Next, carefully place the smaller metal bowl half filled with water in the bucket. Note: it must be a metal bowl, plastic will not work. The bowl of water will freeze, though it takes several hours from what I’ve read.
If this works, not only would it be an awesome science project for the kiddos, but would also be a potential lifesaver if you were ever in a situation where you’d lost power and desperately needed to cool something/someone off.
Method 2: Making Ice With a Solar Freezer
You can purchase a solar freezer online for not that much money, and the benefit of this is that it will allow you to make ice whenever you need to without electricity.
You can also DIY your own solar freezer. All you need is a covered container, insulation material like cloth, sand, or even mud, and, if possible, some ice chunks or ice cubes you already have.
First, start by lining the container with the insulation material and making sure there are no exposed sections that could leak cold air.
Once the insulation is secure, add water to just below the top of the container and place any available pre-existing ice chunks on top of the water. If not available, salt can be used instead, but this will take longer and isn’t as reliable.
Finally, cover the entire container with its lid and ensure that it’s well sealed. After three days in direct sunlight, the water should have frozen enough for use as solid ice blocks in whatever form or size you intended it for!
For this method, all you need is a container, some food-grade gloves, and of course, the key ingredient – dry ice.
Safety should always come first!
Ensure all the pieces of dry ice are broken up into small, manageable pieces so riding gloves will help protect your hands from contact with the frozen solid carbon dioxide.
Start by covering the bottom of the container with pieces of dry ice and slowly layer in more as you fill up your container to get a consistent mixture of remaining smoke and liquid carbon dioxide as it begins to thaw.
If you’re lucky enough to live in a colder climate, like those in the northernmost parts of America, you may want to consider using the great outdoors to solve your ice-making dilemma.
I’m fortunate that where I live, in upstate New York, we have freezing or below-freezing temperatures for most of the winter months (typically mid-November through mid-March, at the very least).
Because of this, making ice without electricity by leveraging the great outdoors is easy during the winter – all we have to do is go outside. But the real problem comes with storage if you want to make enough ice to get you through to warmer months when this method obviously won’t be possible.
Storing ice without electricity can be tricky, but it is possible. You don’t necessarily need an ice house like people in the 1800s had; you just need a cold space that’s somewhat insulated.
Of course, this won’t be an option at all times of the year, but if you can do some advance planning, you can do some ice harvesting during cold temperatures to be used later on. In cold environments, such as up in the mountains, chunks of natural ice form along rivers and around lakes as temperatures drop below zero.
If you don’t have a place to harvest ice, you can make your own ice and then keep it frozen for long periods of time by following the tips below.
Firstly, you’ll need an insulated cooler or box made of material with low thermal conductivity, such as cork or sawdust. Fill up an ice cube tray with water, then put it in a freezer bag to prevent dirt from ending up in your ice.
Put the ice cube tray outside at night, when temperatures drop below freezing. You can expedite the freezing of water by boiling the water first.
To maximize insulation, fill any air gaps and line the container with newspaper, emergency blankets, or Mylar.
Next, locate a nearby non-polluted water source, such as a spring or stream, and fill the container to the brim; this will reduce the amount of air inside and increase insulation further.
Place smaller items like pieces of wood in between boxes or coolers and use blankets to wrap them up- these will act as additional insulators and should help keep your ice from melting too quickly. You’ll place your ice cube trays inside the cooler or other container. If you can, use both cubes and large blocks of ice to help the ice stay frozen longer.
Now, you’ll have an ice tray that should stay frozen inside the container even when the outside surroundings begin to heat up. I recommend storing it in a root cellar or another cold food storage location to keep your food cool as long as possible.
Here’s a video with a version of this method to teach you more:
Converting an electric ice maker machine into a solar-powered unit is a great way to make ice without electricity – you can easily hook up an ice maker to batteries with solar panels without having to really rewire the ice maker at all.
To begin, you will first need to buy the necessary components for the conversion, such as photovoltaic panels, a solar charge controller, and deep-cycle batteries.
Once you’ve acquired the components, you’ll need to install them correctly in order to make sure your ice maker can draw power from the sun.
After installation is complete, periodically check all connections to ensure they are free of any damage and properly connected. Finally, program your solar charge controller in order for it to provide a steady voltage which will ensure that your ice-making machine operates under optimal conditions at all times.
Here’s a video that shows how to use an electric ice maker in this way:
Instead of using a traditional freezer, the bell jar and vacuum pump method is an effective solution for creating ice quickly and efficiently.
This technique begins by allowing a container of either water or a combination of salt and water to almost completely fill the bell jar. The lid is then placed over the jar which creates an airtight seal.
A vacuum pump is used to remove all the air molecules from inside the container, leaving nothing but chilled vapors.
Learn more about how to make your own portable ice maker with this method by watching the video below:
If you’re reading the above tutorial about how to make ice using dry ice, you might be thinking, “well, that’s great. But dry ice is hard to find, and I don’t have any of that either.” Fortunately, there is a solution.
First, you must get yourself a fire extinguisher or air duster, which contains pressurized carbon dioxide. Make sure to take all the necessary safety precautions before proceeding, as the pressure could cause an accident if handled carelessly. I recommend wearing gloves and eye protection at the very least.
Remove the locking pin on the fire extinguisher and press down on the handle. You’ll see a force of carbon dioxide vapor coming out. This is extremely cold, so the key here is to capture it.
You can pump the fire extinguisher into a pillowcase, and you’ll notice a solid buildup of ice at the bottom of the bag. You should find enough to make a decent-sized snowball of dry ice to store your perishable food.
Here’s a video with more details:
A small propane freezer uses the heat of combustion to create a cooling effect, rather than using electrical power. This is perfect for adventurous campers who don’t want to limit their travels in search of perfect locations.
Because this type of appliance doesn’t require a lot of space, it’s also convenient and unobtrusive when on the move.
As an added benefit, the portable nature of the propane freezer allows you to make ice anywhere – even if there’s no nearby water source – and bring your creations home with you after your travels.
I’m totally putting this on my list of things to try!
A city girl learning to homestead on an acre of land in the country. Wife and homeschooling mother of four. Enjoying life, and everything that has to do with self sufficient living.
Ninapaswa kukiri jambo moja: Sasa nimeanza kupenda sana Jericho. Baadhi ya marafiki wetu walituachia DVD zao za Jericho: The First Season, na mimi na Jerry hatukuweza kuacha kutazama. Kwa kweli, tulikuwa na marathon ya sinema ya saa tano mwishoni mwa juma, na sote wawili tulivutiwa sana hadi saa za asubuhi. Watu wa saa tano moja kwa moja! Hiyo ni televisheni nyingi kuliko mimi kawaida kuangalia katika mwezi! Ni jambo zuri kwamba tulikuwa na diski mbili za kwanza tu, la sivyo ingekuwa mbaya kwa kila mtu. Katika show, niliwaona kufanya kitu ambacho nilipata incredibly kuvutia <unk> na kwamba nimefanya kabla ya mimi mwenyewe. Wao hufanya barafu bila umeme! Katika kipindi hicho, mtu huyo alikuwa akifa kutokana na homa mbaya sana, hakukuwa na umeme kwa hiyo hawakuwa na barafu. Mwalimu mmoja alikumbuka jaribio la kisayansi ambalo lilitengeneza barafu kutokana na maji na mbolea na kuweza kutengeneza barafu kwa wakati ili kumfanya mtu huyo apumzike. Kuna njia chache tofauti za kutengeneza barafu kutoka kwa umeme, ambazo nitaelezea hapa chini, kuanzia na njia iliyoonyeshwa katika Yeriko. Hebu tupige mbizi! Njia ya kwanza: Kufanya Barafu Kutumia Mbolea na Maji Kabla ya mimi kupiga mbizi katika maelekezo juu ya hii moja (njia ya Yeriko), ni lazima kumbuka kwamba unahitaji mbolea na maji kama viungo yako mbili ya msingi. Nimechagua kutumia ammonium nitrate, lakini unaweza pia kutumia kalsiamu kloridi. Njia ya kwanza ni kutumia nitrati ya amonia (mchanganyiko wa 50 50 ya amonia na nitrati, ambayo hupatikana katika maduka ya shamba na bustani) - ndoo au bakuli kubwa - bakuli ndogo ya chuma (ndogo ya kutosha kufaa ndani ya chombo kingine) - Mchanganyiko wa sehemu sawa za maji na mbolea katika ndoo au bakuli kubwa, hadi imeyuka. - Kisha, weka kwa uangalifu bakuli dogo la chuma lililojaa maji nusu ndani ya ndoo. Kumbuka: ni lazima kuwa bakuli chuma, plastiki si kazi. Kikombe cha maji kitarudi, ingawa inachukua masaa kadhaa kutokana na kile nilichosoma. Kama hii kazi, si tu itakuwa ya ajabu sayansi mradi kwa ajili ya kiddos, lakini pia itakuwa uwezekano wa kuokoa maisha kama wewe walikuwa milele katika hali ambapo wewe <unk>d kupoteza nguvu na haja ya kukata tamaa baridi kitu au mtu off. Njia ya 2: Kufanya Barafu na Solar Freezer Unaweza kununua freezer ya jua mtandaoni kwa pesa kidogo, na faida ya hii ni kwamba itakuruhusu kufanya barafu wakati wowote unahitaji bila umeme. Unaweza pia DIY freezer yako mwenyewe ya jua. Unahitaji tu chombo kilichofunikwa, vifaa vya kutenganisha kama vile kitambaa, mchanga, au hata matope, na, ikiwezekana, vipande vya barafu au vipande vya barafu ulivyo navyo tayari. Kwanza, anza kwa kufunika chombo hicho kwa vifaa vya kutenganisha na kuhakikisha kwamba hakuna sehemu zilizo wazi ambazo zinaweza kuvuja hewa baridi. Mara baada ya insulation ni salama, kuongeza maji chini tu ya juu ya chombo na kuweka yoyote inapatikana kabla ya kuwepo vipande vya barafu juu ya maji. Ikiwa haipatikani, chumvi inaweza kutumiwa badala yake, lakini hii itachukua muda mrefu na si ya kuaminika. Mwishowe, funika chombo chote kwa kifuniko chake na uhakikishe kwamba kimefungwa vizuri. Baada ya siku tatu katika jua moja kwa moja, maji yanapaswa kuwa yameganda vya kutosha kutumiwa kama vipande vya barafu ngumu katika umbo lolote au ukubwa uliotaka! Kwa njia hii, unahitaji tu chombo, glavu za hali ya juu, na bila shaka, kiungo kikuu - barafu kavu. Usalama unapaswa kuwa wa kwanza sikuzote! Hakikisha vipande vyote vya barafu kavu vimevunjwa katika vipande vidogo, vinavyoweza kusimamiwa, kwa hivyo glavu za kuendesha gari zitasaidia kulinda mikono yako kutoka kwa kuwasiliana na kaboni dioksidi ngumu iliyogandishwa. Kuanzia na kufunika chini ya chombo na vipande vya barafu kavu na polepole kuweka zaidi kama wewe kujaza chombo yako kupata mchanganyiko thabiti ya moshi iliyobaki na kaboni dioksidi kioevu kama huanza kuyeyuka. Kama wewe ni bahati ya kutosha kuishi katika hali ya hewa baridi, kama wale katika sehemu za kaskazini ya Amerika, unaweza kutaka kuzingatia kutumia nje kubwa kutatua barafu-kufanya shida yako. Kwa bahati nzuri, katika eneo la New York, tuna joto la chini ya kiwango cha baridi kali katika miezi mingi ya majira ya baridi kali (kwa kawaida katikati ya Novemba hadi katikati ya Machi, angalau). Kwa sababu hii, kufanya barafu bila umeme kwa kutumia nje kubwa ni rahisi wakati wa majira ya baridi <unk> wote tuna kufanya ni kwenda nje. Lakini tatizo la kweli linakuja na kuhifadhi ikiwa unataka kufanya barafu ya kutosha kukufikisha hadi miezi ya joto wakati njia hii kwa wazi haiwezekani. Kuhifadhi barafu bila umeme kunaweza kuwa vigumu, lakini inawezekana. Huna haja ya nyumba ya barafu kama watu katika miaka ya 1800, unahitaji tu nafasi baridi ambayo ni kiasi fulani insulated. Bila shaka, hii haitakuwa chaguo wakati wote wa mwaka, lakini kama unaweza kufanya baadhi ya mipango ya mapema, unaweza kufanya baadhi ya mavuno ya barafu wakati wa joto baridi kwa kutumika baadaye. Katika maeneo yenye baridi kali, kama vile milimani, vipande vya barafu hufanyizwa kando ya mito na karibu na maziwa wakati joto linaposhuka chini ya kiwango cha sifuri. Kama huna mahali pa kuvuna barafu, unaweza kufanya barafu yako mwenyewe na kisha kuhifadhiwa kwa muda mrefu kwa kufuata vidokezo hapa chini. Kwanza, unahitaji baridi ya kutenganisha au sanduku lililotengenezwa kwa vifaa vyenye conductivity ya chini ya joto, kama vile cork au sawdust. Jaza tray ya barafu na maji, kisha weka ndani ya mfuko wa kufungia ili kuzuia uchafu usikose kuingia kwenye barafu yako. Weka bakuli la barafu nje usiku, wakati joto linaposhuka chini ya kiwango cha baridi kali. Unaweza kuharakisha kufungia maji kwa kuchemka maji kwanza. Ili kuzuia hewa isiingie, jaza mapengo ya hewa na kuweka karatasi ya magazeti, blanketi za dharura, au Mylar. Kisha tafuta chanzo cha maji kisichochafuliwa, kama vile chemchemi au kijito, na umejaza chombo hicho hadi kwenye ukingo; hilo litapunguza kiasi cha hewa ndani na kuongeza insulation. Weka vitu vidogo kama vipande vya mbao kati ya masanduku au baridi na tumia blanketi kuzunguka - hizi zitafanya kazi kama insulators za ziada na zinapaswa kusaidia kuzuia barafu yako kutoka kuyeyuka haraka sana. Utaweka tray yako ya barafu ndani ya baridi au chombo kingine. Ikiwa unaweza, tumia vipande vidogo na vipande vikubwa vya barafu ili barafu iendelee kufungia kwa muda mrefu. Sasa, utakuwa na tray ya barafu ambayo inapaswa kubaki barafu ndani ya chombo hata wakati mazingira ya nje kuanza kupasha joto. Weka kwenye chumba cha chini ya ardhi au mahali pengine pa kuhifadhi chakula ili kuhifadhi chakula chako kwa muda mrefu iwezekanavyo. Hapa ni video na toleo la njia hii ya kufundisha zaidi: Kubadilisha umeme barafu mtengenezaji mashine katika kitengo cha nishati ya jua ni njia kubwa ya kufanya barafu bila umeme unaweza kwa urahisi hook up barafu mtengenezaji kwa betri na paneli za jua bila kuwa na kweli rewire barafu mtengenezaji wakati wote. Kwanza, unahitaji kununua vifaa vinavyohitajika kwa ajili ya kubadilisha umeme, kama vile paneli za umeme wa jua, kifaa cha kudhibiti nishati ya jua, na betri za mzunguko wa kina. Mara baada ya kupata vipengele, unahitaji kufunga yao kwa usahihi ili kuhakikisha ice maker yako inaweza kuvuta nguvu kutoka jua. Baada ya ufungaji ni kukamilika, mara kwa mara kuangalia uhusiano wote ili kuhakikisha wao ni bure ya uharibifu wowote na vizuri kushikamana. Mwishowe, programu ya kudhibiti malipo ya jua ili iweze kutoa voltage ya kudumu ambayo itahakikisha kwamba mashine yako ya kutengeneza barafu inafanya kazi chini ya hali bora wakati wote. Hapa ni video ambayo inaonyesha jinsi ya kutumia mtengenezaji wa barafu ya umeme kwa njia hii: Badala ya kutumia freezer ya jadi, jar bell na njia ya pampu ya utupu ni suluhisho la ufanisi kwa ajili ya kujenga barafu haraka na kwa ufanisi. Mbinu hii huanza kwa kuruhusu chupa ya maji au mchanganyiko wa chumvi na maji kujaza chupa ya kengele karibu kabisa. Kisha kifuniko huwekwa juu ya chupa ambayo hutokeza muhuri usio na hewa. Pampu ya utupu hutumiwa kuondoa molekuli zote za hewa kutoka ndani ya chombo hicho, na hivyo kuacha mvuke ulio baridi tu. Jifunze zaidi juu ya jinsi ya kufanya mtengenezaji wa barafu wa kubebeka na njia hii kwa kutazama video hapa chini: Ikiwa unasoma mafunzo ya juu juu ya jinsi ya kufanya barafu kwa kutumia barafu kavu, unaweza kuwa ukifikiri, "ndio, hiyo ni nzuri". Lakini barafu kavu ni vigumu kupata, na mimi sina yoyote ya kwamba ama. Kwa bahati nzuri, kuna suluhisho. Kwanza, ni lazima ujipatie kifaa cha kuzima moto au kifaa cha kuondoa hewa, ambacho kina kaboni dioksidi iliyo chini ya shinikizo. Hakikisha kuchukua tahadhari zote za usalama kabla ya kuendelea, kama shinikizo inaweza kusababisha ajali kama kushughulikiwa carelessly. Ninapendekeza kuvaa glavu na angalau kulinda macho. Ondoa pini ya kufunga kwenye kifaa cha kuzima moto na ubonyeze chini kwenye kiganja. Utaona nguvu ya mvuke wa kaboni dioksidi ukitoka. Hii ni baridi sana, hivyo ufunguo hapa ni kuikamata. Unaweza pampu kuzima moto katika pillowcase, na utaona kujenga imara ya barafu chini ya mfuko. Unapaswa kupata kiasi cha kutosha cha kutengeneza barafu kavu yenye ukubwa unaofaa ili kuhifadhi chakula chako kinachoweza kuharibika. Hapa ni video na maelezo zaidi: ndogo propane freezer hutumia joto la mwako kuunda athari ya baridi, badala ya kutumia nguvu ya umeme. Hii ni kamili kwa ajili ya adventurous campers ambao hawataki kupunguza safari zao katika kutafuta maeneo kamilifu. Kwa sababu aina hii ya kifaa haihitaji nafasi nyingi, pia ni rahisi na unobtrusive wakati wa kusafiri. Kama faida ya ziada, asili portable ya propane freezer inaruhusu wewe kufanya barafu mahali popote <unk> hata kama hakuna karibu chanzo cha maji <unk> na kuleta uumbaji wako nyumbani na wewe baada ya safari yako. Mimi nina kabisa kuweka hii juu ya orodha yangu ya mambo ya kujaribu! Msichana wa jiji akijifunza kujenga nyumba kwenye ekari moja ya ardhi mashambani. Mke na mama wa watoto wanne anayefundisha nyumbani. Kufurahia maisha, na kila kitu kinachohusiana na kuishi kwa kujitegemea.