Extension News: December 2008 Archives

Cleaning out the refrigerator and checking your freezer for the safety of its contents don't often at rise to the top of your to-do list, but an extended power outage is a good time for these tasks.

These food safety tips can help:

• Keep appliance thermometers in the refrigerator and freezer at all times. Meat, poultry, fish, and eggs need to be refrigerated at or below 40 degrees F. Frozen foods need to be stored at or below 0 degrees F. Digital, dial, or instant-read food thermometers and appliance thermometers will help you know if the food is at safe temperatures.


• If you don't have an appliance thermometer, you can insert an instant-read food thermometer into the food and check its temperature.


• Keeping an appliance thermometer in the freezer will help you evaluate the safety of frozen foods. When the power comes back on, check the thermometer. If the temperature reads 40 degrees F or below, the food is safe and may be refrozen.


• If you don't have a thermometer in the freezer, check each package of food individually. Food is safe to refreeze if it still contains ice crystals. Partial thawing and refreezing may reduce the quality of some food, but the food will remain safe to eat.


• Keep the refrigerator and freezer doors closed as much as possible to maintain the cold temperature. The refrigerator will keep food safely cold for about 4 hours if it is unopened. A full freezer will hold the temperature for approximately 48 hours (24 hours if it is half full) if the door remains closed.


• For prolonged power outages, try to obtain dry or block ice to keep your refrigerator as cold as possible. Fifty pounds of dry ice should hold an 18-cubic foot full freezer for two days. Use caution when handling dry ice.


• Storing food outside isn't a good idea, even though the outside temperature is below 40 degrees F. Frozen food can thaw if exposed to the sun's rays, even when the temperature is very cold. Since the outside temperature could vary hour by hour, refrigerated food may become too warm and bacteria that cause foodborne illness could grow.


• Additionally, perishable items left outside could be exposed to unsanitary conditions or to animals. Never eat food that has come in contact with an animal.


• Rather than putting the food outside, consider taking advantage of cold temperatures by making ice. Fill buckets, empty milk cartons or cans with water and leave them outside to freeze. Then put the homemade ice in your refrigerator, freezer, or coolers.


• Discard any perishable food (e.g., meat, poultry, fish, eggs, and leftovers) that have been above 40 degrees F for 2 hours. Be sure to discard any items in either the freezer or the refrigerator that have come into contact with raw meat juices.


• Remember, you can't rely on appearance or odor to tell you whether a food is still safe to eat.

When in doubt, throw it out! It's much safer to throw out $150 worth of food than to spend $1000+ for a visit to the emergency room. Think of it as a great way to make room in your refrigerator for all the extra holiday foods. Have a happy, healthy and safe holiday season!

By Alice Mullen, Family & Consumer Resources Educator

More information

• Keeping Food Safe During an Emergency
• Food and Water in an Emergency
• Food Security and Emergency Preparedness





Posted December 15, 2008

Ice storms, heavy winds, and other weather disasters can leave homeowners with with downed or damaged trees. A few tips for dealing with storm-damaged trees:

Don't panic, be safe and seek professional help: Removing large trees or limbs is dangerous. Don't climb a ladder with a chainsaw. Don’t climb into a damaged tree. Never touch any tree near electrical wires. Assess your particular tree situation carefully and watch for safety hazards.

Most tree work needs to be done by professional arborists, especially if the work requires climbing or when the tree is leaning against another tree or structure.

Assess immediate hazards first: Remove dead trees; trees or branches that are leaning; trees with broken or cracked stems;trees with extensive broken roots; and any large, dead, or broken limbs that are still attached to the tree.

Hire an arborist: Hiring a qualified arborist will get the work done properly and safely. Trained arborists are aware of proper pruning and removal procedures and can reduce the chance of further damage to the tree. Check to see that they are certified and ask for certificates of insurance, including proof of liability for personal and property damage and worker’s compensation. Also, request local references and get more than one estimate.

Prevent additional damage: Later, you may want to prune the damaged trees to improve appearance and reduce additional hazards. If the top has been broken, the tree should be pruned back to a strong lateral branch. Damaged branches should be pruned back to the branch collar.

Don’t forget to look at your trees in the spring and summer:
Some damage may not be immediately apparent. Hidden cracks may cause branches to droop when leaves come out in the spring. Stem decay, aswell as cracks, may lead to structural loss, causing the tree or large branches to become hazardous. Root damage may not be evident until twigs or branches in the upper crown begin dying after two or three growing seasons.

Hire a forester: If you own large acreage, contact your County Extension Forester or a licensed forester to assess the damage, then salvage the trees if needed. Over time, damaged trees may develop decay and discoloration. As long as it is safe, there is no need to rush. You have more than a year to act before you lose wood to discoloration and decay.

By Karen Bennett, UNH Cooperative Extension forest resources specialist

For more information

• Certified Arborists
• County Extension Foresters
• Directory of Licensed Foresters
• Hiring an Arborist
• Large Tree Care and Pruning
• Pruning Storm Damaged Trees

Updated September 8, 2009