Baking soda 101

Today, the blog covers something obvious.  Most people put baking soda in their refrigerator, but my guess is that very few people use the product to it's fullest extent.  Until just recently, my refrigerator got a new box every 2-3 years.  That's enough, right?  Maybe if you never put leftovers in there or you don't like much ice in your drinks.  How often do you need to pull baking soda maintenance on a refrigerator?  Read on to find out.

One of my favorite toys,
the Mr. Coffee Ice Tea Maker

A couple of things changed about 2 years ago.  First, my company had a mandatory 2 week furlough with no raises.  During that time, eating out every day for lunch became uneconomical, and I started bringing my lunch every day.  Another one was the switch from drinking Diet Mountain Dew to ice tea .  The goal there was reducing acid intake (and saving my enamel), but iced tea is also much cheaper than drinking soda.  So, in summary, ice consumption and leftover food storage drastically increased.  Then, one of those baking soda change thingy's happened, and something in the refrigerator took a turn.

1. The ice tea tasted good.  Really good.
2. My morning waffles didn't have that funky taste anymore.
3. The Friday night after the change, my bourbon had much better flavor.

A few weeks later, all the changes reverted back, and everything had the funky taste again.  Hmmmm.  Time to put a new plan into action.  The refrigerator needed routine baking soda changes, but I had to find an economical way to do it.  How about refilling the expensive boxes with a cheap bulk pack?



13 pound bulk pack of Arm & Hammer
Cost: $10
Life Expectancy: 2 years
Note: First grade science experiments
 with vinegar may shorten lifespan.
 



 

 

Fill 'em up

 

 

 











Flow through vents are my fav

Secure with tape

So, how often to change out the baking soda?  The easy answer is -- depends.  I don't have a set time for this job, unlike my furnace filters.  A pound of baking soda has a finite amount of odor absorbing power.  Changing every month is a bunch of hooey.  If you cook spicy meals with onions, peppers, chili powder, and spicy sausage, they need to be changed every couple of weeks.  Believe it or not, strawberries have a fairly strong aroma that can take over a refrigerator.  If you don't store a lot of strong smelling food in there, a dose of baking soda can last 8 weeks.  Keeping the shelves and drawers clean also will extend the interval.  Throwing away leftovers and checking for moldy cheese also helps.  Items like ice and breads are very quick to absorb refrigerator odors.  Change out the baking soda at the first hint of an odd flavor to keep everything tasting great. 

So go ahead and swap out those boxes of baking soda that have been in your fridge since you bought it.  Your iced tea or bourbon will never taste the same.