PAGE 6, JULY 21, 2008, THE ISLANDER
The FACS Corner
By Deborah S. Jones, MSH, CDE
Greetings Islander Readers! I hope
everyone is coping with the heat and
humidity these days and using the last
two month’s tips on how to prevent
mold in your home. The dog days of
summer are here along with hurricane
season and evening thunderstorms. It
seems an appropriate time to present
an article by our food safety specialists
in Athens, Judy Harrison, PhD. and
Elizabeth Andress, PhD., “What to do
if the freezer stops.”
I hope this article will help to keep
you and your family prepared and
informed.
Freezer failure can mean the loss of
all or part of a large investment in food,
time, and money. It pays to know what
to do if your equipment stops working.
At any time of the year, a freezer may
fail to function because of mechanical
problems, power failures or human
error. The best time to decide how to
handle such an emergency is before it
happens.
When a freezer does fail to work,
the first rule is to keep the freezer door
closed. In a well-filled freezer, food will
probably remain frozen for about two
days if the door is kept closed.
What to do when your freezer stops?
When you first notice that your
freezer has stopped, try to determine
the cause. It might be something sim
ple like a blown fuse, a shortage in
the electrical circuit or an accidental
disconnection.
In any of these cases, restore nor
mal operation as quickly as possible
and check the food for thawing. In
case of a power failure, check with the
utility company to see how long it will
be before power is restored. If your
freezer has failed because of mechani
cal problems, read the instruction book
to see if there is something you can
do to get it back into operation. If not,
find out how soon the repairman can
service your freezer.
What to do to keep your food
from thawing?
If your freezer is not likely to be
operating again within a day, you can
do one of several things.
First, check into moving your frozen
food to a freezer that is working. You
might have a friend or neighbor with
space in his or her freezer for your food
or there may be space in a church or
school freezer. You might also check
into the possibility of moving your
freezer’s contents to a local freezing
plant. To move your food, put it in
insulated boxes or between thick lay
ers of newspapers and blankets. Once
you have taken the food out of your
freezer, get it to an operating freezer
as soon as possible.
When your freezer is empty, unplug
and defrost it according to the instruc
tions in the owner’s manual. After it is
defrosted, clean it thoroughly. While
your freezer is not in use, leave the
door open slightly to let air circulate
in the food compartments. As a safety
precaution for young children, be sure
the door is fixed so it cannot be closed.
If there is no space available in
another freezer, use dry ice in your
freezer to keep your food frozen. To
locate a source of dry ice in your com
munity, check the yellow pages under
“Dry Ice” or “Carbonic Gas.”
Dry ice is very cold. Handle it quick
ly and always wear heavy gloves to
prevent the ice from burning your
hands. When you buy dry ice, have it
cut into small enough sizes to use. Do
not try to cut or chip it yourself. Ask
the dry ice company to wrap each piece
REAL ESTATE
^ REALTY
and YOU
By Susan Hardwick
ABR, CRS, E-PRO, GRI
Service • Commitment
REALTY INC.
St. Simons Island
Results
GO WITH A PROFESSIONAL
A Realtor® can save you time and assist you in the house-hunting
process. They are aware of the market and will pre-select homes that are
within your price range and meet your requirements for size; location;
proximity to schools; medical facilities and places of worship.
Because they preview listings every week during Realtor® open
houses, they can schedule appointments for you to see just the right
homes, even when the owners are not there. They can also give you
current sale prices for properties you’re considering — a competitive
market analysis.
Another valuable real estate professional’s expertise comes when you
get up-to-date information about taxes, school districts and conditions in
areas that interest you — i.e. how far to recreation; how far to the ocean;
how far to my workplace?
Probably the most valuable tool your Realtor® will offer is the
handling of negotiations over the price and terms of your offer. Follow
that up with arranging three possible financial sources and suggesting
three good home inspectors. Then, you may realize the true value of
working with a professional. Call me!
For the best in professional service contact Susan Hardwick, 638-6660 office,-
or 1-877-638-6660, Ext. 625. 638-8782 home,- 912-222-0392 mobile,-
e-mail: susanhardwick@bellsouth.net,Web: www.seapalmsrealty.com
or visit www.therealestateshow.tv to see all area listings
in newspaper for you.
A 50-pound cake of dry ice is enough
to protect solidly frozen food in a full
20-cubic foot freezer for three to four
days. A 25-pound cake should hold the
temperature of a half- full, 10-cubic
foot freezer below freezing for two to
three days.
Put heavy cardboard on top of pack
ages of frozen food in each compart
ment of your freezer and put the dry
ice on top of the cardboard. Close the
freezer, but do not lock it. Do not open
the freezer again until you need to
replace the dry ice or the freezer is
working again.
You can provide extra insulation for
your freezer by covering it with blan
kets or quilts. Putting packaging mate
rial or crumpled newspapers between
the cabinet and the blankets will also
help. Be sure, however, to fasten cov
erings away from the air vents on the
outside of the freezer. The power may
come on unexpectedly and ventilation
will be needed. The harmless gas given
off by the dry ice also needs to escape.
Dry ice is carbon dioxide in its solid
form. It evaporates rather than melts
and leaves no liquid. You may notice
an off odor caused by carbonic acid,
which is formed by the dry ice and
moisture in the freezer. It is harmless.
Simply leave the freezer door open a
few minutes to let it escape.
What to do with thawed food?
Some thawed foods can be re-frozen.
However, the texture will not be as
good. Other foods may need to be dis
carded. Here are some guidelines:
• Meat and Poultry: Re-freeze if
the freezer temperature stays 40°F or
below and if color and odor are good.
Check each package, and discard any
if signs of spoilage such as an off color
or off odor are present. Discard any
packages that are above 40°F (or at
room temperature).
• Vegetables: Re-freeze only if ice
crystals are still present or if the freez
er temperature is 40°F or below. Dis
card any packages that show signs of
spoilage or that have reached room
temperature.
• Fruits: Re-freeze if they show no
signs of spoilage. Thawed fruits may be
used in cooking or making jellies, jams,
or preserves. Fruits survive thawing
with the least damage to quality.
• Shellfish and Cooked Foods: Re
freeze only if ice crystals are still pres
ent or the freezer is 40°F or below. If
the temperature is above 40° F, throw
these foods out.
• Ice Cream: If partially thawed,
throw it out. The texture of ice cream
is not acceptable after thawing. If its
temperature rises above 40°F, it could
be unsafe.
• Creamed Foods, Puddings and
Cream Pies: Re-freeze only if freezer
temperature is 40°F or below. Discard
if the temperature is above 40°F.
• Breads, Nuts, Doughnuts, Cook
ies and Cakes: These foods re-freeze
better than most. They can be safely
re-frozen if they show no signs of mold
growth.
What to do to plan ahead?
To be prepared in case your freezer
stops, plan ahead. Find out where the
nearest commercial or institutional
freezers are. Locate a source of dry
ice.
During the seasons when power
failures are frequent or if you know the
power will be off, it is good insurance
to run the freezer between -10°F and
-20°F. The colder the food, the more
slowly it thaws. □
Property Sales
on St. Simons and Sea Island
are brought to you weekly as a courtesy of
Joe Wills
Realtor®. G.R.I.®, A.B.R.®
Life Member, Circle of Excellence
m
MLS
t£}
Hodnett Cooper
REAL ESTATE, INC
912-638-4750 • 912-223-4630
zvillsjoe@bellsouth.net • zvzvzv.stsimonsproperties.cor
Transfer
Seller
Buyer
Location/Legal
Tax
Description/Address
Sea Island
S 1,300.00
Sea Island Co; Sea
Heagy, Linda H & Thomas C Lot 29, Ph 9, Ocean Cottages
Island Coastal
Properties LLC
St Simons
at Ocean Forest
S 420.00
Bullister, John P &
Henderson, Peter L Jr
Lot 40, Ph C, Wymberly on
Joan M
the Marsh, **297 Wild
Heron Rd
S 450.00
Owens, George W &
Purtle, Linda C
Lot 28, BlkE, Ph 4, Sea
NinaG
Palms Golf & Country Club,
**109 Tall Pine Rd
S 710.00
McCully, James G &
Zeh, Fredrick W
Lot 1, Blk C, St Simons Park,
Judith A
**601 Ocean Blvd
$ 1,150.00
Sea Island Coastal
Dooley, Christopher D
Lot 222, Ph 4, Frederica
Properties LLC
Township
$ 1,500.00
McCoy, Richard J;
McCoy, Barbara S
Lot 38, Ph 3, St Simons Coast
Ruby McDaniel Smith
Cottages, **13 Coast
Family Trust
Cottages Ln
$ 55,083.20 Coastal Community
HCRI Exchange Properties I 74.211 Acs & 60' Access
Retirement Corp
LLC
Easement, Marshes Edge,
**122 Frederica Village
7 Warranty Deeds for Sea Island & St. Simons for week ending 7/11/2008
