How is it different from an old-fashioned root cellar?
It may be great for some things.
But theres a huge difference between 50 degrees and 40 degrees, or the mid/upper 30 degrees range. In terms of what you can safely store.
Talk about ideas being recycled? Sheesh. It’s called a “Root Cellar”. Colonial American homes enjoyed their use for centuries. Until we became so smart?
Sounds like a basement?
Nice looking root cellar. Just remember if you’re in certain areas, digging into the ground once it dries out is virtually impossible. Get your cellar delivered during the winter/spring.
Next, I’m going to invent the icebox and the wringer washer.
It REALLY depends on where you live.
The dirt in Phoenix can be 90 deg even 15 feet down.
In the summer in the Central Valley of CA, my tap water sits at about 85 deg.
I am quite sure I can build one for much much less than the asking price here.
There are cool caves in KC, MO. Companies pay storage fees for products that need non fluctuating temps. I used to explore the caves as a a yute.
Not sure it is worth the price, but root cellars have long been part of the American homestead. You can even do something similar by creating what I know is a “pipe cellar”.
A pipe cellar is an above ground cellar, well insulated, that has a pipe system that keeps the air cool. The pipes are run under ground 4 to 6 feet deep, 6” or 8” pipes that that run for some distance and then return to the root cellar. This is known as a closed loop earth-air heat exchange (not recommended for living space). Consider that most fridges are between 20 and 25 cubic feet - going to a walk in size 1000 cubic feet is a HUGE jump. However, most root cellars keep the temp around 55 degrees if designed properly. Modern fridges keep food in the 36 to 40 degree range. So the root cellar concept is really about keeping things cool, not cold. Works well for veggies, breads, cheeses, and cured meats. Not sure I would keep high bacteria prone foods like raw meat in the cellar, but that is just my preference.
The General rule of thumb (non scientific) is that for every 10 foot cubic of the cellar, you need to have the air replaced 10 times in 1 hour - or - 166 cfm. Now you have to factor in the size of the pipe. Divide that number by the size of the fan in diameter and in inches. A six inch pipe, divide by .5; for an 8” pipe divide by .75. Not uncommon to see a 300 cfm fan required for a 6” pipe. If you have two closed loop pipes, you could reduce the cfm.
Another consideration is the length of pipe. I really don’t have a rule of thumb for this as soil types down at that depth vary widely. If memory serves, 10% of the total volume is the length in pipe. I am sure that is a good start but I don’t remember how pipe diameter effects the length - sorry.
Other things to consider in a pipe cooler. MOISTURE! In high humidity environments you will need to 1) make sure the water drains from the cooler as you will get a lot of condensation on the walls and 2) moisture is drained from the pipes as you will get condensation in the pipes as well. You also will likely want a resin based fan to avoid rust.
Lastly a small solar panel and a battery to run during the night.
I built one of these for my grandfather on his farm in Georgia ..., some 35 years ago. I would not take my memories as design guidance without checking it with some kind of more reliable source. But I would imagine that there are farm coops that can guide you if you want to DIY. So as always, your mileage may vary so consult a professional.
prepper ping
Yes yes. This old technology. 50 degrees F is too high. That’s we have refrigerators.
A spring house, or springhouse, is a small building, usually of a single room, constructed over a spring. While the original purpose of a springhouse was to keep the spring water clean by excluding fallen leaves, animals, etc., the enclosing structure was also used for refrigeration before the advent of ice delivery and, later, electric refrigeration. The water of the spring maintains a constant cool temperature inside the spring house throughout the year. Food that would otherwise spoil, such as meat, fruit, or dairy products, could be kept there, safe from animal depredations as well. Springhouses thus often also served as pumphouses, milkhouses, and root cellars.My Dad told me about springhouses in the 1930's before his sharecropper family had even dreamed of having an ice box. His most perfect memory was going into the spring house and taking a long drink of cold buttermilk.
We had orchards on the farm. The apples were stored in an apple storage bin which was 30 feet underground, solid concrete walls 3 feet thick. After the orchard business went out, we converted it into a bomb shelter coz it had 12 feet of dirt on top of it.
They found my Gammy’s root cellar. They are genius! Just a couple hundred years too late.
If the floor was larger it would be an awesome place to sleep off a hangover.
In Humboldt, Saskatchewan I can get this little sucker (or a reasonable facsimile) to run between 28 and 35 degrees (Fahrenheit)
When its forty below, °C or °F, we get into the fridge to warm up!
Great idea, they used to call this a root cellar. I live in central Texas. The ground water temperature from my well is 73 degrees. This concept would be useless where I live.
Once you get below the frost line the temp doesn’t change.
The Romans knew this and created air conditioning. This is not anything new.