If you are planning to leave your house for an extended period of time, there is a possibility of finding your home without power.
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Usually, it is easy to identify which food has spoiled in the fridge. However, when it comes to the freezer, this is more challenging.
Fortunately, there is a simple trick that can help you to determine if the frozen food is safe to eat.
Put a Coin in Ice and See If Your Food Has Stayed Fresh While You Were Away
Sometimes, when you are away from home, the power can go off and you will never be aware of it. This will defrost and deteriorate the food stored in your freezer.
In order to find out if your food is as frozen as you left it, you should fill a cup with water and place it in the freezer before leaving your house. When the water freezes, place a coin on the top of the cup, and return it to the freezer.
In case you see that the coin is at the bottom of the cup when you get back home, it means that the power had gone off for a sufficient time for the food to melt and re-freeze.
If this happens, you should immediately throw the sensitive food items away. If the coin remains on the top, it means that there wasn’t any power failure and your food is safe.
And, in case the coin is in the middle of the cup, it means that the power went out only for a short period of time and that most of the food items are still fresh.
If you are not sure whether the food is safe for consumption, you should throw it away in order to protect yourself from any potential health risks.