Virginia Tech’s extension service opens its power outage fact sheet with a timeline: begin preparing at least 1 to 2 days before a severe weather event, or before the start of any major weather-related season. Winter storms fit that pattern, and the fridge and freezer are where the prep pays off. Six moves, drawn from Virginia Tech Extension and extension offices in Illinois, Missouri and Wisconsin plus the FDA, are listed below.
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1. Put Thermometers in Both Appliances
Virginia Tech calls an appliance thermometer in the refrigerator and in the freezer one of the most important preparation steps. The fact sheet says the refrigerator should sit at 40 degrees F or below and the freezer at 0 degrees F or below, and those readings become the baseline for judging food during an outage.
Illinois Extension gives the same targets and says the thermometers help identify food temperatures once power is out. Virginia Tech adds that a thermometer can also reveal whether an outage happened while a household was away, how much the temperature moved and how long it lasted. Frenz Hub has a post titled 15 Easy-to-Use Products That Simplify Everyday Life at Home.
2. Fill Empty Space in the Freezer With Water
Virginia Tech recommends keeping the freezer as full as possible, because a full freezer stays colder longer. Where space is left over, it suggests filling plastic bottles, jugs or bags with water and freezing them in the gaps, so they act as ice packs. The University of Wisconsin-Madison Extension in Manitowoc County and the FDA make the same recommendation and note that the melting ice also becomes a supply of drinking water if the normal supply is unavailable.
The Virginia Tech sheet extends the idea to the refrigerator: water bottles stored in the main compartment or the door can reduce temperature swings when the door opens. It explains that water has a high heat capacity, which makes it a temperature stabilizer. CraftingYourHome.com has a post titled Before the First Widespread Freeze Hits the Southeast This Weekend: 6 Ways to Protect Potted and Garden Plants.
3. Move Perishables Into the Freezer
Wisconsin Extension and the FDA both advise freezing refrigerated items that are not needed right away, such as leftovers, milk, and fresh meat and poultry, because frozen food stays at a safe temperature longer. Illinois Extension says the same of perishable refrigerated foods such as milk and raw meat. It adds a handling detail: refrigerated foods can be grouped together, but raw meat should stay separate from the rest.
Illinois Extension also says to move food stored in the door of the fridge or freezer into the body of the appliance. The idea is to decide in advance what is likely to be eaten in the next day or two and what can wait in the freezer. Frenz Hub has a post titled Best Practices for Seasonal Storage.
4. Group the Freezer and Share Space
Wisconsin Extension advises grouping food together in the freezer so it stays cold longer, and Virginia Tech adds that food stored toward the back stays colder longer. Londa Nwadike, a food safety extension specialist for the University of Missouri and Kansas State University, said in an April 2021 University of Missouri Extension release that a full freezer maintains its temperature longer than a half-full one.
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Her tip for anyone with neighbors or nearby friends who have extra freezer space is to consolidate frozen foods there. She calls the insulation in freezers and refrigerators the best allies a household has in a power failure, as long as it is not undermined by open doors. CraftingYourHome.com has a post titled 8 Things Never to Store Under the Kitchen Sink.
5. Line Up Coolers, Ice and Gel Packs
The FDA and Wisconsin Extension recommend having coolers on hand to keep refrigerated food cold if the power will be out for more than 4 hours, with ice cubes made in advance and gel packs frozen ahead of time. Both also advise finding out where dry ice and block ice can be bought, in case an outage runs long. The FDA says 50 pounds of dry ice should keep an 18-cubic-foot, fully stocked freezer cold for two days.
That list belongs near the front of the prep checklist rather than the back. Frenz Hub has a post titled 2026‘s Most Clever Storage Hacks to Maximize Every Inch of Space.
6. Plant an Ice Cube and Learn the Clock
Illinois Extension passes along a University of Nebraska Extension tip for households that may be away when the power fails. Keep an ice cube or two in a sealed plastic bag or small container in the freezer. A cube that has melted down from its original shape means power was off for an extended period, and a fully melted cube means throwing out all the food is the safest option.
The same page spells out the clock to remember. Refrigerated food is safe for up to 4 hours during an outage, and a freezer holds for up to 48 hours when full, or 24 hours when half full, with the doors closed. A reality check applies: those numbers assume closed doors and a start at proper temperatures, and Virginia Tech’s key takeaways repeat the rule that food of uncertain safety goes in the trash. A thermometer, a few frozen water bottles and a cooler ready by the door cover most of the list.
This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.
