Refrigerators

Possibly the most important and useful invention for the kitchen was that of the refrigerator. With the ability to lower the temperature of food and thus slow the normal activity of bacteria, it is possible to not only store food for longer periods of time but keep it safer for human consumption as well. Before the advent of electricity and its use in condensing liquids to produce reduced air temperatures, the only ways to preserve food for any length of time was by importing large blocks of ice and storing them in specially built "ice houses".

While modern refrigerators use "freon" and other synthetically created gasses, the original refrigerators used ammonia as their primary coolant and some large industrial sized refrigerators still do. They create their cooling effect by compressing the ammonia gas that heats up under this pressure. The coils on the back allow the heat to be dissipated out till it cools into a liquid. This liquid is then run through coils in the refrigerator cabinet and the resultant boiling off of the liquid into a gas absorbs heat from inside the refrigerator storage area as it reaches -27 degrees Fahrenheit. The compressor then sucks this gas back into itself and repeats the process all over again. This process works the same whether you have a large kitchen refrigerator or have a small compact mini refrigerator as an accessory in other places like dorm rooms and workshops.

An interesting blend of opposites can be found in gas and propane refrigerators where you use fire to make the cold. This process is used in recreational vehicles or where electricity doesn't reach. The process is similar but the refrigerator uses the gas flame to heat the ammonia mixture instead of compression.

Wine refrigerators are made with a few variations from the kitchen food storage refrigerator. They have the added features of a stabilized humidity control so the corks do not dry out. A bulb that creates a hot spot around the light source does not internally light them and they are cushioned so that the compressor motor does not vibrate the wine. Wine refrigerators also maintain a different temperature than food storage machines that have a colder and fluctuating temperature in the storage chamber.

Some of the top brand manufacturers of refrigerators and refrigerator parts are General Electric, Amana and Kenmore refrigerators. Checking with the Consumer Reviews will help you decide what refrigerator is best for you and might even get you a magnet to decorate it with.