The drip pipe should be straight and free from places in which dirt may collect. It must be removable, so that it can be cleaned. The doors of the refrigerator must shut so tightly that frost or dew will not form about their edges on a hot day.
122. Arrangement of Food in the Ice Box. Ice boxes are usually cooler at the bottom than at the top. Do not put food in the ice chamber because this necessitates opening the door and wastes ice. Do not put papers or flat boxes on the shelves which will interfere with the circulation of air in the refrigerator.
123. Filling and Care of the Ice Box. The housewife must open the doors of the ice box as seldom as possible, and close them quickly. Do not cut off the circulation of air from the ice by wrapping it in a blanket or newspapers. It cannot do its work then. The ice box is kept cold by the gradual melting of the ice. The ice melts fastest as the temperature of the ice box rises. Covering the ice may keep it from melting, but it will also allow the refrigerator to get warm, and so, whatever is gained in saving ice at first, will be lost at the higher temperature and in cooling the box again. Steady melting does the most good.
The shelves and drain pipe should be removable, and these and the refrigerator should be washed and thoroly scalded once in every two weeks.
There is a saving in planning to open the refrigerator as little as possible. The filling of the ice box with a large piece of ice two or three times a week, rather than with a small piece every day, is more economical.
CHAPTER XVII
Iceless Refrigerators; Water Coolers