A freezer needs two things: Enough room for the air inside to circulate over the food, and enough space taken up so that everything remains solid without the freezer having to work too hard. A full freezer will save energy because it can operate efficiently, but do not over-fill your freezer. Don’t block any vents you see inside the freezer.

If your freezer is only half-full, try this trick: Freeze gallon jugs of water (this is a good way to store water for emergencies) and fill in the spaces. Alternatively you could try this: Stuff small cardboard boxes with newspaper, and fill in the empty spots with them. If you only rarely eat food from your chest freezer, stuff the bottoms of the boxes with paper, and then categorize the food in the top for easy sorting.

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If you’ve ever burned something in a pot, or cooked something sticky, you know what it is to be able to clean it! Before I learned this simple, natural dishwashing trick, I scrubbed, soaked, and sometimes prayed for stuck-on foods to come out of my pans.

The first trick, of course, is prevention. We use naturally non-stick surfaces like cast iron and stoneware for nearly all cooking. These get cleaned with baking soda and very hot water.

The other trick is to put the pot something’s stuck in on the stove, and boil water in it. Add about two tablespoons of baking soda (more for a larger pot) and let it boil for a while. Be sure that there’s no food stuck on above the water line! It’ll stick worse. Sometimes you need to keep the water simmering for an hour or more. If you don’t like wasting energy “just” to clean a pot, try adding some orange, cinnamon, and cloves to it. Your whole home will smell wonderful!

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