[Rick] had a problem. His garage refrigerator was tasked with a critical duty—keeping refreshing beverages at low temperature. Unfortunately, it had failed—the condenser was forever running, or not running at all. The beverages were either frozen, or lukewarm, regardless of the thermostat setting. There was nothing for it—the controller had to be rebuilt from scratch.

Thankfully, [Rick]’s junk drawer was obliging. He was able to find an Arduino Uno R4, complete with WiFi connectivity courtesy of the ESP32 microcontroller onboard. This was paired with a DHT11 sensor, which provided temperature and humidity measurements. [Rick] began testing the hardware by spitting out temperature readings on the Uno’s LED matrix.

Once that was working, the microcontroller had to be given control over the fridge itself. This was achieved by programming it to activate a Kasa brand smart plug, which could switch mains power to the fridge as needed. The Uno simply emulated the action of the Kasa phone app to switch the smart plug on and off to control the fridge’s temperature, with the fridge essentially running flat out whenever it was switched on. The Uno also logs temperature to a server so [Rick] can make sure temperatures remain in the proper range.

We’ve seen some great beverage-cooling hacks over the years. If you’ve mastered your own hacky methods of keeping the colas chilled, don’t hesitate to let us know on the tipsline.

If you bought a large bag of shrimp recently, you probably wondered how long does shrimp last in the fridge. Whether you got a great deal at the store or had leftovers from when you cooked, you don’t want shrimp going bad and even giving someone food poisoning. Thankfully the United States Department of Agriculture …

How Long Does Shrimp Last In The Fridge? Read More »

Regardless if you love baby backs or spare ribs, the last thing you want to happen is for a rack or two to go bad sitting in your fridge. So how long are ribs good in the fridge? If you’re talking about raw pork ribs in the packaging, the United States Department of Agriculture recommends …

How Long Do Ribs Last In The Fridge? Read More »

There are few pieces of meat as universally beloved as bacon, so you better have an answer if someone asks you “how long does bacon last in the fridge?” You really ought to know so you don’t go to throw some bacon in the skillet for breakfast only to find out that it turned bad …

How Long Does Bacon Last In The Fridge? Read More »

Pulled pork is an icon of barbecue whether you prefer it with an eastern North Carolina vinegar-based sauce or with a sweeter tomato-based sauce like a Kansas City-style sauce. However, pork butts (or shoulders, if that’s your preference) are a large cut of meat that is prone to leaving plenty of leftovers. So you might …

How Long Does Pulled Pork Last In The Fridge Read More »