Shelf life of canned goods in hot storage building? (acre, house, water)
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I have been looking all over the internet for the answer to what, to me, seems like a simple question.
I am not blessed with a basement, garage, root celler, or "rural retreat", and have really no inside storage space at all in which to store a generous supply of canned goods and water.
I have a small, treated wood outdoor storage building with plenty of space left in it. But, I am in North Carolina, and the heat and humidity can get really brutal.
I just want to know, if I put the water and canned food in plastic storage tubs, will it at least stay good for a year or two out there? We don't normally eat canned foods often, so they probably won't be rotated. But those storage units can get pretty hot, and we have little shade in our yard.
I keep searching the internet and getting information about home-canned foods. I'm a single, full-time working mother, so mother earth I'm not. I just want to know will cans of Spam and water in glass bottles be ok over a few southern summers in an outdoor shed.
Thanks if you know the answer, or can direct me to a good website.
I just don't want to waste my money and have food and water go bad.
I would be more concerned with it freezing and the cans bursting or bulging. The heat won't hurt the water, if it's canned or in bottles unless it causes them to leak. I don't know for sure about canned vegetables, soups, etc. Is there a place where you can dig a hole and put it in the ground, cover the hole with a sheet of plywood or something similar?
The USDA guidelines I've seen on food storage support not keeping canned food more than a year in your conditions. You would do best to rotate your inventory; set up with a year's supply of food items and then add to it as you take the oldest cans off the shelf.
Same problem here in southern NM. What I did: in a closet in the NE corner of the house, I installed a closetmaid shelving system. Using that, you can store about 3 times as much stuff in a closet than normal. Then I rotate thru canned goods. If you are storing food stuffs in a shed where rodents can get near it, be sure to wipe of all cans with clorox wipes or something similar before opening.
Having grown up in Dixieland, I understand your situation pretty well.
First, heat is the mortal enemy of canned foods. The hotter the temps, the shorter the shelf life.
Second, in North Carolina the interior of an external building or shed is likely to get VERY hot during the summer. Temps of well over 100 degrees are likely. In fact, it is possible for at least some of the cans to get so hot you won't be able to hold them for more than a second or two.
Same thing goes for attic spaces, btw.
I agree with LivingDeadGirl - store them in your air-conditioned house if at all possible. In addition to her suggestions, another frequently-overlooked remote/long-term storage space is UNDER THE BED. Its dark, its cool, and the dust-bunnies are no threat...
I now live in southern California, and my attached garage is on the north side of the house. The two front bedrooms are directly above it, and the house front is further shaded by three trees. In other words, its pretty well protected from summer heat. That's where my long-term food and water storage resides. Even then, though, I cycle through my canned foods on a yearly basis, and my stored water supplies every two years.
These are all great suggestions I am definitely considering. I went ahead an purchased about $200.00 worth of canned goods and water today, right now they're in my closet in plastic bins, but I really don't have room in there - can't get to my clothes, etc.
The closet maid shelving unit would be a great idea - if it weren't for the fact that I have these cheap, mobile home walls, and I'm afraid the shelving won't be secure.
The storm shelter may be a good long-term solution. I have a half an acre of heavily wooded land that I don't use for anything. I'll look at the links.
Sounds like the storage building is definitely OUT.
Thanks to all for your suggestions and input. There's a catch-22 here in the south: the long, warm months make for a great long growing season for gardens, but at the same time, the rains, humidty, and heat are difficult to deal with.
There's a catch-22 here in the south: the long, warm months make for a great long growing season for gardens, but at the same time, the rains, humidty, and heat are difficult to deal with.
Don't forget the saddling-sized bugs that go along with the rain, humidity and heat...
... if it weren't for the fact that I have these cheap, mobile home walls...
Ya know something? There may be yet another capacious storage space right under your feet. Particularly if its enclosed, the space under your mobile home may just be "tall" enough, and remain cool (or "not-hot") and dry enough to store canned and bottled goods. Take a look for signs of rainwater getting under there. If its dry, then put an outdoor thermometer under there during the height of summer, say late July or August. Check it around 2:30 to 3:30 every day for a week or so.
If it passes the tests, put your stored goods in large plastic bins with tightly-fitting tops (e.g. Rubbermaid products) to keep the bugs and other critters away from it. Some bugs/critters will eat the labels off of cans and bottles, ya see...
Hope this helps.
-- Nighteyes
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