Placing a roll of toilet paper inside your refrigerator is one of the latest home hacks that’s getting more and more popular in the kitchen. And it’ not just for a quick cleaning fix; the idea is to deal with two common problems: extra humidity that builds up inside your fridge and mixed odors from your week’s menu dishes.
According to Reader’s Digest, this trick helps food preservation for fruits and vegetables. And how? Because the toilet paper works like a sponge, so it absorbs that extra humidity and helps reduce the odors traveling around your fridge.
This is an everyday, low-cost, and easy-to-use hack. Which I guess is part of the reason so many people are trying it out now.
In cold and closed spaces, humidity makes everything rot or go bad faster, so if you can add a little “regulator” to fruits and vegetables with just one toilet paper roll, might worth a trial.
Why this toilet paper trick works
Cellulose is the main ingredient in toilet paper, and it has a high capacity to absorb moisture. Especially that excess moisture that otherwise would go around your shelves and containers, creating fungus or making your food go bad.
Moisture is actually one of the reasons fruits and vegetables become mushy, slimy, or just change their texture sometimes more quickly. And it all comes down to humidity.
Here’s where the role becomes a hero. It quietly helps in food preservation, like keeping your food fresh by lowering condensation. In addition, it controls the possible smells; yes, odors from open packages, sauces, and leftovers can all mix up and even “stick” where you don’t want them to.
Although the roll isn’t a professional-grade filter, it helps getting some of the airborne particles and keep a more neutral smell.
Reader’s Digest says that the roll helps keep a cooked dish from affecting the other things around it, like fruits or other ingredients, because it limits the transferring of flavors.
Do you want to try out this home hack? Here’s how
A few simple steps will help it function properly.
- First, put the roll on a dry spot in the fridge, like, a level shelf that won’t be directly hit by spills.
- Check the roll frequently, and if it feels soft, heavy, or soggy, replace it immediately. If it gets wet, even a tiny bit, it’s not going to work, and if there’s even a hint of mold, it won’t work either.
- Don’t leave the same roll for months because the cellulose is going to degrade eventually, and it will lose the absorption capacity (which is why we want it).
- Keep cleaning and wiping any spills that can happen in the day-to-day; try to keep it as dry as you can so the roll’s magic can work better.
It’s a trick that also helps create better habits, and understanding how to keep your food in better shape for a longer time.
A small hack, a big change
I get it, it’s weird to see a toilet paper roll on the fridge, but maybe if you put it at the back of the middle shelf, it won’t look like someone confused where it’s supposed to go. And after a little while seeing the benefits of it, it will become a true habit.
And if you want that roll to work better, you can always add more kitchen habits, like storing the food in glass containers with lids, so there will be fewer gases and odors in fighting with the toilet paper powers.
A little shy roll behind the refrigerator door can make a big difference. You already have the tool at home, so why not giving it a try?