Selfsufficientish.com

Seems like there's a conflict here. Everywhere I've read says to wrap in paper, and then either in plastic bags, or plastic line the box to retain humidity. How can you do that, and maintain airflow which is supposed to be important? Is it supposed to be sealed or unsealed

I've never done it. My grandfather seemed to have the art - they had a purpose build shed next to the back door. It had flat shelves in made of plyboard and the apples were just placed onto newspaper sheets on top of the plyboard. Seemed to work for him and some of those apples were still there 4 months after he died though a few had rotted.

I cracked this problem a few years ago, but it might not help you unless you have the space though.
I use an old defunct upright freezer, although a dead fridge works just as well. Line the shelves with newspaper and just place the apples in one layer if possible.
Apples give off carbon dioxide which preserves them (that's how commercial apple stores work combined with low temperatures) and the door seal keeps it all inside, plus the fridge insulation keeps the interior at an even temperature.
It has the benefit of keeping the fruit fresh and juicy, not all wrinkly like apples can get after a few months.

I keep all my apples this way and apart from looking over now and again to remove specked ones, its fool proof and keeps my apples until May.

So if you've got an old fridge kicking about .....

Last year, after reading Odsox's post, I tried out the old freezer and stored our Apples until the middle of March, whether I could have kept them longer I don't know, as we ran out, but have now acquired a small old freezer and have filled that also.

Odsox wrote:I use an old defunct upright freezer, although a dead fridge works just as well. Line the shelves with newspaper and just place the apples in one layer if possible.

Fridges that are 'off' smell - does this happen if it's filled with apples? Or does it smell apple-y? Or more importantly does the CO2 from the apples stop it smelling?

tim_n wrote:Fridges that are 'off' smell

Ours gets a wash out with warm water and bicarb at the start of the season and it smells very "appley" every time you open the door after that. When it's finished with in late spring the door gets left ajar all summer, no musty smells then.

Something I'll have to think about in a couple of years when my backyard orchard gets going!

We've run out of apple boxes but don't have much more space anyway and still our trees are loaded.... we put them in cardboard or wooden crates with newspaper in between so they are not touching and store them in the garage - the problem at the moment is that it is quite warm in there! They usually last up to about Feb-March and the more manky ones are given to the garden birds all through the winter.

I'd need a lot of fridges as we already have about 3 fridges worth of shelf-fulls right now! Unfortunately don't have anywhere to put an old fridge or 5.

Ok, I live with my parents who totally don't get the whole self sufficiency thing. I'm treading thin ice at the moment, so it needs to be outside and discreet. Not possible indoors, in the garage or the shed.
Fridge or freezer would look unsightly to them, and so not possible.
I went to the dump and picked up scrap plywood, and I got some insulation out a skip. I'll build an outdoor box.

The only question I still have is the conundrum of airflow vs humidity. How can I build such a box that maintains airflow, yet prevents the apples drying out, especially in winter.

Look, I'm an engineer and I need to build stuff. So here it is:

Ok, it looks like a space rocket, but I'll see how it pans out.

I should mention it's lined with Quinn Phenolic foam 25mm thick. Just some scrap I had left over. All cracks and joints fille with expanding foam so it's fully sealed. The door is not air tight at all, so air can enter throught he bottom and exit through the top.

The silver foam sheet you see on the shelves may help, but I saw it in a skip and thought it would look cool. It'll certainly stop any mouldy apples soaking the hardboard shelving

I've got some apples wrapped in paper, and some in plastic bags with holes pierced. I'll see which last longer