Interactive lesson

Cold pantry, step by step

Interactive lesson: a pantry on the north side — site and shade, insulation from the house, night ventilation, a cold cupboard, a balcony box and shelves.

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The whole lesson as text

1. How cold

A pantry has no source of cold of its own: it is as cold as the air you let into it.

The old larder on the north — Next to the kitchen, on the north side, with a small window covered with mesh, a stone or brick floor and a thick wall.
A fridge in winter — In a Canadian or northern US winter a good pantry runs at roughly 0–6 °C from December to February. Then it works as a second fridge, but watch for frost.
Not a fridge in summer — In July the same pantry is at 14–20 °C. Then it is a cool place for vegetables, maturing cheese and preserves.
Measure first — Put a min/max thermometer in the pantry, at food height. Measure your own pantry through the year, and only then plan the works.

Why: A pantry follows the outside air, with a small delay and evened out. A stone house with thick walls and a solid floor will be nearer the lower figures, and a partitioned corner of a new centrally heated house nearer the upper ones.

The figures are rough. In a British or Irish winter a pantry runs at about 3–8 °C, and 0–4 °C only in cold spells; in the US South it is rarely below 10 °C for long.
Before any work, spend the first winter and the first summer just measuring.

2. Site and shade

The best pantry has as much earth and north as possible, and as little sun and house.

North and earth — A basement room, partly below ground, is very good: the earth cools it and there is little sun. A larder next to the kitchen on the north is good once the kitchen wall is insulated.
A vine on a pergola — It gives shade in summer, and with no leaves in winter it lets the sun into the house. Wisteria, hops and squash on wires do the same.
A deciduous tree — Walnut, lime or mulberry (in North America maple or oak) on the south and west of the house, 5–8 m from the wall, shades roof and wall in the afternoon.
Limewash and canopy — White limewash on the outside wall absorbs much less sun, and it also cleans and disinfects the wall. A canopy over the window and vents keeps out sun and rain.

Why: Sun on the wall and roof is the biggest source of summer heat in a pantry. A sunny wall in July can reach 40–50 °C and heats the room for days.

Avoid south and west walls, a loft that heats up in summer and space next to a garage with fuel in it.
In a block of flats, cutting through an outside wall needs consent from the freeholder or management company (UK, IE) or the landlord, condo board or HOA (US, Canada): check before any work.