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Zeer pot fridge

How a clay pot refrigerator can help beat hunger

In hot climates, food doesn’t stay fresh for long. Tomatoes go off in just two days. After four days carrots and okra are rotten. With no means of preserving their crops, poverty stricken families have been battling hunger and even famine.

One ingenious solution is the zeer pot. Using this simple technology, the same vegetable can last for up to 20 days. This all natural refrigerator offers families, who already succeed in food production, their right to food preservation and really can help to improve their everyday lives; for now and for the future.

A simple technology that brings fresh hope

The zeer pot is a simple fridge made of local materials. It consists of one earthenware pot set inside another, with a layer of wet sand in between. As the moisture evaporates it cools the inner pot, keeping up to 12kg of fruit and vegetables fresher for longer.

Making a zeer pot fridge

1 First, bowl-shaped moulds are created from mud and water – and left to dry in the sun. Clay is then pressed onto the moulds to form the desired size of pot. Clay rims and bases are added and the moulds are removed. The pots are left to dry in the sun.

  

2 Once the pots have been fired in a pit of sticks, the zeer pot is ready to assemble. A smaller pot is placed inside a larger one, and the space in between filled with sand.

3 The whole structure is then placed on a large iron stand. This allows the air to flow underneath and aid the cooling process.

  

4 Twice a day, water is added to the sand between the pots so that it remains moist. The entire assembly is left in a dry, ventilated place.

5 Fruit, vegetables and sorghum – a type of cereal prone to fungal infestation if not preserved – are then placed in the smaller pot, which is covered with a damp cloth.

  

6 In the heat, the water contained in the sand evaporates towards the outer surface of the larger pot. This evaporation brings about a drop in temperature of several degrees, cooling the inner pot and extending the shelf life of the perishable food inside.

In the hot weather of Sudan, Hawa Abbas used to lose half of her tomato, okra and carrot crop.

Her world changed when she began working with Practical Action. As she herself says, “After many years of struggle, Practical Action came and showed us how to make pottery refrigerators. They are made in two different sized pots. The smaller is put inside the bigger one and in between we put sand and wet it with water and cover it.”

“They keep our vegetables fresh for 3-4 weeks, depending on the type of crop. They are very good in a hot climate such as ours where fruit and vegetables get spoiled in one day.”

It is clear to Hawa Abbas how important this has been to her family. “Since I learned how to make zeer pots our life has been so much better.”

Just £30 could buy 3 zeer pots and help improve people's lives for the future. If you are able to, please buy a Practical Present on behalf of your loved one or make a donation to Practical Action's work today. You really can make a difference.

Alternatively, please share this page with you Facebook friends and Twitter followers. Thank you.

Make a donation

Help us with a one time, or regular donation:

 

Clay refrigerator
Detailed background and instructions on how to make a zeer pot clay refrigerator.

Clay-based technologies manual
A practical handbook on making clay refrigerators, water coolers and stoves, from Practical Action Sudan. This manufacturing manual has step by step instructions, photos and technical drawings.

Ceramic Refrigerator
Technical drawings for the zeer pot ceramic refrigerator from Practical Answers.

Evaporative cooling
Download a technical brief on evaporative cooling from Practical Answers.

Comments

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  • Reply

    Benedict Hosea, said:

    said:
    My region has very potential resource for pot making but people are in low aware on how their bentonite mineral are for their survival. Pre-colonial era in Africa, Africans used clay (bentonite) soil to manufacture pots and other house ware which then has transformed into the present use of aluminium utensils for domestic use. It is the time now to introduce the Zeer pot fridge to majority as the way to reduce loss and encourage people to safe storing products. I use water stored into pot and is so fresh and cool enough that other people have to follow. benosea@india.com
    on 2/1/12
  • Reply

    Carrie said:

    said:
    Very interested in the concept of the zeer but would like to know approx how much water is needed per day to ensure the pot functions efficiently, also how available is that water and how far people have to go to collect it. Is this really viable in Sudan? Thanks
    on 8/2/12
    • Reply

      Yassir Abdelmutalab - Sudan said:

      said:
      The pot need to be watered twice a day with a total volume of water between 1.5 to 2.5 liters (3 liters for the very first watering).
      on 1/3/12
  • Reply

    carrie said:

    said:
    Approximately how much water is required on a daily basis to keep the pot cool and is there sufficient water available in Sudan for this apparently simple idea to be successful in the longer term?
    on 10/2/12
  • Reply

    herniated said:

    said:
    This comment is to say thanks, i dont comment usually, but when i do it is usually for something really good.
    on 13/2/12
  • Reply

    pradeep patel said:

    said:
    ultimate idea....... plz send geometric dimensions of that frige actually want to make....small frige plz send
    on 27/2/12
  • Reply

    Paolo Jones said:

    said:
    It is a fantastic idea to preserve food in this way and I hope the technique will become more well known among less developed communities to help them fight hunger. Good work Practical Action!
    on 8/3/12
    • Reply

      paulina joseph said:

      said:
      paolo i think your point is good but i think pratical action are doing a great job not just good! Keep the GREAT work <3
      on 8/3/12
  • Reply

    yourkidsarntspecial said:

    said:
    ahha, now i know how moisture cools the earth in the daytime, no wonder the moon gets hotter in the daytime with no atmos gases, compared to the earth with atmos gases.
    on 12/3/12

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