On a recent refrigerator cleaning spree which admittedly netted some “unsavoury” surprises, one surprise that wasn’t at all unpleasant was the absence of any foul fridge odours. And voila! There, tucked away in the corner of my crisper and in the upper back of the fridge were the Fresh-N pouches that had been deliberately placed there. They did their job SO well, that they were completely and utterly forgotten (and with all of the stinktastic cheeses and cured meats the husband purchases regularly, the box of baking soda just wasn’t cutting it any more).
Fresh-N’s are the brain child of Wendy Ratel- the entrepreneur behind various odour absorbing products (some, like the Diva Diamondz and Gentlemen Gems are meant to be placed in shoes, sports bags, gym bags or athletic shoes), based in British Columbia. The fabric pouches are filled with an ionically-charged volcanic mineral (called zeolite) that attracts odour and moisture inside your fridge (or footware as the case may be) while the pouch’s minerals work to trap odour inside. And best of all, once the pouches start to take on your fridge’s scent, they are rechargeable by placing the pouches outside in direct sunshine for 8 hours to renew. As an added bonus, the pouches only need to be renewed 2 or 3 times a year.
What is Zeolite?
According to Ratel’s website- here’s the answer: “Synthetic and natural zeolites are hydrated aluminosilicates with symmetrically stacked alumina and silica tetrahedra which result in an open and stable three-dimensional honeycomb structure with a negative charge. The negative charge within the pores is neutralized by positively charged ions (cations) such as sodium. Over 150 zeolite structural types have been identified. This definition is very technical. What it means is that when you place our pouches near a smell or close to moisture, the zeolite inside the pouch absorbs it.” They’re also non-toxic.
Handy and Dandy!
No more boxes to knock over, no more over-perfumed sprays to mask odours- with these products it place in the space that you want odour eliminated from (a fridge, a gym bag, roller blades) and then walk away. In a few hours or overnight, you’re as good as fresh! As soon as the pouch starts to smell, out in the sun it goes to get re-charged and that makes a whole lot more sense than constantly having to repurchase a product over and over again.
Ratel also sells Crisper Fresh-N’s in two-pouch packs to help keep fruits and veggies crisper, longer (since the pouches absorb moisture as well as scent). As well, the pouches absorb ethylene gas- what produce emits while ripening after harvesting or picking. Ethylene gas accelerates ripening and aging- these will need re-energizing about every 6 months to keep them active.
Other purposes for these handy pouches: in your nursery, bathroom and even the car. Now you know!
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