When can you tell it's time to clean out the "science lab" in your fridge?

When you find small green trees growing in something that used to be food, it’s time to clean the fridge.

@chyna But what about the little elves that live under the trees?

Heck., I thought they were self-cleaning. I did wonder when they would ever get around to it.

I am so wildly anal about food going bad. I am tossing stuff out everyday. Just because you can’t see the mold it doesn’t mean it isn’t there.

Milk, once it is opened it only has a few days before it gets tossed. Cheese, four days tops. Sour cream gets about four days too. Meats get around two days. Miracle Whip gets six months after being opened.

I can’t smell anymore (face radiation) so I can’t use that to tell if food is going bad. I have had food poisoning before and I care about not liquid-pooing and vomiting simultaneously more than I care about money.

When what used to be leftovers start to move on their own.

In my case, when you realize the appliance has died and you need a new one!
Found some interesting stuff, including a sealed bottle of Thai peanut sauce. I wonder if it’s still good?

I knew it was tome to throw out the old Chinese food when there wasn’t room for the new Chinese leftovers!

We have a custom alarm that plays whenever stuff needs removing.
What is it?
I’m glad you asked!
“Let it go…let it go…”
I mean, the offending articles are frozen after all.

@ucme Funny!

If you start calling the contents of your fridge a science lab it’s already game over!

Every shopping day. No new food goes in until I clean the fridge.

@cookieman You don’t just push it to the back? :-)

Just before I go grocery shopping I take an inventory of my fridge contents as I make a list of things to purchase.
“If” anything outdated or close to bad , I throw it out.

@janbb: The way we shop, there’s be no room. Plus, I’d know it’s there and it would bug me.

When it’s garbage day. No one wants that decaying food in a garbage can for too long.

I will keep most things a max of a week, unless it’s something unopened, like cheese or yogurt. Of course, some items I will throw out before a week, depending on what it is and if it’s unlikely I will ever eat it.

I have gotten to where I no longer take home leftovers from restaurants because I put it in the refrigerator and then never eat it, and then end up throwing it out anyway. If I’m with someone I will offer it to them. Otherwise, unless it’s something like steak, I don’t bother. I’ve only been to two restaurants in the past 4 months but still, I plan to continue doing this when I start eating in restaurants more. A friend of mine will ask to take home teeny-tiny amounts of food, like two tablespoons of salad, and she has “issues” with old food in her refrigerator. I can see that having too many containers of leftovers is too much to keep track of and manage.