Aging venison in walk-in cooler

[cutman]

I have a walk-in cooler at the farm that’s been collecting dust for several years, and I want to get it back up and running. Luckily I have some very handy friends who are much more helpful than I am.

The cooler is 70” x 70” and probably 8 feet tall. We’ve moved it under a roof and have it sitting on an insulated panel floor (4” thick). My buddy fixed a leak in the compressor and that’s up and running. It is able to hold temp between 34-36 degrees in our 90 degree summer, but the relative humidity is very high. The other day the average RH was 82% and it was noticeably wet inside (condensation).

The drip pan was clogged up - fixed that. The fan runs continuously - don’t know if that can be changed. No obvious leaks for warm air to enter.

What RH is ideal for hanging a deer? The purpose of this project is to be able to shoot a deer, clean it, hang it, go home. Ideally I’d like to hang the meat for 1-2 weeks. What RH is ideal for that and safe? I’m worried about mold.

Anyone got any ideas?

 

[yoderjac]

I don't expect it to be a problem. I use a reach-in cooler to do the same thing. Once a cooler is running for a bit, the humidity drops significantly. The reason the put "crispers" in refrigerators is to keep vegetables and such from drying out.

Depending on the deer, and my availability for butchering, I let my deer hang from a few days to about 2 weeks at the most. The most important thing is the temperature. It needs to be between about 33 and 38 degrees. You don't want the meat to freeze, but you want to retard bacteria from multiplying and allow the natural enzymes to break down muscle tissue to tenderize it.

Great looking setup, by the way! I wish I had a walk-in, but I make due with a reach-in. I put a bar inside and use meat hooks to hang deer by the quarter. I can hang 2 deer easily and depending on size, I can squeeze in a third.

 

[T.R.]

It is highly important to skin the carcass as soon as possible to prevent a sour taste in the meat. Hanging the animal with the hide on is not good. - TR

 

[yoderjac]

It is highly important to skin the carcass as soon as possible to prevent a sour taste in the meat. Hanging the animal with the hide on is not good. - TR

Yes, getting the body heat out quickly helps. At our farm, I don't field dress in the field. Dragging a field dressed deer can introduce bacteria into the carcass, but worse, is trying to wash it out in a stream. I pick up my deer whole with a UTV or ATV and bring them back to camp. At the barn we have a hoist and that lets gravity help me field dress. I immediately skin the deer next and wash it down with clean water. I use a sawsall to quarter it and then hang it in my cooler. My venison tastes better than our local beef!

 

[gut_pile]

I hung one, skin on, for 34 days last year in a walk in cooler. Best deer meat I have ever eaten

With our SC deer, if you hang them skinned, don't do it more than a 5-7 days. The amount of meat that is lost is not worth it to me. You'll end up having 1/2" thick back straps once you cut away all the waste.

 

[T-Max]

I always treated the skin as a thermal blanket. If it is hot out, I skin them as quick as possible to let the heat out. If it is cold, I leave it on to help buffer some of the warmer days. Lets me hang them longer.

Edit: I see the thread is hanging in a walk in cooler. If I had a walk in I would for sure skin them right away.

 

[yoderjac]

I always treated the skin as a thermal blanket. If it is hot out, I skin them as quick as possible to let the heat out. If it is cold, I leave it on to help buffer some of the warmer days. Lets me hang them longer.

Edit: I see the thread is hanging in a walk in cooler. If I had a walk in I would for sure skin them right away.

We have days in the 80s during archery season here. That is when I find it most important to get the carcass cooled down quickly. I want it skinned and in the cooler as soon as possible. Heat and moisture is what helps bacteria multiply the fastest.

 

[weekender21]

It does seem reasonable to worry about mold but…

I have friend’s that ranch in California’s A zone. Deer season opens in July and closes in September. They frequently kill deer when it’s well over 100F. They gut/skin and wrap the deer in a sheet. It hangs outside overnight (~60-65F). Seems normal so far.

Next they place the carcass wrapped in a sheet under a cheap mattress in an old RV that sits in the shade under a huge live oak. They leave the deer here for two weeks typically with no AC whatsoever.

The last step is to trim off the outer layer which is usually dark red/purple and may have some mold. They’ve never had an issue.

Not apples to apples compared to SC humidity but if you keep the walk in between 38 and 42 I don’t think you run any risk. If the RH is still too high I’d buy a small dehumidifier.

 

[yoderjac]

It does seem reasonable to worry about mold but…

I have friend’s that ranch in California’s A zone. Deer season opens in July and closes in September. They frequently kill deer when it’s well over 100F. They gut/skin and wrap the deer in a sheet. It hangs outside overnight (~60-65F). Seems normal so far.

Next they place the carcass wrapped in a sheet under a cheap mattress in an old RV that sits in the shade under a huge live oak. They leave the deer here for two weeks typically with no AC whatsoever.

The last step is to trim off the outer layer which is usually dark red/purple and may have some mold. They’ve never had an issue.

Not apples to apples compared to SC humidity but if you keep the walk in between 38 and 42 I don’t think you run any risk. If the RH is still too high I’d buy a small dehumidifier.

Refrigeration units typically have a drain because they dehumidify. I've got a commercial reach-in cooler that I use to hang deer. It has a small tube that goes from the inside unit to the bottom of it. I put a the tube into a small tupperware type container so it does not run all over the floor. Typically, I only keep the cooler on for a couple weeks at a time and it just evaporates. Our high humidity months are during the summer. If I was using it then, I'd likely run that tube into a drain.