Upright freezer door won't stay closed

[tenplay]

I have an old Kelvinator upright freezer sitting in the garage. Lately the door won't stay closed. There's got to be a better solution than duct tape. Thanks for any advice/suggestions. Mike

[ameijers]

A level and a wrench. Maybe some shims. Unless the door is loose, reality has changed, and the freezer is leaning forward. Adjust the legs till it stays shut. Did you have a lot of rain and/or a dry spell lately? Your slab may be moving. I assume you already checked the obvious, and the thing isn't overloaded or frosted up so bad that the door doesn't shut tightly? And the hinge screws haven't come loose from kids swinging on it or something? (When they get bored, they'll make a jungle gym out of anything...)

aem sends...

[PipeDown]

Figure out why it is not closing and fix that.

If it is not overloaded or a drawer or shelf sticking out them maybe the door seal is damaged. Sometimes the door seal peals up at one corner of the door (often bottom near the hinge) and folds over forming an obstruction thet prevents the door from closing but is soft enough to be forced shut anyway. If it is badly damaged, you can get a replacement at an appliance parts shop (see yellow pages)

[mm]

I adjust my fridge legs so the doors to the fridge and freezer close themselves. This was easy at my last place where I only opened the door 90 degrees, but harder here to get it to work when the doors are opened more than 90 degrees. But it still only took 10 or 15 minutes and it's worked for 20 years.

[Alan]

I've had problems with the door not closing because the seal got warped or whatever. Are seals fairly standard?

[RayV]

tenplay said: There's got to be a better solution than duct tape.

Ray shouted back: BLASPHEMER ! Go to the lodge and pray for forgiveness lest your tape be cursed to never stick again.

[Joey]

Everyone here is on the right track but didn't tell you why the seal has probably failed or how it works. These seals are magnetic and they stick to the door frame which must be very smooth and clean. If you can put a piece of paper anywhere in the seal with the door closed and easily pull it out then the door (rubber magnetic) seal needs replacing. They are a fairly common replacement component.

J