Whirlpool fridge door liner

[John]

Hi all, common lurker and now I need to throw this out.

I have a Whirlpool side-by-side fridge that has the adjustable shelf in the door for things like the gallon milk jug, etc. Well as we all know how gentle boys are, the tabs on the liner that hold the shelf keep breaking and now we're on our last pair within the door. The tabs are really just protruding bumps that hold the shelf in place and to replace any of these it looks like the liner needs replacing as it is all one piece of plastic. Repairclinic.com doesn't have a listing and another Whirlpool part source has the liner as a non-serviceable part. I can't be the only one who needs to fix these tabs, have any of you had this issue and what did you do to resolve it ?(beside take out the adjustable shelf and use the fixed shelving).

-- John

[Lawrence]

Since you have eliminated the obvious solutions I will reluctantly tell you what I did when confronted with this problem. Since you can no longer get parts for the thing you can assume it is junk and you may make any modifications you desire without any loss of value.

I used a hunk of plywood cut to fit over the existing supports. Admittedly, plywood is not too sanitary or beautiful but I always have a variety of sizes on hand for any purpose. It is cheap and easy to throw it out and replace if desired.

You could use your imagination and use different a material. If you glued a solid edge to the pw and painted it with a hard core enamel it might look nicer and be possible to clean. Even better, you could use a melamine coated plywood. Usually only bachelors can get away this this type of thing. Tell the wifey it is cheaper than a new fridge.

[Mark]

It's also time to teach the boys the value of treating objects with respect.

[Roger Shoaf]

Several ideas come to mind. First look on craigslist or the want ads for a similar fridge that can replace what you have or just swap the door. Often for $50-$75 you can pickup used units.

The second idea is to glue in some thicker chunks of plastic for your shelf support. I believe that the plastic used in lining most fridge doors is high impact polystyrene, and this can be solvent bonded with acetone.

[Oren]

Check your local craigslist. Folks are selling or giving away appliances all the time. If can find your model, swap out the panel or door.

-- Oren

"The voices in my head may not be real, but they have some good ideas!"

[Deke]

That's exactly why God made J.B. Weld.

It ain't pretty but it sure is stout.

[mm]

Now might be the time to mention that we used to have a Crosley Shelv-a-Door, or maybe Shelv-a-Dor, the first or one of the first to have shelves on the door, and the only one to name their model after that fact. I guess we got it between 1945 and 1952, but I don't know when.

After I learned to read, it took looking at it 5 or 6 times before I realized what shelv-a-dor actually meant. Before then, I thought it was related to Salvador Dali or something like that.

If you can bond it well, especially as above, that's good.

If not, use nylon string, a couple millimeters thick, which is very strong and I don't think stretches much**. Drill a hole at the right spots in the shelf and drill a hole in the door to give it a place to tie it to. It won't look so good**, but every time your kids go to the fridge, they'll see the result of the damage they did. You won't have to nag them, or even tell them, although details of how to handle children are beyond me, especially since I don't know how old they are.

**Although nylon probably doesn't get that dirty and probably cleans fairly well. **The yellow stuff that doesn't stretch at all is no good here becasue you can't tie knots in it.

[mm]

That might be a good idea, but then he should use PC-11, which is just as stong and sticks to just as many things (and dries while wet) and white. Which might be the color of the door and shelves. Often need a finger in denatured alcohol or if not available, spit, to smooth the surface. In fact should probably practice on something else if the goal is to make the fridge look nice.

[Ed]

What is the model number?

[John]

ED25PQXFW01