Bought a residential fridge BUT need some help.

Animalangel · 05-26-2021, 11:07 AM

The new fridge will be delivered next week but it's taller than the old original fridge that was in here. You can see my progress in the photo attached but here's the problem: I can't get that shelf out OR loose. I even whacked it with a hammer in a corner to see how its attached but that didn't help me to see how to remove it. I don't have a prybar but there isn't enough room to get any leverage with one of those either.

There was dark brown "goop" (I'm guessing an epoxy) to hold it in and I've cut most of that away but it still won't loosen. I'd like to reuse that piece of particle board if I can so I don't want to damage it any further.

I've considered trying to cut it out with my circular saw (that's the only saw I have that's electric) but that doesn't exactly seem like a safe idea (since I'd have to do it upside down). There's gotta be a better way.

I tried whacking out one of the side trim pieces but the staples holding it into that refrigerator cabinet are about a mile long and there isn't enough room to use the claw of my hammer on to pull it out far enough to remove it.

I'd really just like to leave all trim work in place and theoretically just "lift and slide out" that sheet of particleboard but, well.. Murphy's Law and all that.... Anybody know how this thing is actually installed in there and how to remove it the right way?

Also, at the bottom of this refrigerator space is a thick piece of styrofoam that the old original fridge sat on. Does that need to stay in there or does that come out or what?

Thanks in advance.
Michelle

Wyatt · 05-26-2021, 12:10 PM

Looks like to me in the last photo, the particle board is already damaged. You just may need a bigger hammer to knock it up and out?

Animalangel · 05-26-2021, 12:36 PM

Hi Wyatt.

As I mentioned, I put that hole in the corner to see if I could determine how the board was installed and then learn how to remove it. It's just that corner and I will cut that off once I get it out but I do need as much of that board intact so that I can reuse it in another area.

Morich · 05-26-2021, 03:45 PM

Not sure I see any good options except to ditch this board, but I might give some reasons for saying that.
Part of the problem is that particleboard is not a really good solid board as it is made up of "particles" glued together. This type wood is not good at holding fasteners like nails or screw at the edges as they tend to crumble the particles into flakes.
So with this material, rather than simple joints using nails and glue, they are more prone to cut a slot in the surrounding woods like walls and back to slip the shelf into and then glue and possibly nail it as a way to support the shelf all along the edges where we might just go with a few nails spaced along that edge with more solid woods.

So what you get is often a shelf that is put in between the two sides, back, etc. glued and clamped together before sliding the whole unit into the RV. One way to salvage the board might be to pry both left and right sides off, but odds of having space to do that are not good! And then once you had the space, getting the glue joint apart without tearing the glue joint between the particles is only about 50/50, so I don't bother as it winds up being a long term tedious process that often doesn't work.

Sorry to tell you such a sad tale but perhaps better to find out now than after spending the afternoon fighting to save something that is close to lost cause.

dkoldman · 05-26-2021, 04:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Morich

One way to salvage the board might be to pry both left and right sides off, but odds of having space to do that are not good! And then once you had the space, getting the glue joint apart without tearing the glue joint between the particles is only about 50/50, so I don't bother as it winds up being a long term tedious process that often doesn't work.

Morich,

I am surprised you didn't bring out the Oscillating tool recommendation? My Dremel is on the way and this may be where I would try to put it of use.

To OP,

You might want to consider putting the hammer down

My priorities would be on that new Fridge because that sounds exciting

Particle board is cheap, so you may have a 2nd project looming, but I bet if you look; you may find or could make something that is better for the other location.

I would neatly cut out the existing particle board as close to the edge as possible and then you will have more room to try to cut the edges. Since nothing is going back in, I would just cut to where the particle board is flush with the wall versus trying to get all of the epoxy out and risk damage to the wall.

Good luck,

Animalangel · 05-26-2021, 04:17 PM

Hi Morich.

I know it's particleboard and how it's made but my plan to reuse it is basically as a junk piece to simply block off access to under the bedroom slide that contains my dressers during travel. I have cats and one got back there and, once stopped, I couldn't deploy that slide until he came out or he would have been crushed. So.... I went to Home Depot today and was going to spend nearly $9 plus tax for a 2 ft by 2 ft piece of wood to use and then it dawned on me that I could reuse this particle board piece for free so I put that piece of wood back.

During travel when I bring in the slides I've had to use every blanket and towel I own to block off those two ends of that slide. Then there's all that laundry to redo once I'm stopped for a while. So.... this was a genius plan considering all that. I do have a piece of wood for one end and just needed this piece for the opposite end.

Thank you for verifying how this is put together in the cabinet because that's the impression I came up with after I knocked that chunk out of the one corner. The drawing you've attached makes it pretty clear.

Maybe I can find some other way to saw out a large piece from the middle for reuse as previously described and then I will have access to pull the sides out with the claw on the hammer. Boy, cutting that is going to make a mess

.... I guess I'll give it a shot tomorrow.

Thanks again!

Animalangel · 05-26-2021, 04:22 PM

Hi dkoldman,

Well, you pretty much read my mind for the plan of action. The only difference is I like your idea better about leaving the trim work in place instead of trying to remove it. There will be about a inch and a half of open space between the new fridge and the walls in there so there is no need at all to do any more than cut out the center part of that board!

The project I had in mind to reuse that piece is listed in my reply to Morich.

I saw at dawn!!!! (That's like "we ride at dawn" in my crazy sense of humor.)

BobC · 05-26-2021, 04:56 PM

An oscillating multi tool is the way to go in terms of cutting this out. I'd use a combo wood/metal blade in case there are fasteners. It will do a neater job than any other type of saw and will be safer as well.

Morich · 05-26-2021, 06:22 PM

An oscillating tool would be my first thought but I'm trying not to seem too neurotic about getting new tools and the poster did not seem to inclined to go that way.

But it is one of the tools that I would trust sticking my arm and tool both in the same cramped space while working and it would actually do the job. Somewhat slow as it is not meant as a speed tool but it would let you saw almost flush up against the sidewalls and in a pretty controlled and safe way.

But then does one want to spend $20 to save buying a ten dollar board? HUMMM! Lots of choices on blade to use:
https://www.amazon.com/Universal-Osc...08465651&psc=1

Never mind that I skipped the fancy art work drawing the tool, huh?

BobC · 05-26-2021, 06:57 PM

My point in suggesting the multi-tool was in the interest of safety and ease, not to save the board. Plus, once OP has the tool, it will be used for many, many projects.

dkoldman · 05-26-2021, 07:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Morich

An oscillating tool would be my first thought but I'm trying not to seem too neurotic about getting new tools and the poster did not seem to inclined to go that way.

But it is one of the tools that I would trust sticking my arm and tool both in the same cramped space while working and it would actually do the job. Somewhat slow as it is not meant as a speed tool but it would let you saw almost flush up against the sidewalls and in a pretty controlled and safe way.

But then does one want to spend $20 to save buying a ten dollar board? HUMMM! Lots of choices on blade to use:
https://www.amazon.com/Universal-Osc...08465651&psc=1

Never mind that I skipped the fancy art work drawing the tool, huh?

Blades for the tools appear to be confusing. I talked with Dremel and they could not give me a straight answer as to what will fit my new MM35 when I get it. The ones that come with it are opened blades, but these at Amazon are completely closed?. Everyone seems to be say they have Universal Standard; but none of the blades look alike.

I did gamble and buy a 7/8" hyper tough blade because it was the smallest I had seen and at $5 it wasn't too much over my spending limit

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Hyper-Tou...Blade/49944460

I think being new tool oscillating tools and given my need for small cuts around light switches, I want to try with the smallest I can get.

FWIW, I learned that my Dremel came with a free 2 year warranty!!!

Click here to see my Dremel

peggwn · 05-26-2021, 07:35 PM

I don't really know what size of "slot" or space you have between the slide and wall (or whatever) you are trying to secure. We had that problem as well. We bought a 4-5" diameter swimming pool noodle at Five Below for about $4. When we pull in the slide we stuff the noodle in the slot to keep the cat and small dog out. We use one full length (5-6' long) on each side because we felt the cat would attempt to jump to the top of anything shorter just because he could and would just to show us how feeble our solution was. It worked for us and didn't weigh anything. Just a thought.

Morich · 05-27-2021, 07:19 AM

Buying blades for small tools like saws is almost always interesting as so many are made by the same people but branded different.
In this case I went with the type that does use a allen key to change blades without giving it any real thought. The first Dremel brand I had used a key and most of my tools like drills are okay for my use with keys, so made no big issue.
Maybe if I used it longer each day or had no place to store the key with the blades and tool, I would have looked more I find that there is a small different in the mounting holes and fitting blades to the tool but none that I have run across will not work, just some that slip right into place like they know where they are going while others tend to try to set on top of the little bumps formed in the tools mount and need to be checked a little more as I screw the allen key in.
Believe it or not, one of the best uses for this tool is PLUMBING!
If you've ever had a water line freeze, you know it is far more likely to happen when the pipe is up against the outside wall concrete and against the floor joist so that it is as hard to reach as possible, making cutting out a two in section a real thrill.

But if you can see a way to get a hand in to slip a Sharkbite repair on, this tool will let you stick it in to cut out the small section of copper or PVC that split! I was going to be looking at tearing out the built-in shelves for access but with this, I was able to cut out the damage, even though it came up out of the foundation, went in a curve to the outside faucet and only had about eight inches of horizontal space in a 2X4 cavity to work and it was all done laying down in the floor under the shelves!
Yes, it would be a great tool to stick in between the shelves the OP has and cut along the edge to remove the existing shelf!

And then someday when they need to remove the vent on top of the RV where there is a big pile of old brick hard caulk, it is great to put on a flat scraper blade and let it whiz that problem off in minutes without gouging the fiberglass!

Animalangel · 05-27-2021, 12:20 PM

Sorry to make ya'll wait to see what I did but it's done and I'm pretty happy with the way I did it and the results.

Some folks mentioned using an oscillating tool but the only oscillating tool I have is a sander and that wouldn't work. I do have a Dremel but I am not the most proficient with it and do not have any cutting blades for it anyway. What I have, and did use, is my Rockwell 4-1/2” Compact Circular Saw. YES, it made a mess but I was able to cut about 1/2 to 2/3 of what I needed to cut and the rest came out fairly neatly with a hammer as the breaks followed pretty much along the same path I had started with the saw.

I would love to have an oscillating saw of some sort (sawzall?) but here's the thing... looks like my days of construction are pretty much numbered and I may never even get to play with my current tools much longer. I'm having significant cervical nerve and bone issues and am waiting right now for a call to schedule the MRI for whatever future surgery will be required. I already HAVE a metal plate in my neck so... I don't think I'll be playing with big tools and ripping open walls (my last project over the winter) much longer. My age is catching up to me rapidly. So.... there's that. Back to the project:

After cutting and breaking out a piece that was probably 80% of the overall size as it was in the cabinet (photo attached), I was able to then snap out the edge pieces that remained.

Morich was correct in how it was installed (into horizontal "slots" in the walls) but the reason I couldn't get the shelf up and out was because it was also stapled in. There were NO VISIBLE STAPLES along the bottoms of the wood that held that shelf in place in the slots, however, they were there. I am attaching a photo for anyone who needs this for future reference. Once the shelf was cut out I was able to very simply fold the ends UP toward the ceiling and they popped right off the staples. Attached is a picture of one of those pieces of wood with the staples come UP from I don't know where that held the board very firmly in the slots.

After that it was just a bunch of clean up. Sawdust everywhere.

Once all that was done I took a picture of the space and then went outside to cut my board so I could use it to block that slide when it's brought in.

peggwn: It never occurred to me to try shoving pool noodles under there but they likely wouldn't last. I adopted 2 new cats from a shelter in January and one of them just LOVES to rip things apart. Those noodles, even if I had thought of them, likely wouldn't do the trick with that little Ginsu Knife artist. The actual open area that I need to block is about a foot and a half wide (when the slide is in) and 6 inches high. In my younger days I probably could have crawled in there myself if I could make that very sharp turn between the slide and the stationary walls (impossible for any human but simple for full grown cat). But thanks for the thought. I may be able to use a pool noodle for another application. I'll think about it.

ANYWAY..... attaching a photo of the boards I now have to block that slide on both sides. The one of the left is the one I bought and the one on the right is the leftover from this shelf removal project. What I forgot to buy at Home Depot were cabinet handles so I can maneuver them into and out of the space more easily. They will be held in place by tension rods during travel.

Wyatt · 05-27-2021, 12:28 PM

I’d the OP doesn’t want to spend money on a scrap piece of board, I doubt they want to buy a specialty tool for the job, as I think Morich was implying.

When I did this years ago to a stereo cabinet, with slotted grooves, I cut the board right down the middle, and hammered it down and out. But, that would require a new board from Home Depot for the next project. One can buy scraps cheap. Move on done.

dkoldman · 05-29-2021, 06:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Animalangel

Sorry to make ya'll wait to see what I did but it's done and I'm pretty happy with the way I did it and the results.

The End:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Morich

Buying blades for small tools like saws is almost always interesting as so many are made by the same people but branded different.

Believe it or not, one of the best uses for this tool is PLUMBING!
If you've ever had a water line freeze, you know it is far more likely to happen when the pipe is up against the outside wall concrete and against the floor joist so that it is as hard to reach as possible, making cutting out a two in section a real thrill.

But if you can see a way to get a hand in to slip a Sharkbite repair on, this tool will let you stick it in to cut out the small section of copper or PVC that split!

And then someday when they need to remove the vent on top of the RV where there is a big pile of old brick hard caulk, it is great to put on a flat scraper blade and let it whiz that problem off in minutes without gouging the fiberglass!

I actually had 3 pipes burst during the Great Texas Freeze, I follow you exactly. I used 3 Sharkbites to fix my pipes and it was a pain to cut out the sections; although I bought a tool just to do that function.

Update: I have now ordered my 2nd Oscillating Dremel tool and I have not even received the 1st one yet. I expect my MM35 to come next Tuesday. I will use it to finish the permanent install for the 6 Switches I have wired in the RV. I am actually looking to buy 2 more dimmer switches as this has now become a snap with all of the accessible ground

But yesterday, I saw the Dremel MM45 on sale for $34.99 ( Mtg Refurbished & 2 year warranty and 15 more accessories) I just could not pass it up

I plan to keep both, one for light duty and the other heavy duty work

With the money saved on doing my own dimmers, I think I have earned the right

Besides, if I can have 4 hammers, hundreds of screwdrivers, multiple sets of Socket wrenches for both for standard and impact along with SAE & Metric, 2 oscillating tools would follow suit

jimkamery · 05-30-2021, 04:36 PM

The MM35 takes both open and closed hole blades. With the MM40 and up they only take the open back blades. We use these tools at work so I am very familiar with them.

dkoldman · 05-30-2021, 06:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jimkamery

The MM35 takes both open and closed hole blades. With the MM40 and up they only take the open back blades. We use these tools at work so I am very familiar with them.

This is very helpful to a guy that has never used a Oscillating tool

I saw the deal on the MM35 1st; saw I bought it because I liked the brand name, storage bag, 3.5 amps etc so for $42 (2 year warranty) I bought a Hyper Tough blade that is open that is only 7/8". I hope it will fit the Dremel? My 1st job is to cut existing switch openings ( 8 of them) slightly larger for new dimmer switches.

When the MM45 popped up for $34 and same deal, I just kind of panic bought because it was even better deal.

Since you have experience with both, do you think I will want to keep both, or do you prefer one over the other? I am simple at home DIYer, but no telling what I may try to take on if I have the right tools.

A little context is that I have spent $320 on Dimmer switches, and now $80 on two Dremel tools, this is for a job that my dealer did not want to take on. Hiring someone qualified to do could cost thousands

jimkamery · 05-30-2021, 07:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dkoldman

This is very helpful to a guy that has never used a Oscillating tool

I saw the deal on the MM35 1st; saw I bought it because I liked the brand name, storage bag, 3.5 amps etc so for $42 (2 year warranty) I bought a Hyper Tough blade that is open that is only 7/8". I hope it will fit the Dremel? My 1st job is to cut existing switch openings ( 8 of them) slightly larger for new dimmer switches.

When the MM45 popped up for $34 and same deal, I just kind of panic bought because it was even better deal.

Since you have experience with both, do you think I will want to keep both, or do you prefer one over the other? I am simple at home DIYer, but no telling what I may try to take on if I have the right tools.

A little context is that I have spent $320 on Dimmer switches, and now $80 on two Dremel tools, this is for a job that my dealer did not want to take on. Hiring someone qualified to do could cost thousands

I have an MM30 at home and it is great, but the newer ones have a slightly better armature. I like the 30 and 35 take all blades, but the 40 and 45 are built a little better. I'm sure no matter which one you are using, you will be very happy!

dkoldman · 06-02-2021, 06:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jimkamery

I have an MM30 at home and it is great, but the newer ones have a slightly better armature. I like the 30 and 35 take all blades, but the 40 and 45 are built a little better. I'm sure no matter which one you are using, you will be very happy!

Wow I got the MM35 and it is beyond awesome. I had to turn it down to a two to cut the RV wood for new dimmer switches. The Hyper Tough 7/8 inch blade was perfect for my little cuts. I played a little on practice wood, but I had to get to work

I went ahead and patched some drywall I have been putting off from the Texas Freeze. I used the Jab Saw blade and went up to 8.

The MM45 is still on the way. I don't believe I will need it, but for $35 I will keep it. I am not sure how a round blade will fit in either it looks like the blades in MM35 and MM45 that come with it are the same?