How to Replace a Refrigerator Door Handle - DIY
7 Materials
$15
2 Hours
Medium
My family and I use our garage refrigerator very often because it holds our water and other drinks. The refrigerator door handle broke a few months ago, so I decided to make a wood door handle for our refrigerator from hard maple.
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A refrigerator door handle is made from cheap plastic and break often. This became obvious when I searched for keywords to use in this blog post as there are a few online companies that specialize in custom refrigerator door handles.
I decided to make my own from a scrap piece of hard maple that was leftover from a previous project.
Remove and Trace Door Handle
My plastic handle completely broke off the refrigerator. I traced the door handle on top of the hard maple. The hard maple was 2″ thick, which made it slightly larger than the original refrigerator door handle (1.75″). I was fine with it being slightly larger.
Cut out Template
I cut out the template on my bandsaw A jig saw will work just as well as a bandsaw. It is important to cut outside the lines.
Sand to the Line
I used my disc sander and spindle sander to sand the handle the pencil line. This is why it is important to cut outside the lines as I did in the previous step.
Create Top Offset
The refrigerator door handle has a thin lip, which sits on top of the refrigerator door. I transferred the length and thickness of this lip to the wood handle with my 12" and 6" combination square.
Cut Hole for Latch
Next, I measured the dimensions of the handle and transferred the measurement to the wood door handle. The hole was large enough to fit the plastic ‘U shaped’ piece.
I removed the plastic piece by unscrewing one screw.
Then, I measured the plastic piece and got a forstner bit slightly larger. The forester bit was 1.25″. I used my drill press to drill a hole to the same depth, which was 3/4″.
It fit perfectly. I pre-drilled a hole for the screw and secured the plastic piece.
2nd Handle
I realized the refrigerator would look silly with one wood door handle and one plastic door handle. I have a top/bottom freezer/fridge and the handle for the fridge portion broke.
Both handles are exactly the same. The handle for the freezer simply attaches upside down.
Rather than ignoring this, I stopped the project and made another wood door handle from the same piece of scrap wood following the exact process.
Transfer Screw Holes
I removed the freezer refrigerator door handle (the one not broken). Next, transferred the screw measurements to the wood handle. I drilled a pilot hole and used a countersink bit to ensure the screw would be flush.
Sanding
I organize my sandpaper into a poly organizer, which I HIGHLY recommend if you have lots of sandpaper.
Next, I sanded each piece with 220 grit sandpaper with my orbital sander. I made sure to sand down each edge to make the wood handle comfortable.
Apply Finish
I applied a generous coat of Shellac
Shellac is my favorite finish. It dries quickly and it brings out the wood grain nicely.
Final Result
Don’t forget to watch my YouTube video to see a funny blooper not included in this blog post.
I really enjoy projects that are fun and solve problems. The cheap plastic refrigerator door handles cost ~$50.00. The refrigerator wood door handles took a few hours to make!
I hope this project provided you with some value because this is, and always will be, my ultimate goal.
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2 comments
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Nice!
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OMG! You have saved the day! My handle just broke and Sears tells me that it is in backorder. Other sites tell me it is no longer being manufactured. I never thought one could be made! Thanks.
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