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Just used a zip tie to fix my broken fridge shelf | DIY Junk Fixers - Free To Speak

Just used a zip tie to fix my broken fridge shelf

My fridge shelf cracked right down the middle last week and I was about to spend $40 on a replacement. I grabbed a few thick zip ties from my junk drawer, drilled tiny holes on each side of the crack, and threaded them through like stitches. Then I tightened them up on the bottom side so the top stays flat for cans and stuff. Has anyone else tried this instead of buying new shelves?

3 comments

3 Comments

logan5612mo ago

Ugh that cracked shelf feeling is the worst, I feel you on not wanting to drop $40 for a piece of plastic. I did something similar with my dorm mini fridge back in college when the door bin broke off. Drilled holes and used those little white zip ties from a cable management pack, worked perfectly for holding soda cans. The bottom side was a little bumpy but it sat on the floor so who cares. Just make sure your holes aren't too close to the edge or the plastic will crack worse when you tighten the ties. It's crazy how much companies charge for those shelves when a 50 cent fix does the trick.

price.ray2mo ago

That zip tie trick is genius, I did almost the exact same thing with my old freezer drawer. Used a cheap drill bit from the hardware store and some black zip ties I had in a junk drawer. Three years later that drawer still holds up fine.

lunah122mo ago

@price.ray that three year shelf sounds like a good test run for this method. I was thinking about doing the same with my own cracked shelf but I used metal zip ties instead of plastic ones because I was worried about the fridge getting too cold and making them brittle. Might be overthinking it though, your standard plastic ones seem to hold up fine long term. One thing I'd point out to @price.ray - those tiny pilot holes are key. I just used a regular drill bit from a hardware store set and went slow so the plastic didn't split. Saved that shelf and a headache.