Fixing cracked plastic on a fridge shelf?

[Kitsune]

A little shelf on the door of my fridge cracked enough that I need to either fix it, replace it, or do without.

1) we can do without for a while, but we do cram our fridge pretty full and actually use the space. It isn't a great long-term solution.   

2) Replacing the part would seem to cost 40$US with shipping - and I'm in Canada, so that's 50$, which is kinda ridiculous. It already happened once before (and seriously, it's a tiny shelf that holds 3-4 jam jars at any given time, it's not natural that it breaks this much) and it's no longer on warranty, so... I don't wanna keep replacing this shelf every 2 years!

3) fixing it. My preferred option. I have no idea how to do it. My granddad used to work miracles with melted plastic, staples, and willpower (and he made dentures for a living, so he had access to a lab full of equipment, burners, materials, etc). You guys : how does one go about fixing cracked plastic so it will bear weight again??

[pbkmaine]

A photo of the shelf in place would help.

[Rezdent]

This happened to us too.
We used gorilla glue on the crack, and it didn't hold well on its own.

So we reglued it, and reinforced the top and bottom with duct tape.  This was pretty ugly but worked okay.  Eventually, we just bought the @! ## part.  New one hasn't cracked in three years of use.

[Kitsune]

Here's a picture - awkward angle, but best I can do. People who know what they're doing with cracked plastic: is this fixable?

[Clean Shaven]

I would remove it from the fridge (do repairs at room temperature, not fridge temperature) , clean it well, wipe off the cracked surfaces with isopropyl alcohol - and re - glue with two part 24-hour epoxy.  Heating the epoxy with a hair dryer or heat gun will make it runnier and get into the cracks fully.

 If you want to make it stronger, you could epoxy a patch plate underneath (less visible). Cut a piece of flat plastic from something else, clamp in place while curing.

[sonjak]

http://www.amazon.com/J-B-Weld-8276-KwikWeld-Reinforced/dp/B0006O1ICY/ref=sr

My dad used this for a similar issue (with similar projected cost to fix) for a broken fridge door handle.  Obviously that gets a lot of use/pressure.  It's black so definitely is visible on a white surface but works perfectly.  He suggests using nitrile gloves and old clothes while working with it (in case you drip).

[Spork]

I can't really see the crack in the pic... and I don't really know what glue makes sense on that particular product... but let me add a suggestion to whatever solution you try.

First and foremost: stop drill the crack.  use a smallish drill bit and drill cleanly through at the extreme end(s).  The rounded hole will stop the crack from progressing further.  If it doesn't, it's likely you missed the end by a hair.

[BlueHouse]

Try Sugru.  It's pretty amazing stuff.  The video on the website even shows a cracked refrigerator door shelf.  I have used it to repair sunglasses, put rubber feet on items, and as corner bumpers on an iPhone instead of a case. 

https://sugru.com

[KarefulKactus15]

Find out what type of plastic the shelf is (its probably in raised print on the underside).    Once you know the two types of plastic being bonded, Loctite has a nifty chart on what glue works best with what plastic materials.

https://www.ellsworth.com/globalassets/literature-library/manufacturer/henkel-loctite/henkel-loctite-design-guide-plastic-bonding.pdf


If you want to ensure the best possible bonding, follow the directions... lol    And dont let it cure in the cold fridge....   

Most of the glues referenced can be bought in a 4oz tube from amazon for around 7$ shipped.   

[Kitsune]

Find out what type of plastic the shelf is (its probably in raised print on the underside).    Once you know the two types of plastic being bonded, Loctite has a nifty chart on what glue works best with what plastic materials.

https://www.ellsworth.com/globalassets/literature-library/manufacturer/henkel-loctite/henkel-loctite-design-guide-plastic-bonding.pdf


If you want to ensure the best possible bonding, follow the directions... lol    And dont let it cure in the cold fridge....   

Most of the glues referenced can be bought in a 4oz tube from amazon for around 7$ shipped.

You guys all rock. Thanks for the advice! I'll be trying a 10$ fix before spending 50$ on a tiny piece of (apparently brittle) plastic! :)

[justajane]

It's ugly, but multiple parts of our fridge are currently help together by duct tape. I figure if it buys another year or so, I'm good.

So if the glue doesn't work, duct tape will. Our doesn't seem to peel off. You can buy white duct tape. 

[alsoknownasDean]

Try Sugru.  It's pretty amazing stuff.  The video on the website even shows a cracked refrigerator door shelf.  I have used it to repair sunglasses, put rubber feet on items, and as corner bumpers on an iPhone instead of a case. 

https://sugru.com

Yeah I was going to suggest this as well. I've got a few packets of it and a washing machine with a broken door (still washes fine). I'll have to give it a go and see if Sugru fixes it :)

[GuitarStv]

I've replaced stuff like this with a combination of gluing and duct tape.  It's ugly, but holds up well.

[Retire-Canada]

It's ugly, but multiple parts of our fridge are currently help together by duct tape. I figure if it buys another year or so, I'm good.

So if the glue doesn't work, duct tape will. Our doesn't seem to peel off. You can buy white duct tape.

This ^^^ is what I would do.