Rusted Refrigerator Repair

My refrigerator was 5 years old and had developed rust around the ice/water dispenser area. I had repaired rust on a VW using the POR 15 Starter KIT product in the past and thought I could use it to repair the rust on the refrigerator. This is how I did it.

Step 1: Materials Used

POR 15 Starter Kit
Rust-oleum Epoxy Appliance Paint
Tooth Picks
Blue Masking Tape

Tools Used
Screw Driver
Pocket Knife
220 grit sandpaper
Brush and gloves supplied in kit

Step 2: Removed Ice Dispenser Tray

I unpluged the refrigerator and removed the removable ice dispenser tray and it revealed a lot of rust. I then removed the screws holding the moulding and removed the moulding.

Step 3: Removing Loose Rust and Paint

I masked off the areas around the rusted part to protect the rest of the refrigerator. I then took a pocket knife and scraped off the loose rust and paint. I scraped it down to the point where there was a solid paint all around the edge of the area to be repaired.

Step 4: Prepping the Repair Area

I placed toothpicks into the screw holes so they would not get filled with the POR 15. I then masked off the area with blue masking tape leaving a small area of the solid paint showing.

I then sanded the solid paint edge down so that when I put the POR 15 on there would not be a visible line where they joined.

Step 5: Using the POR 15

If you use the POR 15 read all of the instructions and follow all of their safety precautions.

I used the Marine clean first then used the Prep and Ready next following the instructions.

Next I applied the POR 15 let it dry about two and a half hours and applied a second coat. I let it dry overnight.

Step 6: Finishing

After letting it dry overnight I sanded it down blending the edges so there was not a visible line where they joined.
I then sprayed two coats of the epoxy spray paint on the repair. The paint matched pretty close to the original color.
I noticed that the water looked like it had leaked out of the corner of the tray causing the rust so I sealed the area with silicon.
Put the molding back on and the tray back in and the repair was a success.

Video https://youtu.be/2GOqeeemEHc

If you decide to duplicate any of my ideas or repairs judge for yourself the safety of the project and the safety of the method creating it. This is not about how to do it, but it is about how I did them.

Comments

[sociactive]

I have a fridge with a similar rust area, but not quite as bad... If one sands off all the rust and we're using epoxy paint, is the POR-15 really necessary?

[ajwingnut]

If you can get rid of the rust the por15 would not be needed. I used it because if I had removed all the rust I would have ended up with a hole.

[sociactive]

Gotcha. Thank you.

[acrutland]

I am looking for the POR15 starter kit. I see it in black gloss. Is black gloss the only color? My refrigerator rust is deep, I hope this works. Thank you. Yours was the only information I found online to help with this problem

[ajwingnut]

I think black is the only color but you can paint over it the color of the fridge. I put this youtube video up https://youtu.be/2GOqeeemEHc
It works over rust but does not fill holes made by rust.

[gm280]

Nice repair. First of all, your refrigerator shouldn't have been rusting being only 5 years old. Sounds like a factory defect. However, if the refrigerator was functioning well, why not repair it.

[TheKitMurkit.]

And automobiles shouldn't rot in 5 years. I wonder if any organizations will do anything about planned obsolescence in any near future...