Kitchen space can make or break the way you cook. If you don’t have enough room to stand and move about, how can you expect to get any food made? When living in a small apartment, whether it be in a big city or small suburb, you know about how much space the fridge takes up. With fridges being one of the largest appliances, you must position it for easy access, but also so that it won’t cause traffic jams when in use. With that being said, a lot of the times they end up in the corner with the door constantly slamming against the wall. This can become a problem if there isn’t a door stopper, but if you have a top-freezer style fridge, having a door stopper that high just looks ridiculous. In order to prevent yourself from having to patch the wall or lose your deposit, you can use the power of strong, small magnets to prevent the door from ever touching the other surface. Here’s how to make your own magnetic door stopper:

Supplies:

  • 2-4 Rare earth neodymium disc magnets
  • Strong, adhesive glue or 3M Command Strip
  • Measuring tool

Directions:

  1. Measure and mark the location of where on the fridge or freezer and adjacent wall you would like to have the magnets. If your fridge or freezer door has a handle protruding from the door then you will need to mark and place magnets on them.
  2. Figure out the polarity of the magnets. You will need to position the magnets so that they will not be attracted, causing them to push away from each other.
  3. Attach the magnets to the surfaces, making sure that the polarities will be the same. If you have a handleless fridge then you can put the magnet directly on it. For the other magnet, simply glue the magnet directly on the wall. (Tip: If you can’t glue the magnet because you’re renting, simply cut a 3M Command Strip to the magnets size for easy removal later.)
  4. Wait for the glue to dry, then test your new door buffer out!
Though these are strong earth magnets, they are only meant to buffer the door from slamming, so don’t use all your strength to open the door or it will still hit the other surface. This project is meant for when you or a child accidentally lets the door swing open when searching for the perfect snack, not a doorstopper for The Incredible Hulk. Let us know in the comments section if you try this in your apartment or house, and how it turns out for you!   Image by Gary & Anna Sattler