DIY Refrigerator Side Storage

As I have mentioned before I live in a loft, and for those of you that know about loft living, you know there is absolutely no storage space. At. All. So I am on a constant quest to find ways to store and contain all the stuff in my house. I also want to pull the doors off my kitchen cabinets-but where will I put all the random food stuffs (because it is highly unlikely that I will keep that organized-ever).

Then I came across this gem on Pinterest-a skinny storage rack that goes between your wall and your fridge-genius! After some measuring, I was off to Home Depot.

Classy Clutter Canned Food Storage

I measured that I have 4.5” of space between my wall and fridge and my fridge is about 70” tall. I wanted the whole thing to be able to fit completely behind my fridge and be hidden when not in use, so I measured it for 2’ deep and 65” tall (the casters on the bottom are approx 3” high). I guesstimated that I would need a max of 9 shelves, but I ended up only using 7.

Supplies you will need:

• 2 1x4’s cut to the desired height you need
• 2 1x4’s cut to the desired depth you need
• 7 1x4’s cut to be 1.5” shorter than your desired depth
• 7 3/8” wooden dowels cut to 1” shorter than depth, or if you want to be fancy/lazy like me you can use inexpensive telescoping curtain rods (keep in mind this will add 3/8” to the width of the shelves)
• 1 Drawer Pull
• 4 2” metal casters
• 1 thin board cut to the total external dimensions of your shelf

Tools you will need:

• Drill
• Wood screws
• 2” nails
• Finishing nails
• Hammer

Start by putting all boards together to make the main structure. I used two screws per shelf to secure them to the frame. Play around with placement of the shelves to make sure they will fit everything you need. I had some shelves at 7” tall and others at 11”.

 Attached the rods to front of shelving approx 1.5-2” above each shelf using a finishing nail on each side. If you would like to go the dowel route, see below.

(Dowel Instructions: Drill holes for dowels that are about ¼” from the edge and about 1.5”-2” from the shelf. Insert dowels into holes. Use wood glue for extra support).

Next, paint your cabinet and back board. Since the wall that I was putting this against is painted black chalkboard, I decided to paint the cabinet with leftover chalkboard paint so it would “disappear” when not in use. The backboard I used was MDF chalkboard, and the rods were already black so I left them as is. 

Then attach the backboard to the frame using finishing nails all the way around the perimeter. Attach the casters and the handle and you're done!

Remember, this storage is not attached to anything that keeps it upright. Strategically placed casters will help keep it balanced, but DO NOT pull this all the way out and think it will balance on it’s own. When I pull mine out I usually leave the last inch or two behind my fridge for stability.

The final product look like this:

After using my new storage for a little while, I can offer some suggestions that may or may not improve on this design…

• I would probably buy rigid casters instead of swivel casters. There is always one caster that wants to turn around wonky and makes the shelf hard to pull out
• I would also consider attaching the unit to a track mounted on the wall so it was anchored to something to keep it from tipping over if you accidentally pulled it out all the way. This would require pulling the fridge out to install, so it’s not worth it for me, but if you had small kids at home it might be worth it