Everything breaks sometime. Washing machines and refrigerators are no exception. If your equipment has already definitely fallen into complete disrepair and cannot be repaired, do not rush to throw it in a landfill. There are many options for using old washing machines and refrigerators, both quite practical and decorative.
Flower pot from the drum of an old washing machine. It is quite nice and roomy, it is not afraid of moisture, it will last a long time, because metal is a very reliable material. You can paint such a flowerpot for plants in any color.
The most popular way to use an old drum from a washing machine is a brazier. You can cook on wood and coals not only kebabs, both a pot and a frying pan will conveniently stand on top. At the same time, it is very simple to make such a brazier.
This is already an improved version of the barbecue from the washing drum, on a tripod. By the way, the design is quite light, it is easy to carry around the site. As an option, it was possible to equip a stationary place for an outdoor hearth by arranging a convenient platform around the drum.
And who will say that it is ugly - reflections of the flame in the holes of shiny metal. Such a brazier does not look at all like an old and useless thing, but a relevant and practical element of a personal plot.
From a very old washing machine, or rather, its rounded metal case, you can make a smokehouse for fish and meat products.
This is how the drum of a washing machine, which a designer or a house owner with a rich imagination has worked on, can look elegant. By the way, in the empty case of such a pedestal-seat with a soft pillow, it is quite possible to store all kinds of little things.
And again a flower bed in a whole washing machine. Beautiful bright petunias smoothed out the brutality of the plain metal body of the equipment, which obviously served for many years until it turned into a flower bed.
Wardrobe in an old refrigerator. The case was painted, there are few shelves, but they are quite roomy, and various little things fit in the former freezer.
Even if the refrigerator itself refused to freeze, this cannot prevent you from using it to cool drinks during an outdoor party. A simple wooden plank finish looks quite attractive, and the ice under the now hinged lid will last for a long time.
An incubator in an old refrigerator case. It will retain heat, especially if it is additionally insulated, you only need lamps for heating eggs and a thermometer to control the temperature. A good option for those who want to start breeding chickens.
House for puppies. It turned out a separate bed and dining room. For a larger dog, the refrigerator case would also be suitable as a bed, you just need to remove the shelves.
A chest for potatoes and other vegetables. If there is no cellar - a good place to store. A refrigerator dug into the ground will heat up and cool slightly, less likely that the potatoes will germinate or, conversely, freeze.
New life for an old refrigerator. How can you use the body of an old refrigerator.
The owners of refrigerators try to get rid of them in two cases: either the unit is obsolete and is replaced with a new one, or it is out of order and cannot be repaired. In the first case, the "old men" most often migrate to garden houses, garages, where they are used for their intended purpose for a long time. In the second case, the problem of disposal arises. However, the first option only delays the prospect of the second. But zealous owners are trying to benefit from the "killed" refrigerator. What's more, it's easier to do so.
So, consider the most trivial ways to use the "old" unit.
Recall that the body of the refrigerator is made of high quality sheet metal. If you are a motorist, or just a tinkerer, cut off this metal. It will come in handy for bodywork and other work. From sheet metal, you can make a lot of useful things for a summer residence.
The inside of the refrigerator contains a lot of useful things. If the refrigerator is working, then its main unit - the compressor, will still serve. The pressure it develops is not large, a maximum of 1.5 atmospheres. But this is enough for the operation of a spray gun, airbrush and other small pneumatic tools. You can make a pond aerator, a tire inflation compressor, etc. It can be equipped with a receiver from a car camera.
A radiator made of a thin copper tube will also not disappear in the hands of a craftsman. There are several meters of it. Copper is perfectly soldered. Various branch pipes, water and gas connections, instantaneous water heater or heat exchanger - these are the simplest applications of the tube.
The inside of the refrigerator is an excellent blank for shelves and "cash registers" for storing small tools. Sometimes it’s enough to carefully cut it all out and fix it on the wall of a workshop or utility block.
Another easy way to use an old unit is as a cabinet. What you store in it depends on your needs. Children's toys, cosmetics, tools, wood for the fireplace, etc. The only thing you have to take care of is the design of the locker. Here your imagination will help you. Make sure that the "locker" becomes an integral part of the interior. At the same time, the insides of the refrigerator can be left as is or removed and re-equipped everything there at your discretion.
If the body of the refrigerator is placed horizontally with the door up, you get an excellent container - a chest. It can be used for garbage storage, composting, as a flower bed, a store of dry firewood, etc. Beekeepers can adapt it to store honeycomb hive frames. The internal size of the refrigerator body perfectly matches the size of the frame. In addition, the problem of protecting wax from rodents and moths is immediately solved. The refrigerator closes almost hermetically due to the seal on the door.
From the door of the refrigerator and part of the body, you get an excellent door for a cellar or a well. It is necessary to cut off the front of the case with a grinder at the right distance in order to get a semblance of a door frame. The remains of the body serve as an anchor part, which is concreted or fixed in the wall. True, for such an application, a sufficiently high refrigerator is required, and they are all two-chamber. But it doesn’t matter - we connect both doors with an overlay and self-tapping screws and they become one, open together.
From the refrigerator - case
The body of the refrigerator has good thermal insulation, which allows it to be used as an isothermal case. You can put gas cylinders, a pumping station in it to protect them from the cold. If you remove the insides and drill ventilation holes, you will get a wonderful "metal box" for large gas cylinders.
The same property (good thermal insulation) will allow you to arrange a “cellar on the balcony” from the refrigerator. Even in cold weather, it will be possible to store potatoes and other vegetables there. As a heater, it will be enough to place an electric light bulb of 40-60 W placed in a tin can there.
Owners of autonomous power generators are aware of their most important drawback - a high level of noise. Place the unit in the refrigerator case. Thermal insulation will become soundproofing. Don't forget to make some holes for air supply and take out the exhaust pipe. Or cut a hole on the side and pick it up with a fine mesh.
The case of a small refrigerator can be used to install an electric or gas meter outside the home. You can install the refrigerator body on the head of a water well. In the refrigerator, you can arrange a mini-hozblok and store garden tools there. Large - directly in the case. And for small ones - make holders on the door.
From the refrigerator - smokehouse
You will need a potbelly stove and a refrigerator case. Remove all "innards" from the refrigerator. We install the potbelly stove inside the case. The greatest difficulty is the output of the pipe. Draw a circle on the top panel of the case, with a diameter slightly smaller than the pipe. Then make more holes along the contour with a drill with a diameter of 4-5 mm. Next, let's start the file.
In the upper part of the box, at a distance of 20 cm, we install two corners, on them - a grid shelf for smoked products. We use the shelf from the same refrigerator. 10 cm below, we install two more corners, on which we install a tray to collect fat, which will drip from the products. Next to the food shelf, we install a bimetallic thermometer from the gas stove with the indicator facing out.
Such a smokehouse has many advantages. You can heat it with anything - all the same, smoke flies out the chimney. Smoke for smoking is obtained from what lies on top of the stove and smolders. Using the oven allows you to get different smoking modes. The disadvantage is the small volume. However, for personal needs it is quite enough.
However, it is not necessary to install the oven directly into the refrigerator. If its bottom is flat (and it is most likely flat), it is enough to install the refrigerator itself on the stove - potbelly stove (also with a flat top or no top at all). Or make a stove from an old barrel, punching holes in it for air to enter the combustion zone and smoke to escape. Then the sawdust at the bottom of the refrigerator will smolder perfectly.
You can also install an electric heating element (“air”, for example, for an oven) in the refrigerator. It heats up to red, and this temperature is quite enough for smoldering sawdust and shavings. By the way, an electric heating element will allow you to get products not only hot, but also semi-hot and cold smoked. The sawdust smolders, but the temperature in the refrigerator remains low. The heating element can be equipped with a switch-on regulator that will automatically maintain the desired temperature.
From fridge to dryer
According to a similar scheme, you can make a dryer for fruits, berries and mushrooms. In the lower part we install a heater - either electric or the same potbelly stove. It is advisable to install a fan as well. Shelves can be made from plywood or metal mesh. In the roof of the refrigerator or in the side wall (so that rainwater does not get inside) we make an outlet 100 x 100 mm and close it with a fine mesh so that the flies do not fly in. Such a dryer will dry a bucket of apples a day. Or any other fruit.
As you can see, an old refrigerator is a very valuable thing in a summer cottage. If you or your friends have one gathering dust on the balcony or standing idle in the country - use our advice. You will not regret!
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Pumping water with a compressor from under the refrigerator
A little intro.
The other day I was fixing the old plumbing in the house. It was necessary to slightly bend the vertical pipe going from the ground to the house. In order to heat it to a suitable temperature, it was necessary to drain all the water from it. Since when installing the water supply system in the house, the drainage of water from the system was not provided, for this it was necessary to turn off the tap in one shaft (common), then unwind the connections in the other (mine) and thus already drain the water. I had no desire to break connections that had not been touched for a couple of decades and were reliably overgrown with rust and everything that was possible. It was necessary to come up with an alternative option that did not involve any destruction. That's how the idea to make a small pump was born. Now directly about the design.
It took me about 10 minutes to assemble the system. It presents absolutely no difficulty. The whole construction can be easily understood by looking at the drawing.
But just to be clear, let me explain. The most important part of the system is, of course, the compressor from under the old refrigerator. I've been using it to inflate car tires for a long time. In this case, no re-equipment of the compressor itself is required (it is enough to install a standard start-up relay). On the compressor itself, as a rule, there are three tubes: one filling (it is sealed), one discharge and one suction. This is the last one that we need.
Next, we take any glass bottle (I used from champagne), in the cork we make two holes for the tubes. You can also use any tubes, the main thing is that their diameter allows you to stick both tubes into the cork. It is desirable to seal the place where the tubes enter the cork with some kind of sealant, or at least ordinary plasticine. The bottle can be replaced by any vessel that can be hermetically sealed, but it is better to use vessels that are not amenable to deformation, otherwise, under the action of atmospheric pressure, the vessel will be flattened when air is pumped out. Next, using a hose, we connect one tube to the suction outlet of the compressor, and on the other we put a long hose, the other end of which is lowered into a tank of water.
Everything, a homemade pump is ready!
One feature - the lower edge of the tube coming from the compressor, it is better to place a few centimeters above the lower edge of the tube coming from the tank. This is necessary so that the water flowing into the bottle is not accidentally sucked into the compressor by the retractor tube. This, of course, is unlikely, since the power of such a compressor is small, but still, it is better to play it safe.
The performance of such a pump is rather weak and, of course, it is not suitable for serious purposes. But for small amounts of liquid, it justifies itself, especially since the cost of it is scanty. Water pumps slowly but steadily. The main thing is not to forget to empty the tank in time so that water does not get into the compressor.
In my case, I pumped water out of the pipe in half a minute. Almost a full bottle leaked.
This system can be improved by using a more capacious vessel instead of a bottle (in this case, it will take longer to wait for the necessary vacuum until the water is pumped out). And even better, make an automatic drain of water, so as not to empty the vessel manually. But this is a completely different topic. The purpose of this article was to talk about a small pump from improvised materials in 10 minutes. And it has been achieved. Good luck to you!
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How to make a smokehouse from an old refrigerator.
How to make a smokehouse from an old refrigerator .
The old Oka refrigerator, or some other, having honestly served for almost eleven years, ordered to live long. His body is large, solid - it's a pity to throw it away, you can give it a second life.
Carefully remove all unnecessary bells and whistles, leaving only a metal box with a door. After removing the inner chamber with thermal insulation, it turns out that the welds inside the case are smeared with some kind of brown sealant, which takes a good two hours to scrape off. On the back side, where the heat exchanger was, a decent hole is formed. It is necessary to close up with a metal plate cut from the dismantled parts.
The potbelly stove, welded from a piece of a 400-meter water pipe, and not used for its intended purpose for a long time, fit very well into the prepared refrigerator case.
With the outlet for the pipe, you have to tinker a little. First, draw a circle with a compass, with a diameter slightly smaller than the diameter of the pipe. Then drill holes around the entire perimeter of the circle with a five-bit drill. And bring it to the desired size with a semicircular file or in some other way, as you like.
About twenty centimeters from the top of the box, install two corners - holders for the grid-shelf, where the smoked products will be located. Ten centimeters lower, fix two more corners for the pallet, where the fat will drip. The shelf can be used from the same refrigerator, and the tray from the oven of the old gas two-burner stove. From the stove, take another thermometer with a bimetallic spiral plate. To measure the temperature in the immediate vicinity of the product. Drill a hole of the required size on the side wall and fix the thermometer, with the indicator facing out.
To fix the door, you can use an ordinary hook.
When the whole structure is ready, it is necessary to properly ignite the chamber to eliminate odors. To heat the stove for three hours, constantly throwing up firewood, with the door slightly open. The enamel on the refrigerator case will turn a little yellow in places, but will remain in place.
The main advantage of the described unit, perhaps, is that for smoking there is a minimum amount of material to create smoke. After all, smoke is obtained only from what lies on the stove and smolders, and you can heat the stove itself with anything (it will fly out into the chimney) to maintain the temperature regime.
Well, the disadvantage is that there is not enough space for placing products. However, if you smoke only meat and lard, and only for yourself, then it’s quite enough!
Before you get rid of a broken refrigerator, try to find a useful use for it. Do you need new furniture, a comfortable pantry or a small cellar in the country? This and more can be done from a broken refrigerator.
Ordinary household waste such as paper, cans, glass and metals can be easily taken to a collection point for recycling. But what about large bulky items? For example, with a broken refrigerator.
Refrigerators are expensive, but, like any equipment, they eventually become unusable - they break down, and it is no longer possible to repair them. If you can't turn it in and don't want it to end up in a landfill, try one of these 6 ways.
What can be done from a non-working refrigerator:
1. Sofa from an old refrigerator
Designer Adrian Johnson used an olive green refrigerator and red leather seat from BMW. This is how one of the first such works turned out - Fridgecouch (sofa-refrigerator). The sofa is very comfortable, has a small table-shelf on the side and fits well into the interior of the room.
2. Pantry for food storage
Remove the door from the old refrigerator and arrange the internal shelves as convenient. The pantry is ready. From the outside, it can be covered with a film, which will give your new pantry a unique and cute look.
3. Temporary home for a stray dog
An old fridge can easily be turned into a dog house with space for rest, food and water. The door of the refrigerator will come in handy as a ramp.
4. Storage box for food and drinks in the yard
Remove the compressor, evaporator, condenser fan, shelves and drawers, and any unnecessary refrigerator items. Outside, the refrigerator can be sheathed with wood or other convenient material. This will make a handy box for storing food.
5. Armchair and ottoman
In addition to the sofa, a stylish chair and ottoman can be made from a broken refrigerator. In the photo below, the chair is made from an Israeli refrigerator from the 50s.
6. Cellar
From the old refrigerator you can make a cellar for storing vegetables and fruits. Learn more about how to do this in the video:
You can always think of other ways to give a second life to your old refrigerator. And if all else fails, then on the Internet you can find a company that buys old trash, and this will save you from having to take it to the landfill yourself.
There are many options for using old washing machines and refrigerators, both quite practical and decorative.
Ideas for Reusing Old Appliances
Everything breaks sometime. Washing machines and refrigerators are no exception. If your equipment has already definitely fallen into complete disrepair and cannot be repaired, do not rush to throw it in a landfill. There are many options for using old washing machines and refrigerators, both quite practical and decorative.
Flower pot from the drum of an old washing machine. It is quite nice and roomy, it is not afraid of moisture, it will last a long time, because metal is a very reliable material. You can paint such a flowerpot for plants in any color.
The whole washing machine became a flower bed, even a container for powder and rinse aid was used. Of course, such a piece of household appliances looks strange surrounded by greenery, but in general it is a very interesting option, an original element of landscape design.
The most popular way to use an old drum from a washing machine is a brazier. You can cook on wood and coals not only kebabs, both a pot and a frying pan will conveniently stand on top. At the same time, it is very simple to make such a brazier.
This is already an improved version of the barbecue from the washing drum, on a tripod. By the way, the design is quite light, it is easy to carry around the site. As an option, it was possible to equip a stationary place for an outdoor hearth by arranging a convenient platform around the drum.
And who will say that it is ugly - reflections of the flame in the holes of shiny metal. Such a brazier does not look at all like an old and useless thing, but a relevant and practical element of a personal plot.
From a very old washing machine, or rather, its rounded metal case, you can make a smokehouse for fish and meat products.
This is how the drum of a washing machine, which a designer or a house owner with a rich imagination has worked on, can look elegant. By the way, in the empty case of such a pedestal-seat with a soft pillow, it is quite possible to store all kinds of little things.
And again a flower bed in a whole washing machine. Beautiful bright petunias smoothed out the brutality of the plain metal body of the equipment, which obviously served for many years until it turned into a flower bed.
Wardrobe in an old refrigerator. The case was painted, there are few shelves, but they are quite roomy, and various little things fit in the former freezer.
Even if the refrigerator itself refused to freeze, this cannot prevent you from using it to cool drinks during an outdoor party. A simple wooden plank finish looks quite attractive, and the ice under the now hinged lid will last for a long time.
An incubator in an old refrigerator case. It will retain heat, especially if it is additionally insulated, you only need lamps for heating eggs and a thermometer to control the temperature. A good option for those who want to start breeding chickens.
House for puppies. It turned out a separate bed and dining room. For a larger dog, the refrigerator case would also be suitable as a bed, you just need to remove the shelves.
A chest for potatoes and other vegetables. If there is no cellar - a good place to store. A refrigerator dug into the ground will heat up and cool slightly, less likely that the potatoes will germinate or, conversely, freeze. published
We have one old refrigerator, but the working one was given to a poor large family that lived nearby. Of course, it was possible to sell, but my husband and I believe that this technique will be more necessary and useful for those in need.
The second small refrigerator broke, but we fixed it. Replaced and connected one part. He is already 20 years old, and he keeps and works.
Third, well, he is generally very old. His husband took it to the garage and it contains the accessories he needs for the car.
My father made a dryer for fruits, mushrooms, berries and herbs. Pulled out the unit from below, replacing it with a fan heater. The shelves were replaced with mesh ones made of fine mesh. I installed a thermometer from an old heating boiler in the door. The temperature inside keeps 38-40 degrees. Dries up overnight. Dried apples are always light evenly.
From the refrigerator in which the internal metal enameled chamber is used, an excellent cart and even a bicycle trailer will turn out. I assembled this cart from a very old interior that had been used as a compost bin for over 25 years, already all dented but still quite usable for building a cart.
We have an old refrigerator that is not connected on the balcony, and serves as a kind of locker - some products and canned food are stored there in winter and summer. Both in summer and winter, there are no extreme temperature changes in the refrigerator, which is not bad for the safety of food.
And one friend in his country house made a smokehouse out of an old refrigerator, dug a hole, put the refrigerator case on top, smokes fish and meat there - that’s also not bad, in my opinion.
I can offer two options that have already been tried in practice:
1. Gut the old refrigerator. As a result, a lot of useful things will turn out: a) scrap metal, which needs to be divided into two piles - black metal to black, and non-ferrous metal to non-ferrous, and hand it over for scrap at different prices; b) a wire with a plug, which can later be used on other electrical appliances; c) glass wool, which can be used to insulate part of the ceiling; d) screws-bolts-nuts-screws, which are always useful in the household.
2. As already mentioned in previous answers, make them a refrigerator cabinet. That is, you don’t need to do anything, but simply call the refrigerator a cabinet and calm down. It should be especially noted that not a single mouse will get into this cabinet, since it is simply impossible to gnaw through metal with mouse teeth.
Of course, the best option is to take this refrigerator to the country house, if it is available. Or at least to the garden and you can put various garden tools in it for the winter so that they do not gather dust on the street.
Another option is to sell it for scrap. Or take it out to a balcony or loggia, and use it as a storage that is closed.
If your refrigerator works fine, then you can sell it at an alternative price, someone will need it and buy it.
Like a wardrobe, an old refrigerator can fit into a niche or closet in your home. You can take it to the garage and store something there, because modern garages have electricity.
A friend of mine used to have a doll house made out of an old fridge when she was a child. I remember many girls envied her because they would also like to have such a spacious doll house with several floors and balconies.
Sell it for scrap. I heard a lot of people do this. They even create teams that look for these very old refrigerators and sell them for scrap. They make good money from it. Anything is better than just gathering dust in garages and sheds.
If your refrigerator is broken and cannot be repaired, and it’s also a pity to throw it away, since it is dear to you in its own way, then put it on a loggia or balcony. Men can keep their tools, as some often work on the loggia. And the hostess can put cereals in it, and in winter it will serve as a freezer and you can freely store meat, fish, berries all winter. It serves as a storage room for many people.
from an old refrigerator you can make not a bad cabinet for the cottage. Decorate or paint and it will not be a bad cabinet ..
You can make a big flower bed or put it on the beds. You can also make a storage room, any things. If the refrigerator works, then sell it.
It can also be used as a table. And if you decorate it and present it to the wall in the hallway, you get a long bench, and put boots, slippers, and shoes in storage inside the old refrigerator. By the way, according to this principle, you can put such a bench in the kitchen, to the window. Sat down or lay down, read a book, beauty! And inside the refrigerator you can store various cereals, pasta, various kitchen appliances.
Since refrigerator cases are made of very good sheet metal, it can be cut off and used for body work or other work, for example, in the country. If the refrigerator is still showing signs of life, then you can use its compressor as a spray gun or to inflate car tires. The inside of the refrigerator can be used to store tools. If you turn the refrigerator upside down, you can get a good chest for storing various things ...
