Veneer on a refrigerator door?

[Joe O'Connor]

I have a designer I work with who hates her stainless refrigerator doors, says she can't keep them clean with her very large dog and very small child running around. We talked about using a repurposed entry door then I said wouldn't it be cool to veneer the door. I don't know why I suggest things before I know they are possible but she loves the idea so now I have questions. Can I veneer a stainless door? Even if I can, should I? I don't own a vacuum bag or pump and have very limited experience with veneer but I've never let those kind of things stop me in the past. What do you think? Thanks, Joe.

[Jay Jolliffe]

Some refrigerator companies offer a trim kit that you make a wood panel to fit the door...Not all do offer this.

[David Hawxhurst]

you can do veneer without a vacuum bag. i've used the j-handle type roller to do large veneer panels, did it similar to the way you would do laminate. with the proper adhesive i think it would work fine.

[Gerry Grzadzinski]

You should never used a J roller with veneer. It won't apply enough pressure for a proper bond.

You have two options for veneering your door.

1) Use a paper backed veneer and contact adhesive. Preferably, spray two thin, even coats on both the door and the veneer, letting each dry thoroughly. Rather than a roller, use a wooden block with eased edges to press the veneer to the door. You use the block so that the edge is doing the work. I usually use a 3/4" x 2" board, 12"-18" long, to get good leverage. While "Experts" will tell you to never use contact cement and veneer, it works well when done right. It's a very common practice in commercial millwork.

2) Use epoxy with unbacked veneer in a vacuum bag. This method might be better, but may be much more difficult.

[Jamie Buxton]

A key issue is the edges of the veneer. You'll need something more substantial than veneer at the edges, like trim, otherwise the veneer edge will get frayed off. Then you have to figure out how to attach the trim to the door.

[Jim Becker]

Your designer is most likely going to hate the veneer more than the SS in a relatively short period of time...when the dog and the child scratch the heck out of it. At the very least a refrigerator with a panel system that allows for something more durable than just a thin layer of veneer is a better choice if SS (or another color) isn't in the cards.

A very light coating of mineral oil on a regular basis makes for SS that exhibits far fewer finger/hand prints, etc. ;) All my appliances are SS and that's how we keep them looking reasonably clean and bright.

[Peter Quinn]

A key issue is the edges of the veneer. You'll need something more substantial than veneer at the edges, like trim, otherwise the veneer edge will get frayed off. Then you have to figure out how to attach the trim to the door.


This is is the problem exactly. Most fridges with metal doors have roll formed edges, not truly square edges as that would just hurt. Your veneer isn't going to bend around those edges. So you have to wrap the doors with some thin solid stock, which may be too much build up where fridge meets freezer, and may not be so stable with contact cement, you could probably epoxy that part on using something like g-flex.

my first thought......it's time to pony up for a new fridge with an applied panel or one of those "almost stainless" finishes that are much easier to keep clean than actual stainless. I have a stainless fridge in my kitchen, seemed like a good idea in the store! Looks dirty most of the time.

[mreza Salav]

You should never used a J roller with veneer. It won't apply enough pressure for a proper bond.

You have two options for veneering your door.

1) Use a paper backed veneer and contact adhesive. Preferably, spray two thin, even coats on both the door and the veneer, letting each dry thoroughly. Rather than a roller, use a wooden block with eased edges to press the veneer to the door. You use the block so that the edge is doing the work. I usually use a 3/4" x 2" board, 12"-18" long, to get good leverage. While "Experts" will tell you to never use contact cement and veneer, it works well when done right. It's a very common practice in commercial millwork.

2) Use epoxy with unbacked veneer in a vacuum bag. This method might be better, but may be much more difficult.

J-roller sometimes is the only option, in fact I did all the veneering in the pas couple of years (in the house built/cabinet built project) using spray on contact cement and J-Roller and have zero issues with them. Almost all those situation it was a curved surface (like the curved range hood I made).

to the OP: I think contact cement will work in this situation too but I have never tested it on SS, so test on a scrap if you can. The main issue would be how would you go about edges, hinges and all the other parts. You don't want to start this and then half way through realizing it is not a good idea. So think it thoroughly before taking on.

[rudy de haas]

1) If this is a high end fridge (e.g. Wolf, Sub-Zero, or high end Jennair) the manufacturer will probably sell replacement door cover kits. She may not like the wood it comes with, but that's easy to change once you have the right frame and mountings.

2) if it's a low end or mid range, getting it replaced will probably cost less than you should charge her for trying to woodify the thing - so, in your place, I'd duck further responsibility by suggesting she just replace the thing.

[Gene Takae]

Interesting problem-I wonder if you could get a sign shop to wrap the fridge with a wood grain wrap? At least it would be easy to apply and remove if the client doesn't like the look.

[Matt Meiser]

The cleaning wipes sold a Lowes have some mineral oil in them--that's what we (well our cleaning lady) uses and they work pretty well. Crazy expensive compared to a bottle of mineral oil but convenient.