|
Cooler doors should slide open and closed easily. But sometimes they don't work as planned.
Here are ideas for making them glide smoothly again. Photos are for a 3 door TRUE brand unit.
The photos are taken in a white cooler because it is easier to see than in a finished floral black cooler.
 |
 |
 |
| Problem 1- The weights are hard to pull up and down which makes the doors hard to open. |
Designed to help close the door and keep it snugly closed, the weights work fairly well for a number of years. |
Eventually however, the cord becomes sticky and no longer smoothly flows through the copper tube which serves as its pully system. |
 |
 |
SOLUTION - Replace the cord with a clean new one.
Unscrew the cover over the weights. Leaving the old cord in place, cut the weight free. Attatch the new clean cord to the old cord with some tape. As you pull out the old cord, the new one will be pulled into its place through the twisty copper tube. |
| People often put grease or oil on the cord to make it slide better. This helps for a time but actually attracts dust and grime faster than a dry cord. |
To remove the cord, the door must be lifted up, then swung out at the bottom. Pictured is the top of the door where the cord hooks on. |
TEST THIS SOLUTION- Pull the door out, unhook the cord from the door. Put the door back in. If the door now slids easily back and forth you know the main problem is sticky weights. If its still hard to open and close look for another cause. |
|
|
 |
 With door on track, push the door towards the cooler back. This should shift the track now that it is unscrewed. |
| PROBLEM 2- The door is rubbing against the front of the frame. Too much friction. |
Solution 1
Remove the screws on the track. This allows the track to shift front and back in the frame. |
Run door a few times back and forth on the track. Does it slide easier? Does this take care of the rubbing? If yes, shift the track slightly left or right to avoid the old screw holes and screw the track down into the new position. |
|
Problem 2; Solution 2.
Still rubing on the frame after the track is allowed to move front or back? It may be because the track is slightly tipped. Not pointing straight up as it should. |
 |
As shown on the left, a small strip of material under one side will straighten up the angle of the track. Make it point straight up as it should. |
|
Problem 2; Solution 3
Warped frame on door. |
No picture available.
Sometimes the black frame around the glass of the door actually warps so that the left end and right end rub against the FRONT frame of the track while the middle of the door is bowed the other way and rubs against the BACK of the track frame.
The glass is strong and always stays straight. The frame may bend but the glass never will. |
Options:
A- Pin the frame to the glass near its base. Note how the glass is held into the frame with metal strips that are screwed to the frame and hold the glass? Add metal strips near the bottom corners where it will bend the frame straight again.
B- Replace the frame or the entire door.
C- Sand down the door edge so it does not scrape the frame wall |
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
| |