Fridge cable- mice damage.

[zoothorn]

Hi chaps, 

 

I need to replace a fridge cable, but cannot figure out how to access rear section, to remove grey mains cable.

 

Hotpoint fairly new fridge. Photo here: seems to be a black square electric terminal housing. 
 

Anyone familiar with something like this? Thanks.

 

Zoot

 

 

[BotusBuild]

Those two screws are likely a clamp holding the cables in place. Remove those first. You should then see copper internals of the cable held in place however Hotpoint do it, hopefully simple some more screws

[Nickfromwales]

It’s a snap-together black terminal box, so start by unplugging it first and then removing the silver screws and send some close up pics. 
 

You may want to buy some HO5 or HO7 ‘rubber’ flex as I believe they dislike gnawing on that. 

[zoothorn]

1 hour ago, BotusBuild said:

Those two screws are likely a clamp holding the cables in place. Remove those first. You should then see copper internals of the cable held in place however Hotpoint do it, hopefully simple some more screws

Hi BB, hope all's well in botusland.

 

Yup those 2 cable clamp screws easily removed (should've said I did those in #1). Then on though.. I'm stumped.

[zoothorn]

1 hour ago, Nickfromwales said:

It’s a snap-together black terminal box, so start by unplugging it first and then removing the silver screws and send some close up pics. 
 

You may want to buy some HO5 or HO7 ‘rubber’ flex as I believe they dislike gnawing on that. 

Ah. This is a step onward. Ok yup I can easily undo those two silver screws/ which removes the two little black cable clamps. But it's from here I'm at a loss- how to get into this terminal box.

 

I can't really take any better pics: the wee clamps removed doesn't give me anymore logical way of entry.

 

All I can see, is a small clip RHS on the housing.. but prying under this (which seems indeed to be some sort of clip locking two sections of the housing together)... I get nowhere. I just cant 'open' the housing. I'll just break the clip if I go any harder at it. There's defo something else I need to undo or unclip, to get the housing open. 
 

But I can't get around rearside of it ( to find another clip or aomething), being pretty obviously inaccessible.

 

Great info about the flex thanks- That's exactly what I had in mind to buy poss tmrw in screwfix.

 

[Onoff]

Look for slots that you slip a small flat bladed screwdriver into to open the terminal cover.

[zoothorn]

21 minutes ago, Onoff said:

Look for slots that you slip a small flat bladed screwdriver into to open the terminal cover.

Hi there Onoff.

 

I can clearly see this one I'm pointing to in pic 1, but even a flat s'driver trying to prize this clip up, only gets so far.. it feels like there at least one other clip, rearside or something.. Lord knows how I could get to/ pic 2.

 

Thanks. Zh

 

 

[-rick-]

Can you show us the damage to the cable?

 

If it's tricky to access, maybe you can just cut it shorter and put a plug/joint on the shorter cable?

[zoothorn]

17 minutes ago, -rick- said:

Can you show us the damage to the cable?

 

If it's tricky to access, maybe you can just cut it shorter and put a plug/joint on the shorter cable?

Hi there Rick.

 

Good idea, bit I really want to replace cable for a mouseproof one.. afaik this didn't cause the kitchen spur or any, to trip the fuse. And I can't access behind the cabinets to seal up holes/ so mice will still be able to have another go.

 

I will have to do this if I can't get into the housing tho. 

[zoothorn]

1 hour ago, -rick- said:

Can you show us the damage to the cable?

 

If it's tricky to access, maybe you can just cut it shorter and put a plug/joint on the shorter cable?

Rick, can I assume you meant this (kinda blindingly obvious to me now!) way with your plug/joint idea? (Edit: photo added below).

 

[If so then once again, I self-nominate for the BH Big Thicko Cup.. '26].

 

Is there any safety compromises doing this way? I only ask as it's my Mum's fridge/ not mine. If all ok, I'll try buy a better 'mouseproof' cable tmrw & redo the female plug socket onto it.

 

 

 

Thanks Zoot

Edited 8 hours ago by zoothorn

[-rick-]

18 minutes ago, zoothorn said:

Rick, can I assume you meant this (kinda blindingly obvious to me now!) way with your plug/joint idea? (Edit: photo added below).

 

Roughly yes, though from the earlier photo I didn't expect the lead to need to be cut that short. (It wasn't clear where the damage was)

 

18 minutes ago, zoothorn said:

Is there any safety compromises doing this way? I only ask as it's my Mum's fridge/ not mine. If all ok, I'll try buy a better 'mouseproof' cable tmrw & redo the female plug socket onto it.

 

I'm not an electrician but I don't think this is a problem. Keep the plug outside the fridge metalwork.

 

If you are going to buy different cable then you can get joint boxes to replace the plug + socket. Will be a neater/more compact job. For example:

 

https://www.screwfix.com/p/vimark-30a-chocbox-connector-box-90-x-30-x-50mm-white/194vt

[zoothorn]

2 minutes ago, -rick- said:

 

Roughly yes, though from the earlier photo I didn't expect the lead to need to be cut that short. (It wasn't clear where the damage was)

 

 

I'm not an electrician but I don't think this is a problem. Keep the plug outside the fridge metalwork.

 

If you are going to buy different cable then you can get joint boxes to replace the plug + socket. Will be a neater/more compact job. For example:

 

https://www.screwfix.com/p/vimark-30a-chocbox-connector-box-90-x-30-x-50mm-white/194vt

Ah yes a connector box like that would seem a better idea. I can buy one tmrw to replace the plug & socket. 

 

A few things remain though: could anyone ID some form of 'mouseproof' cable from either screwfix or toolstation? Im getting hundreds of results with the screwfix App thing that's been forced on me to use: I cannot abide it as it seems to calculate hundreds of unrelated items.. then Im sifting for a needle in a haystack.

 

Lastly, forgive my idiocy here.. but it just occured to me how I get the cable fed through, at the cabinet rear. ??
 

IE say I have my 3ft x H 5ft kitchen cabinet 'hole' to slide my fridge into with the cable now replaced. Once it's slid in.. I obviously have no possible access to get to the plug/ cable behind it, to then pass plug behind & Rightwards into the back of the adjacent sink cabinet (same board back general hole where the sink pipes go out).. where the plug socket is.

 

Thanks. Zoot 

 

[zoothorn]

How would the fridge cable here, have been manipulated, in order to insert the plug on it's end, into the adjacent (sink cabinet) socket??

 

Im tearing my hair out trying to figure out how whoever did this (or indeed any under-the-worktop type appliance, a dishwasher, washing machine/ anything) got it's plug, into the socket.

 

You can see the BLACK plug in the double socket, on the RHS midway above the open door..

 

 

Edited 1 hour ago by zoothorn