My question is two fold: does anyone use this rack from Amazon or something similar, where the spice bottles pop into a holder and has anyone ever hung (or are for-or-against) hanging spices on the side of the fridge? Lemme 'splain: I’ve got a gorgeous stainless Kitchen Aid fridge with a bottom freezer that’s the love of my life. It is from the Sears scratch 'n dent store so it’s dented on the left side, which is the visible side (side’s not stainless, it’s regular rubber/plastic fridge material). It’s not awful but I figure I might as well cover it up if possible. ETA: I realize that the side of the fridge is slightly textured, pebbly, like old school fridges are here. Would the command strips fail?
So I was thinking the previously linked to rack from Amazon and I could use those Command 3m strips (others in the comments/reviews have used those) and order two sets (they come in packs of 3, I believe) since I have a metric ton of spices and although my cabinet space has increased threefold, my roommate is a big cook so she has a ton of crap as well.
So 1) is it a good idea to semi-cover up the dents that way? Obviously I’d have to be sure the sticky strips were on nondented portions and that the bottles themselves covered the dents and 2) Any downside - would the spices be okay on the slightly-cool side of the fridge? In the winter would it be a problem (I typically keep my house at 68-72)?
Or am I going about it ALL wrong and I need your spice set up?
Other possibilities include the 3-tier mounted spice rack, although I have a pretty cheap new door on the pantry like this that is very lightweight; I dunno if it’s not real wood or just very soft and light. Would it work since it’s not a totally flat surface?
I have a handyman coming to install shelves into the now-empty pantry later this week so if it’s possible he can do it, I just figured I’d ask the teeming Millions if it was a good idea or impractical.
Of course there’s always this option too, a 3 tiered shelf that would go in the pantry itself.
My only stipulation is that suggestions NOT be something that sits on the counter since counterspace is at a premium.
No such thing as “too cold.” As long as the area is dark and cool, go ahead with attaching something to the side of the fridge for often-used spices. I’d make sure to save a few empty containers as well, in case you want a spice that isn’t packaged in a container that fits the rack.
Unless you want an under-cabinet mounted spice rack, this won’t work for you, but for others interested in the topic, this spice rack freakin’ rocks.
It’s mostly opaque, so light won’t damage the spices, there’s rotating knobs that turn a water-wheel like thingie that drop 1/4 tsp of a spice per click, they’re easy to fill, they have shakers built in.
I would go with the little shelf. I always have kept my spices in the cabinet closest to the stove. Right now I have both carousel on the counter (not an option for you) plus filled shelves above. Spices are so much more than cloves and cumin — I’ve got several kinds of salts (::counting:: seven in fact!*), at least two types of pepper, plus my flavorings are up there, too — vanilla, etc. Also it’s the place for bread crumbs, corn starch, baking powder … I like all my stuff together!
If you are looking for something to pretty up the side of your fridge, why not choose a prettier spice rack? They make some really nice magnetic boxes these days that can be hung on metal strips. Sort of similar to the one Shark Sandwich linked. Do a search on Amazon for “magnetic spice tins” for a whole bunch of examples of what I’m talking about. Everything is uniform and in the same finish as your appliances. Pretty and it can hide the dent in the fridge. Win!
I LOVE the magnetic boxes but then that would mean changing everything out of Penzey’s (at this point I’ve been really cooking for 2.5 years so almost everything is now Penzey’s) and into the little boxes. Of course the side of the fridge isn’t stainless, it’s that regular material fridges were made of previously, so I’m wondering if it would clash or wouldn’t look as good as the effort put forth :p.
I do love** Shark Sandwich**'s link. I’m not at 50-60 but I’m at 30 something, so I don’t think it’s worth it…yet. I’ll tack it onto the “it can I wait 3 years till the wedding registry” list.
For all that work it better look GORGEOUS and scribbling on the front with a Sharpie isn’t gonna cut it, so I’d need a label maker and assorted sundry items too. But the setup is ingenious. Of course, it wouldn’t cover the “the fridge is dented” thing. I really don’t care but I’m constantly thinking of what will stick out when we sell (I’m out of the “they’re dragging me out of here feet first” phase and into the “well it’s only for 4-5 years, better keep it looking new” phase).
Very good idea. Right now they’re all in Penzey’s but naturally that could change.
Ellen Cherry, how do you NOT have kosher on that list! It’s heresy
I bought a bunch of the 3 oz tins from here; they have a plastic part inside the lid that screw-locks onto the tin, so there’s no problem with the tops loosening. They’re opaque, sturdy, and essentially airtight. They also stick to magnets, unlike aluminum ‘tins’.
I screwed a piece of sheet steel to the inside of a cabinet door, and arrayed a bunch of 3/8" neodymium magnets on it in a hexagon pattern. I got the magnets on Ebay for < 50% of normal retail price - the shipping actually cost more than the magnets. The canisters stick to the magnets with a healthy amount of force, and there are 3 magnets for every canister, so they don’t spin or rock back and forth. They don’t come off unless you lever them off with a twist, and they don’t slide down the door even when fully loaded. There is no velcro or adhesive-based stuff on the backside of the tin; there is no magnet rattling around inside the tin or glued inside the tin in contact with the spices; there are no horizontal shelves or racks to collect dirt. There’s no rattling or clinking when the door opens and closes, and the tops of the lids are always visible. The plastic ring inside the lid of the canisters closes tightly against the bottom, unlike some tins that I have seen which allow spices to trickle out if they are set upside down or on their sides. I have 24 canisters on the door; some are empty, and there is room to add more if needed. I write on the lids in Sharpie to indicate the contents; a swipe with rubbing alcohol removes the markings when needed.
I saw a lot of other setups before I put mine together, and I wouldn’t trade mine for any other system. If you want to cover a dented part of the side of a fridge, you could hold a sheet of metal there under the magnets that you use to hold up the spice canisters. Believe me, the metal sheet won’t go anywhere with thirty or forty neodymium magnets on it. You can paint or otherwise decorate the metal sheet, or even put it over the magnets rather than under them - they will hold the tins up right through the sheet metal.
The only drawbacks that I see in my setup are the initial cost of the magnets (the tins themselves are pretty cheap) and the fact that you can’t see how much is in the canisters.
Adore it! I keep meaning to make a few more tins for the stuff I’ve found I use a little more than “back of the pantry”. But it’s awesome. No more hauling crap out of the cabinet and standing on a stepstool because I know I have that in there somewhere… Between that and hanging my measuring cups off the side of a cabinet, my kitchen life is improved 100%.
brossa, I’ve got a similar set up to you, but I used magnetic strips from McMaster-Carr. I screwed the strips to the inside of a cabinet door, but I’d imagine you could just slap them on the side of the fridge if you wanted to.
Oops, looks like I mentioned that in the last discussion we had about spice storage.
