9 RV Refrigerator Door Locks and Travel Latches
Necessity is the mother of invention. When the need arises so do many creative and innovative ideas that are easy to implement and install. Fridge locks and latches do not need a hasp and a padlock. There are other great ideas that let you secure your food and still give you easy access to your fridge’s interior.
One option is the fridge fixer. It locks both the freezer and the fridge door at the same time. Plus, it opens up very easily and attaches between the doors of your fridge. The only issue when you make this upgrade is whether or not something this simple voids your warranty or not.
To learn more about these handy little devices that can solve big food issues for you, just continue to read our article. It has the information you want to know about so that you do not damage any uneaten food while you are on the road.
How do I Stop My Camper Fridge From Opening?
There is supposed to be a little threaded rod that is part of your fridge design. It screws in to hold the doors closed and screws out when you need to open them. However, the drawback to this option is that the rod can get lost and if you are in a hurry this device may slow you down.
There is a lever option that will work. The handle, when closed will hold both doors. It is designed to go into the holes the manufacturer placed in the fridge for that threaded rod. It works easier than the rod as you only need to move it left or right to open or close the fridge doors.
The fridge fixer is also a handy little device and it does have its own web page talking about this option. However, it does need a 0.6” gap between the freezer and fridge doors. Another drawback is that it is not made for mini-fridges or side-by-side options.
Some owners have used it anyways with some success.
RV Refrigerator Door Lock
There is some good news, you do not have to buy a hasp and padlock to keep your fridge door closed. These items would have to screw into your fridge to work and that is not always a good idea.
However, there are options and one of those options would be the child safety locks that many young families use when their children are small. They attach via sticky bottoms to both the wall of the fridge and the front of it. You can place one on your freezer door and one on your fridge door.
They only button up making it easy to get inside when you need to. Plus, they should not harm your warranty as you made no alterations to the fridge. Other models use magnets for both sides of the lock and that is a good alternative as you do not have any sticky mess to clean when you remove the locks.
Dometic makes a replacement handle and latch. If yours breaks, you can always get a new one to restore the lock and the security. There are more options than we can write about here.
RV Residential Refrigerator Door Travel Latch
There are a lot of interesting designs when it comes to this accessory. One similar to the child-proof locks we just talked about is one that comes with a key. The key fits into the lock on the door side of the fridge and you just turn it to unlock the door.
Similar models use a combination if you do not want to lose any keys or do not like using keys at all. Both models come with self-adhesive #M tape to secure the lock onto your fridge wall and door.
Another model is a simple metal piece with a push button as a locking device. Press the device and the latch lets you enter the fridge. It too uses self-adhesive tape to hold it onto your fridge.
If you want traditional methods, the old brass barrel bolt door lock may work for you. It is attached via screws through your fridge’s trim. Once installed you just open and close it like you would if it were attached to your front or back doors on your traditional home.
Then there is a nice-looking door latch or lock. It is one-hand operational and all you need to do to lock or unlock it is push the button. Pushing the button retracts the latch closure, sliding it back out of the way so you can easily lift the latch to open your door.
To lock the door you just reverse the process. It is simple, easy and it looks good as the design is meant to complement your fridge not contrast with it.
Freezer Door Clip
You may have trouble finding these parts initially. There are so many different items listed under freezer door clips that you may have to search several different websites or result pages before you find the part you want.
If you use the search term Freezer Door locking clip, you will end up with the same results as we have just talked about. There are far too many different designs available to make mention in the little space that we have today.
The choices you get will be divided up into 2 different categories- plastic or metal. Both are effective and both should last a long time before you need to replace them. That is under normal use of course.
Some of the metals ones will need screws to hold them in place which may not be a good idea for some fridges in your RV or travel trailer. One unique style has 3 buttons on it.
One of those buttons does not work while 2 will. Someone presses the wrong button, the fridge door won’t open. The drawback to this solution is that it works for side-by-side freezer fridges, an option many RVs and travel trailers do not come with.
Securing My RV Refrigerator Door
This is not going to be a difficult task to do. The hardest part of this project is deciding which type of fridge lock you want to go with. There is a myriad of designs, some with wires, some with keys, or combinations, some with screws or adhesive, and some that look good while others do not look so good.
The one you use will depend on if you want to put screws into your fridge or just use adhesive tape. We should warn you that if your fridge is still under warranty, you should be careful of which model you choose to use.
It is possible that certain models will void the warranty due to their attachment design. Not all of these models that use the bung or threaded rod hole will work on all models. The Frigidaire model is said to have off set holes making it impossible to use those designs.
You will have to see what your fridge design looks like and then pick the model that works for you. You may have to go with the adhesive options as they are the easiest to install and use.
Finding an RV Fridge Lock
The difficulty in this issue is deciding which one to use, not where to find them on sale. Just about every hardware store you know of should have a few of these on hand and ready to sell you. What their price will be will depend on the city the hardware store is located in.
Or you should find a large selection in the many big box stores that dot the countryside. The home improvement section should have a lot of options to choose between. You should find them listed under childproof locks.
The same will go for Amazon or similar marketplaces. You should find more of a selection under those search words and not fridge locks or RV fridge locks. If they will work for your traditional home fridge, they should work for your RV, etc., fridge.
The side-by-side options may not work though unless your RV, etc. does come with a nice side-by-side fridge option. Take your time to search for the right fridge latch as there are a lot of good designs out there at reasonable prices.
Some Final Words
Latching your fridges so that it stays closed while you are traveling is not a difficult issue to solve. There are more than enough options to choose between that you should be able to solve the problem in a matter of minutes.
Plus, you will find quite a few that look good and will not stand out in a glaring, ugly fashion. The prices are all reasonable and affordable as well. You won’t break the bank buying one or two of these door locks and your doors should stay closed all the time.
