topic Re: Need help getting a drawer open in Home

Need help getting a drawer open

geegerbee — Sat, 10 Dec 2016 00:49:31 GMT

I don't know what to do. I tried to opena small drawer. Something was stuck, so I pushed the item down and closed the drawer. Now I can't open it At All. If I could open it a little, I could get a knife or something in, but it doesn't even open an inch. The bottom is wood and I would hate to have to saw it open, but can't figure out what else to do. Help.

Re: Need help getting a drawer open

ECBG — Sat, 10 Dec 2016 00:53:45 GMT

Can you and DH pick the piece up and shake it to dislodge the inside piece?

Re: Need help getting a drawer open

Mz iMac — Sat, 10 Dec 2016 01:00:37 GMT

First make sure the drawer is closed all the way.

If you can get under the drawer, shake it a little or a lot. See if it opens now. If not.....

If the under bottom of the drawer is sitting on metal sliders try pushing the back bottom up towards the roof to tilt the front part down or vice versa.

Re: Need help getting a drawer open

JeanLouiseFinch — Sat, 10 Dec 2016 01:25:07 GMT

@geegerbee Is there another drawer next to it? Maybe if you remove that drawer, you'll be able to see if the thing you pushed down, popped up again after the drawer was closed. It might take two people, but if you can go in from the side and push it down again, the other person can pull the drawer open. Wear gloves just in case what you're pushing down is sharp.

Re: Need help getting a drawer open

GSPgirl — Sat, 10 Dec 2016 01:28:00 GMT

Take a super thin flat metal ruler are yardstick and shove it in and it will dislodge your item.

Re: Need help getting a drawer open

Havarti — Sat, 10 Dec 2016 04:46:06 GMT

Along the line of what @GSPgirl said, try a very thin metal spatula (like you would use to frost a cake) and slide that in the crack at the top of the drawer.

Re: Need help getting a drawer open

gardenman — Sat, 10 Dec 2016 12:31:08 GMT

Worst case scenario is to drill a hole in through the back of the item behind the drawer, that's just about at the top of the drawer. You may then be able to slide in something like a knitting needle or other stiff rod to depress whatever's preventing the drawer from opening. That hole in the back can then be patched without a lot of trouble.

I've heard stories of people who used those vacuum packed storage bags in a dresser drawer and then had the seal fail and have the bags inflate in the drawer and seal it shut. In some cases they've had to make a fairly large access hole in the back of the dresser to get out enough of the items so they can open the drawer again.

Creating a back door (for lack of a better word) is a viable option that's typically not readily visible and is easy to accomplish. It's not ideal, but it preserves the outward appearance of the furniture and can be repaired fairly easily. Modern tools like the oscillating saws can let you make very precise cuts that are pretty easy to patch afterwards. If you make the cuts at an angle (say 45 degrees to the surface you're cutting) when you go to replace the cut out piece, it should just slide back into place. A bit of wood glue to hold it in place and you're back in business. Done right, the whole thing is largely unnoticeable.

Re: Need help getting a drawer open

SilleeMee — Sat, 10 Dec 2016 13:11:26 GMT

The stuck drawer...this has happened to me on numerous occasions. The one drawer that this happens to is just too full of stuff . I should re-organize it and make it less cluttered...but nooOOO, it just keeps getting stuck!

Solution for my procrastination...A COAT HANGER!

Re: Need help getting a drawer open

JeanLouiseFinch — Wed, 14 Dec 2016 22:53:05 GMT

I wonder if @geegerbee was ever able to get her drawer opened?

Re: Need help getting a drawer open

RedTop — Wed, 14 Dec 2016 22:55:21 GMT

Before we remodeled our kitchen last year, the small top drawer of the cabinet near the stove was always getting jammed with a utensil. Sometimes we could access it by opening the cabinet door underneath, but sometimes we could not. The last time it jammed, once we finally got the drawer out, I removed the wall screws, so all I had to do was lift the entire countertop off (it was only 12 inches wide).

With our new custom built cabinets, I had that one made with 3 deep drawers, so nothing sticks up high enough to cause a jam.

Re: Need help getting a drawer open

depglass — Sat, 24 Dec 2016 17:51:00 GMT

This always happens to my sock drawer, it's full of little squares. I guess I have fat socks.

Re: Need help getting a drawer open

gardenman — Sun, 25 Dec 2016 11:37:35 GMT

@BeccaLou wrote:
If You Can Take Out The Drawer Below The Stuck Drawer. That Will Dislodge The Item.I've Had That Happen Several Times. It Taught Me To Slow Down, Being Hurried Always Causes Me Problems.

Most older furniture will have 'dust catchers' (solid wood) between rows of shelving to prevent dirt/debris from an above drawer gettting into lower drawers. If the furniture has these dust catchers you can't just reach up from a lower drawer.

If the drawer isn't too full you might be able to shake/vibrate it enough to shift the object blocking the drawer. A pad sander without any sandpaper on it, or something like the Hitachi Magic Wand (useful in so many ways) applied to the drawer, might just rattle things around enough in the drawer to shift the object blocking it out of the way. Both types of devices can vibrate the heck out of whatever they touch and anything in the drawer will be moving. If the drawer's overly full, that may not help, but it can't hurt.