How to Sand and Polish a Boring Kitchen Appliance to a Reflective Finish

After sanding a sheet of aluminum to a mirror finish, YouTube creator Skills and Trade decided to take their sanding skills a step further and try their hand at sanding and polishing a mini-fridge. Here’s what went down:

Contrary to what you might think, there is absolutely nothing wrong with the fridge. It doesn’t have rust on its edges, nor does it look aged in any form or manner. In fact, the only reason they seem to be sanding and polishing it is, well, because they have a friggin’ sander and they can.

Just like with their previous aluminum sheet project, they spray Alumicut lubricant over the front of the mini-fridge before starting the sanding process with 200-grit sandpaper. Immediately after taking the sander to the surface, the door begins to shed its dull metal appearance and starts to take on a mirror sheen.

The sheen only gets shinier once they pass it over with 400-grit sandpaper. The first sanding is done with some spray-on Alumicut while the second pass is done by placing the sandpaper on an interface pad before putting it on the Hookit pad of the sander. Doing so helps smooth out the lines and swirl marks from all the sanding.

Sanding with the 800-grit and 1,500-grit sandpaper is then done by placing the sandpaper on an interface pad and smoothening out the remaining lines. 

The final sanding consists of 3,000-grit and 5,000-grit sandpaper, respectively. The door is then sanded down until it becomes a reflective surface (you can tell so by the reflections of the drill and overhanging sky).

After wiping off some of the Alumicut, the polishing can now commence. Taking a towel dabbed with polish, they smear the door until it becomes dark and faded. Once every inch is covered, they swap the interface pad on their drill for a polishing pad which is placed on the Hookit pad and begin polishing.

A protective sealant is then applied before wiping the whole thing down for excess polish, sand, and other materials. Sadly, the entire fridge can’t be given a mirror sheen as no amount of sanding and polishing can make the other surfaces reflective.

Still, viewing the mini-fridge from the front lets you see just how out of shape you are before opening it for some more snacks. More sanding and polishing videos can be found on the Skills and Trade YouTube channel, so be sure to check it out!

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