Needless to say, keeping a refrigerator in the garage and storing your drinks there will free up space for one in the kitchen.
That’s all good but keep in mind, during winter your garage gets cold. If you’ve got an uninsulated garage this will bring all sorts of trouble.
The refrigerator will stop functioning at some point and will start thawing your foods in there. Installing a garage refrigerator kit provides the best solution in such a case.

But that begs the question, how to install a garage refrigerator heater kit? Don’t worry. We’ll walk you through the exact steps here so that you can install one in your current refrigerator.
But before jumping into it, let’s talk about the basics of a garage refrigerator kit.
Table of Contents
What Is A Garage Refrigerator Kit?
Well, a garage refrigerator kit is a handy heating coil installed within the thermostat of a fridge to keep the air warm around it. Mainly it is used so that the refrigerator hardly reacts to the air temperature of the garage.
How Does A Garage Refrigerator Kit Work?
A refrigerator garage kit consists of wire filaments kept inside a glass tube. The thermostat supplies the electrical power that goes through the wires. Due to this, the tube gets heated which then keeps the thermostat warmer when it can’t manage itself.
This, in turn, allows the compressor to run longer and keeps your foods frozen despite the colder outside condition. In the aftermath, you’ll have properly frozen food even when the garage isn’t insulated during winter.
How To Install Garage Refrigerator Heater Kit
To install the kit, you have to go through a few steps, which we’re about to discuss here in detail. But before you start, be sure to turn off the power switch first. It’s a universal caution dealing with any electrical assignment.
Tools you need:
- A screwdriver
- Flashlight
- Garage refrigerator kit
To install a garage refrigerator kit:
- Unplug the refrigerator first. The refrigerator will be connected to a wall socket.
- Separate its control housing. You’ll see four hex screws holding the upper and the backside of the housing. Unscrew them carefully. A flashlight will ease your work during the process.
- Unscrew the front screw of the housing control and gently unfold the wiring.
- Disengage the connector and move the controller back and forth slightly. This will help the back wall get rid of the defrost drain spout. Keep the control housing in a safe place.
- Unscrew the defrost timer when you’re done separating the control housing.
- Remove the heater pad following the instructions written on the kit paper.
- Remember to take out the heater backing. Watch out if the heater pad gets folded or not.
- Raise the defrost timer and gently press the heater pad into the inner housing. Probably, you need to drive out the thermostat tube to place the heater properly.
- Check out the wiring of the thermostat. You will discover two cables, one is orange in color, and another one is black. It carries 120 V, whenever power is given to the kit.
- Take those two wires apart (from the thermostat). Locate this in place with heater connectors. These two wires have a small connector on their back.
- You need to route the wires maintaining the color uniformity. It means orange wire goes with the orange, while black goes with the black.
- Reconnect the terminals over the thermostat.
- Finally, start reinstalling control housing following the opposite sequence.
Frequently Asked Questions
u003cstrongu003eCan I keep a freezer in an unheated garage?u003c/strongu003e
u003cstrongu003eCan I plug a refrigerator in a garage?u003c/strongu003e
u003cstrongu003eIs it expensive to operate a refrigerator in a garage?u003c/strongu003e
Should I unplug my garage refrigerator in winter?
What is the best garage refrigerator heater kit?
Final Verdict
In case you move your refrigerator to the garage, installing a garage refrigerator kit is the best means to save both money and time.
And knowing how to install a garage refrigerator heater kit, will assist you in the process to a great extent. I hope you’ve liked the information above and will follow along to safely install the kit.
Helpful Products For Your Garage
Thank you for reading this article. I hope you found it helpful. Here are a couple of websites I’ve found that have some helpful products I have personally used to organize, maintain, and help add some style to my garage over the years.
These are affiliate links, so if you do decide to use any of them, I’ll earn a commission. But in all honesty, these are the exact products that I use and recommend to everyone, even my own family.
Garagebasics.com – Garagebasics.com does have everything you need to create the most attractive and organized garage on your block. I purchased Garage Basics Diamond garage floor tiles for my new garage floor and I couldn’t be happier with the result.
Click the Garage Basics website link above to find everything from storage racks to garage workbenches and see why this is my go-to site when looking for products to improve my garage.
Dooropenersandmore.com – Dooropenersandmore.com sells a large selection of replacement garage door opener remotes, keypads, and receivers all in one place! When my LiftMaster remote failed last year, dooropenersandmore.com came to my rescue.
I was really surprised at the number of brands they carried and their prices were lower than I could find anywhere else. If you need replacement parts for your garage door remote, keypad, or receiver, click the link above. Plus, shipping is free on orders in the United States!
If you need replacement parts for your garage door remote, keypad, or receiver; click the link above to see why they’re the best.