The littleun is now pretty mobile and in that phase where things in kitchen cupboards are the best thing on the planet. So the wife decided she is going to put those catches on the cupboard doors; you know the ones that prevent the door from opening fully and require you to reach inside and release a little catch.

She has fitted the first one and somehow managed to fit it such that the door is shut completely, doesn’t open an inch, not even a crack. It’s basically locked solid from the inside! 😯

Any suggestions of how to fix the problem short of ripping the door off it’s hinges?

Oh and apparently it’s my fault for not helping.

Without seeing the catch in question Id have to say no, rip it off,

tee hee, girls are silly.

can you….
take a drawer out from above it?
reach around from a neighbouring cupboard?
pull the kickboard out and reach up?
lift off the work surface (biggest one)

last suggestion i can think of involves a crowbar.
goodluck

They're usually made of plastic. A good strong tug with adult strength should snap the barb off the end. Failing that, a small lever in the door gap.

wire hanger maybe, is there a draw above the you could take out and reach down?

Oh and of cause its your fault just like when my other half smashed my yard of ale glass "well if you had put the baking trays away last night like i asked" Grrrrr 🙂

Edit sorry too slow with the draw option…. my fault for ranting 🙂

Draw out is def easiest way if there is one. or adjoining cupboard.

bombers to the door is best approach then wee in her shoes for wasting your time

I know, girls are so much value aren't they! It was just the look on her face when she told me, sort of like 'ooopsie, I think I've made a mistake!'

TBH it's actually quite funny.

The cupboard is the one immediately below the sink so there is no draw above and lifting the worktop is not really an option. Coat hanger sounds like an option. The wife also thought that some string hooked around the door side might work.

You see that's what I love about her. She's daft as a brush enough to make a hash of the job in the first place, but sharp as a razor to then come up with an ingenious idea to fix it!

Oh and apparently it’s my fault for not helping

Haven't you learnt its always your fault, whether you help or not? 😐

then wee in her shoes for wasting your time

Brilliant 😆

the fake draw between the sink and the cupboard may pop off, may also be screwed on………

Nnnnnng… it's a "DRAWER" ffs, not a "draw".

Sorry. One person I could handle, but three of you have spelt it like that and it is doing my pedantic napper in.

Eye’m shore an STW thread would not bee complete with out some speling or grammar, error 🙂

Something pretty thin…pallet knife, spatula etc and flexible that can slide in and push the catch in whatever direction it needs to be pushed?

I could lend you my 3yr old. she can open any of these pesky child safe things, with or without reaching in to release the latch.

[smartarse]We never bothered with those things, we just made sure there was nothing breakable in the bottom cupboards, and trained her not to go in the one with the bins in[/smartarse]

We never bothered with those things, we just made sure there was nothing breakable in the bottom cupboards, and trained her not to go in the one with the bins in when we were looking

😉

@ Graham – know you now I've never really thought about that but now you come to mention it, yes, its a drawer knot a draw. Funny how even if you think you're English is pretty good your never to smart too be corrected.

@ Yetiman – brilliant, I love it. This is what we have to look forward to!

They're usually made of plastic. A good strong tug with adult strength should snap the barb off the end.

That is what I was thinking.

Or as Darcy says, something flexible – if you know approximately where the catch is (and dependant on siting of shelves etc) you may be able to push something in that will ride against the arm of the hooked side and push it away from the catch – something like a cut-out piece of plastic milk bottle should have enough rigidity whilst at the same time be flexible enough.

I'm with TreewhatTree – if it's the drawer under the sink then it usually doesn't open anyway (it is just the front face for finishing as the sink takes up the space a drawer would use) – has she been playing a trick on you to make you think it was a drawer?

It's a test to see how much time you spend in the kitchen and if you actually do anything in the kitchen to help out…tread carefully with this one!

Another vote for pushing a piece of flexible plastic between the door and the frame. Would a credit card work?

Would a credit card work?

If you give him your details (plus the three figure code of course), I'm sure he'll find something to sort himself out…like a new kitchen or the likes 🙂

Brute force and ignorance? They're supposed to be child-proof, not adult-proof. A good rive should break the plastic?

We ended up sawing it off using a serrated edged knife! Tugging really wasn't happening!

Tugging really wasn't happening!

I should think not – not when you have a serrated knife in your hand 😯